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Media Relations

Capturing the beauty of the horse

The Indiana University Art Museum's spring special exhibition program includes a fascinating selection of horses and horse-related works of art from the museum's Greek and Roman collection. Horses in Classical Art will run from March 7 through July 30.

Horses in Classical Art celebrates the variety of ways in which Greek and Roman artists captured the beauty of the horse while depicting its role in rituals, games, processions, hunting and warfare, the decorative arts and myth.

This exhibition includes more than 100 objects depicting horses from the Greek, Etruscan and Roman cultures of the ancient Mediterranean. The pieces on display range in date from a group of Greek Geometric horse sculptures and vase paintings of the eighth century B.C. to a Byzantine bronze horse of the sixth century A.D. Many of the vases, sculptures, coins, jewelry and engraved gems included in the exhibition are on public view at the museum for the first time.

The exhibition is divided into two sections: "Horses in Life" and "Horses in Myth." The first theme, "Horses in Life," showcases a variety of works for ritual, decorative or practical use, from animal figures of bronze and terracotta, gold and silver, to earthenware vases decorated with scenes of equestrian competitions, chariot races, processions, festivals, hunting and war. The second theme, "Horses in Myth," presents legendary views of horses in the company of deities, as well as fantastic animals with horse features, such as Pegasus, the centaur, the satyr and the hippocamp.

One captivating object, a large drinking cup, is a tour-de-force, decorated with a lively procession of four chariots and 16 stallions, charioteers, grooms and scores of other figures. Adriana Calinescu, the Thomas T. Solley Curator of Ancient Art at the museum, describes the piece, "In this frieze-like scene, the artist staged the crowds gathering for a festive event, most likely the Panathenaic ceremony [Athens' most important festival and one of the grandest in the entire Greek world]. This unknown artist, who painted around the middle of the sixth century B.C., and by whom only two vases are extant, has been given the name 'The Bloomington Painter.'"

Calinescu continues, "This is a highly gratifying exhibition for the community at-large, including all horse lovers, as it showcases this beautiful animal in a variety of rituals and celebrations which allow people to view this creature as a true work of art."

Horses in Classical Art is sponsored by the Thomas T. Solley Endowment for the Curator of Ancient Art and the IU Art Museum's Arc Fund.

Here are the events surrounding the Horses in Classical Art exhibition:

Lecture: The Horse in Early Greek Art
Special Exhibitions Gallery, March 8, 12:15 p.m. to 1 p.m.
Kevin Glowacki, Department of Classical Studies

Lecture: Horses and Horsemanship
Special Exhibitions Gallery, March 22, 12:15 p.m. to 1 p.m.
Nancy Klein, Department of Classical Studies

Thematic Tour: Horses in Art
Thomas T. Solley Atrium, First Floor, March 11, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
IUAM docents will lead special tours exploring images of horses in the exhibition and in the museum's permanent collection.

Teachers' Workshop: Animals in Art
Meet in the Thomas T. Solley Atrium, First Floor, March 25, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Lunch will be provided.
Pre-registration is required. Please call (812) 855-1045.
The workshop is free of charge.

About the Indiana University Art Museum
With collections ranging from ancient gold jewelry and African masks to paintings by Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso, the Indiana University Art Museum is located on 7th Street in the heart of the Bloomington campus. The Indiana University Art Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m., and Sunday from noon until 5 p.m., and now features the redesigned Angles Café & Gift Shop. The Art Museum is closed on Mondays and major holidays. All exhibits are free and open to the public.

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