Kim McElroy

Pastel

As a child, I felt an intuitive connection with horses, and as soon as I could hold a crayon, I began to draw them. This love affair manifested itself as my art career which began in 1987 at the age of twenty-one, and which has led me to renown.

I have found that horses resonate with many people whether or not they consider themselves a ‘horse person’. My intention is to infuse my art with the horse’s spiritual energy, distilling it into expressions of their quintessential beingness in ways that transcend how they are traditionally defined.

The medium I use exclusively is pastel. I love working with pastel because it feels like direct communication expressed from my mind’s eye to my hand, onto the paper – almost as if I am touching my subjects. Pastel can be simple and spontaneous, or manifest the most complex themes I can dream up. It can convey my spiritual visions with an elusive transparency, or it can create a vivid three-dimensional presence that evokes the impression of tangible reality.

My paintings are often otherworldly, depicting horses from other realms or as emerging from elements of nature. The horse is my muse, and I am always seeking new ways of expressing elements of the equine spirit in my quest to awaken humanity to their healing gifts.