Year of the Horse

We enter the Year of the Horse, not only that but it is the year of the wooden horse so I knew I had the perfect postcard to show. The giant rocking horse is the concept of the artist Marcia Farquhar and hand made by Anthony Drew at the Rocking Horse Shop in Fangfoss, near York. Marcia says it was a "belated fulfilment of childhood wishes" and is pictured riding it in the grounds of Tatton Park, Cheshire. It was part of the 2010 Tatton Park Biennial on the theme of "Framing Identity" where she discussed equine nature and the role of the horse in the English psyche from the back of this wonderfully grained wooden horse.   Since that year Anthony Drew has created an even bigger rocking horse which is the largest in the world. They are affectionately known as Little Birtie and Big Birtie.   The former has had another outing and always turns heads when being driven down the motorway.

The horse in the Chinese Zodiac is energetic, bright, warm hearted and intelligent.  The year will be full of unexpected adventures and surprising romance. On the downside people take unmoveable positions in negotiations and in the wider world it can be conflict with warfare.

Here is a picture I took at Tatton Park in September 2010 which shows the beautiful grain work and how its expression changes from a different angle.

Kung Hei Fat Choy - Happy Lunar New Year