Passion and Reason

Description

Painting number 26 is in my robot series is entitled “Passion and Reason”. While it touches lightly on the business of off track betting and gambling, it is really just a reminder to use some restraint when participating in anything you are overly passionate about. As Benjamin Franklin once said, “If passion drives you, let reason hold the reins.” I liked that little pearl of wisdom so much I decided to carve it into the paint of the horse’s chest.

Additional symbolism incorporated into the painting is as follows: 26 is the atomic number for iron, thus an iron horse seemed appropriate The Diamond, Club, Heart, and Spade icon on the saddle reference the fact that there are 26 black cards and 26 red cards in a full deck.

On his ear you will notice the letter Z, this is the 26th letter in the English Alphabet.

In 2015 when Nyquist competed in the Triple Crown, he was the 26th horse in the history of the event to enter undefeated since 1915. Nyquist went on however, to lose his next two races. Thus the fog and haze that appears to be encompassing the twin spires of Churchill downs. In his eye you can see the reflection of the actual winning horse and some of the activity going on around him associated with the victory. Would Nyquist return next year for a Triple Crown Win? If you look closely at the upper right corner of the sky, you will see I left just a glimmer of blue sky which prevails on the distant horizon. Sadly though, when the following year’s results were tallied, poor Nyquist was not even in the running.

It is my wife’s absolute favorite painting. Because of this, the original has been taken out of the touring cycle (01.28.17). The standing offer on this piece is currently $22,000.