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 Larger
Than Life
12/21/2009
It is a symptom
of any poor economy that the art world will suffer. Horse racing
art, such as it is, figures to suffer even more than its
mainstream cousin. A harsh critic might suggest that there are
only a handful of truly accomplished equine artists plying their
trade, producing truly significant painting, sculpture and
photography. But without patronage--forever a function of the
economy--the next generation of talent will have no soil in
which to grow, while the established, respected practitioners
will suffer from lack of commissioned work.
That is why it is so encouraging that on
Saturday, at Santa Anita Park, a major piece of equine art will
be unveiled. In ceremonies during the afternoon, Ron McAnally
will officially pulled back the curtain on Nina Kaiser's
lifesize bronze of John Henry. That means 15-2 hands and about a
thousand pounds of bronze. There will be gasps, cheers and
tears. And that will just be from me. Imagine the sound from the
hundreds gathered in the immediate vicinity of the Kingsbury
Fountain, where the statue is being installed, from the
thousands at the track watching on video screens, and from those
viewing at home who will be moved by personal memories of the
great Thoroughbred and the sight of this permanent monument to
his achievements.
I was fortunate to have been allowed a very early sneak peek of
the John Henry in Kaiser's studio more than a year and a half
ago. As embryos go, it was a mere dot on an ultrasound--or in
this case a 12-inch clay model on Kaiser's workbench, which was
eventually transformed into a thousand pounds of patina-enriched
bronze. She was at the time worrying over every detail, as the
great sculptors will. Was the angle of the knee correct? Was the
hip full enough? Was the head set naturally? Was the expression
true? The commission called for John Henry to be captured under
tack, which makes sense, since he was and will be forever known
as the ultimate Thoroughbred warrior, although at that point he
wore only his trademark sheepskin shadow roll.
The commitment to Kaiser and the John Henry
statue survived the transition of Santa Anita into the
bankruptcy proceedings of its parent company, Magna
Entertainment. And thank goodness, for now there will be a
modern counterweight to the antique sensibilities of the
lifesize Seabiscuit statue standing in the Santa Anita walking
ring, not to mention a West Coast version of the John Skeaping's
Secretariat in the Belmont walking ring, and Alexa King's
Barbaro fronting the main entrance of Churchill Downs.
Kaiser, like any artist worth her shaping
tools, figured to be nervous as a bug boy on Saturday at the
unveiling, since she usualy is. But a call to her earlier in the
week revealed a woman of serene anticipation, and it was too
early in the day for chardonnay.
"I was at Santa Anita last Thursday and peeled
away some of the wrapping to check the patina," said Kaiser,
whose bronzes of Charlie Whittingham, Bill Shoemaker and Laffit
Pincay set the standard. "Everything looked fine, and then Ron
Charles walked up and said, 'Come on. Let's see it!'"
That would be Santa Anita president Ron
Charles, the man who green-lighted the John Henry commission,
and who gets to say things like "let's see it" and make it
happen.
"The reaction from the handful of people there
made me feel very good about it," Kaiser said. "If they were
pleased, I was pleased. I even forgot for a second the few
little things I'd change if I could have it back."
On Tuesday
of this week, the image of John Henry was being mounted on its
base, and then on Saturday, Kaiser will release her latest
creation into the world. If the unveiling unleashes a flood of
John Henry memories, that will be a good thing. He is an old
acquaintance who will definitely never be forgot. I've got a
more than few treasured, first-hand recollections, including the
sight of him on his pallet being lifted into a jet transport for
the trip to Chicago and that first, historic Arlington Million.
He was curious and calm, while his younger traveling mate Super
Moment fretted and shook the lift. John Henry looked at him as
if to say, "Sheesh, the kids today." John Henry won, over ground
he loathed, by the nod of his nose. Here is his complete record:
Download John Henry
The trip to Chicago was 28 years ago, last
August, and shoot me if the memory still burns. John Henry, a
Thoroughbred of abiding integrive racing enough great thrills to
last a lifetime. He was the last truly bi-coastal star, uniting
fans in respect and admiration, with even a trainer of record in
both New York and California during his first Horse of the Year
campaign. To suggest that there will never be another one like
him misses the point. There never were a lot like him in the
first place. But before I babble on and on, this is a good place
to open the floor. In the meantime, I can't wait to stand in
front of that statue and listen to the stories.
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