Horses are very iconic and symbolic in art. They can be quite a loaded image- that’s what I was told when I was getting my bachelors of fine art at Rutgers. I was often discouraged from drawing the very horse that was the center of my world for 10 years surrounding high school and college, because my teachers were trying help me avoid being cliche. White horse especially can represent a lot of intangible things- freedom, power, purity, spirituality, etc. But I drew my white horse because he was a tangible thing to me. Pete was a big white stallion who taught me lessons in life and riding. How to learn new things, how to gain confidence when things are scary, how to put others first, how to face disappointment, and how to be a faithful friend. Portraits carry a lot of weight for me because I know how much our animals become part of our lives.