An Eye for the Horse

An Eye ‘Twas the day before tions around the world, and she has been Christmas… and Nina Kaiser was commissioned to portray many of the hard at work in the paddock gardens at most prominent horses of our times, for the Santa Anita Park putting the finishing including Sunday Silence, A.P. Indy, touches on a massive statue of a race- Serena’s Song and Azeri. She has horse with blow torch, wax, polish, rags designed trophies for Santa Anita, Del Horse and brushes. The life-size bronze of the Mar, Hollywood Park, Golden Gate great racehorse John Henry was absolute Fields, and Bay Meadows racetracks. In Artist Profile: Nina Kaiser perfection to my eye; but an artist is sel- addition, she has done portraits of pop- dom completely satisfied with a work, or ular racing personalities – including the By Mary Forney even fully convinced that it is finished. busts of jockeys Laffit Pincay Jr. and Kaiser explained that subtle changes can Chris McCarron that stand in the pad- occur to the patina, or finish, after the dock gardens at Santa Anita. bronze has left the foundry. Such atten- Following the death of John Henry in tion to detail is one of the traits that has 2007, Santa Anita and Oak Tree Racing made Kaiser a standout among contem- Association commissioned Kaiser to cre- porary equine sculptors. ate a life-sized sculpture of the legendary Kaiser’s work is represented in collec- gelding who ran many of his races here wners' 12 OCircle Kaiser’s work is represented in collec- tions around the world, and she has been commissioned to portray many of the most prominent horses of our times, Kaiser (far right) at dedication ceremony for the John Henry statue at Santa Anita. at the Arcadia racetrack. John Henry is only the second horse in spending as much time as possible on the horse; art always took Santa Anita’s history to be so memorialized, the first being a backseat to the horse.” Seabiscuit. While still a teenager, a chance Kaiser’s equine sculptures are highly real- encounter with the former owner of istic, presenting the natural strength and her retired racehorse introduced her to beauty of the Thoroughbred horse without the world of Thoroughbred racing. embellishment or stylization. She has While working at the racetrack in the spent more than 30 years working as an mid-80’s she began to experiment in exercise rider and assistant trainer, and creating sculptures of horses, and soon those years of daily observation and inter- the commissions started coming. action with horses provided the founda- “Everything was from one commis- tion for her remarkable ability to portray sion to another; it was word of mouth,” racehorses with anatomical accuracy. Kaiser explained. “I did one piece – one “I like to think of myself as a horseman little racehorse – and showed it to first and an artist second,” said Kaiser. Yet it Laura de Seroux. They had just won the is the combination of the two that make up Arc de Triomphe with Trempelino, and Kaiser’s unique talent. In recalling John she commissioned me to do Henry, she said, “I can still see him in my Trempelino. That was my start. mind’s eye as he stood like a statue every “Then I was galloping horses for John morning on his way to the track.” Most Russell and he commissioned me to do horsemen, however, simply marvel upon Precisionist,” Kaiser continued. “And I first sight of the statue of the great horse, was working for Eddie Gregson, who which looks as though it could come to life commissioned me to do Super and walk away. Diamond, who I also galloped.” Kaiser was born in Santa Monica and grew up in the Bay Area Kaiser’s reputation has grown steadily since those early days. of Northern California, where she spent as much of her child- She now does an average of three commissions a year in addi- hood as possible on horseback. tion to major projects such as the John Henry statue. Kaiser “I started out drawing horses just like every other horse crazy lives and works in the little lakeside community of Del Dios, little girl,” said Kaiser, who always had a natural aptitude for art. not far from the Del Mar Racetrack. For further information “But then I got my own horse when I was in seventh grade and about the artist, visit www.equinesculpture.com. didn’t feel the need to draw them anymore. It was all about Photos by Mary Forney wners' 12 O'Circle 13.

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