Art In The Field

Capturing the power and beauty of the horse is the challenge sculptor Charlie Langton has set himself, as he explains to Janet Menzies

FROM Leonardo da Vinci to any Pony Clubbing 10-year-old, there is something about the horse that compels us to try to capture its unique form and unquantifiable beauty. I’m surprised my teachers were ever able to decipher my homework amidst the obsessive failed studies of pasterns and flexed hocks that decorated the margins. Charlie Langton’s images of horses are rather more on the Leonardo lines but he is gripped by the same bug. “I grew up around horses and I used to have this little Welsh mountain pony called Whizz who was the worst behaved but I would spend all summer mucking around with him.

“I find horses fascinating to look at. They are a balance of power and beauty. Their physical make-up is quite extraordinary and they are inspiring to watch. I used to doodle horses the whole time. I wasn’t a massive fan of riding, it was all about observing the horses and drawing them. I remember doing my first full oil painting of a horse when I was 11 or 12. I enjoyed the structure of the cheekbone and then trying to get the warmth into the eyes. They are not easy to draw but once you get it right you know because it all seems to click. Their physical structure is a challenge – horses are this amazing combination of speed, power and delicacy.”