a Western tradition for American cowboys to ride saddles that are decorated with elegant, delicately carved floral and geometric patterns and, in some cases, embroidered with gold and silver ornaments. With this in mind, Virginia artist and craftsman Chad Brady, whose uncle has been a cobbler for over 30 years making fancy chaps for rodeo cowboys, keeps the spirit alive with a Painted Pony he has beautifully tooled with floral, oak leaf and acorn patterns.
The magic in that old silk hat is always welcome around the holidays… With that in mind, artist/write Janee Hughes livens up the season with a Pony that carries a crowd of jolly, happy, dancing snowmen on its back who, as the children say, can laugh and play just the same as you and me.
Measures 6.5"
Made of Resin
From The Trail of Painted Ponies
Come Christmas in artist Lynn Bean's home, baking gingerbread cookies was a cherished tradition. "As my mother rolled out the dough, my sister and I would press the cookie cutter designs of stars, bells, animals and people. The yummy smell of gingerbread baking would fill the kitchen. After the cookies cooled we would add frosting and decorations. Then we would eat the rejects, making enough to take to Grandma's house or for friends at school." With these magical memories in mind, Lynn designed a Pony of frosted cookies and candies, complete with a Christmas country scene of an old barn and a gingerbread family leading a pony among the trees and bells of the holiday.
Painted Ponies, Keeper of the sacred fire
This Painted Pony is part of The Tribal Collection. It honors authentic Native American arts and heritage: The Potawatomi Indians were a peaceful tribe known as the "Fire Nation" because, before the arrival of Europeans, they maintained the Council Fire once shared by other tribes living on the shores of the Great Lakes. Relying on canoes, they fished, gathered rice, hunted deer and were known for their elaborate flower and scroll designs on mat and basket weavings. Their history took a tragic turn with their forced relocation to the Indian Territories in Kansas and Oklahoma in 1838. "Keeper of the Sacred Fire" is a powerful and moving tribute to the enduring spirit of the Potawatomi, created by an artist who grew up along what came to be known as one of the Trail of Tears.
Penguins, the subject of several popular movies, have achieved star power. Their current appeal almost rivals the appeal that the horse has to people. Watching them waddle and slide around the ice and snow of the Antarctic in their "tuxedos," it's easy to see why. So it was natural for Idaho painter Maria Ryan to combine the two, and to imagine a scene in which a holiday Pony transports a penguin family across the ice in a snow storm.
Along with the traditional Christmas tree, poinsettias, with their large and showy leaves, are a staple of the holidays. Indeed, when visiting friends or going to holiday parties, the choice gift to bring the hostess is a pretty poinsettia plant in full bloom. This season Idaho painter Maria Ryan has created a different kind of poinsettia as a gift… which is accompanied by this short verse: "Somehow not only at Christmas but all the long year through… the joy that you give to others is the joy that comes back to you."
This Painted Pony is part of The Tribal Collection. It honors authentic Native American arts and heritage: The Zuni Tribe of New Mexico is known for its elaborate jewelry and superb silverwork, inlaid with hand-carved precious and semi-precious stones (turquoise, jet, coral and mother of pearl) that represent animals and spirits and are said to have mystical significance. Working with designs found on old Zuni silver jewelry, this artist incorporated images of Rainbow Man – the Zuni symbol of the supreme Kachina spirit of harmony and healing – the Thunderbird and a Dragonfly, onto a Pony, endowing it with the power to master the unpredictable forces normally beyond our control.
One of the most versatile and talented artists in the Official Trail of Painted Pony Artist stable, Lynn Bean spends her summers in Oregon and her winters in southern Nevada, creating magical artwork, which she sells in galleries and at art festivals across the country.
