Tom Pauly
VL
VISUAL LANGUAGE
contemporary fine art
VL
April 2013 Volume 2 No. 4
VL HorseArtist.com
73
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Studio Visit Tom Pauly
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Secretariat
TOM PAULY - Horse Artist
It was the caricature of President Richard M. Nixon that Thomas Allen Pauly drew in the fifth grade that initially sparked his interest in art, a piece copied from Mad Magazine’s legendary cartoonist Mort Drucker. But, it was an invitation in 1978 from his friend to witness his father’s harness horse, Rusty Win capture the feature race at Sportsman’s Park that began the burgeoning artist’s career.. From that day, demand for his artwork only grew. In 1989, he portrayed the who’s who in racing at his home track, Arlington Park International Racecourse. He has photographed and portrayed every Kentucky Derby champion since1999. Pauly was commissioned by Churchill Downs as the official portrait artist of the 2006 Kentucky Derby. His portrait of the champion Barbaro was published as the track’s commemorative portrait. “They made 10,000 prints of my painting and gave them away on the track’s fan appreciation day. People were lined up in the parking lot waiting to get the poster,” Pauly said. Pauly was commissioned along with 10 international artists to paint the portraits of the Dubai World Cup winners. His portrait of Cigar capturing the first Dubai World Cup was the highlight of his career. “They invited all of the artists to Dubai to take part in the Dubai World Cup Art Auction and Exhibition. It was a trip of a lifetime,” Pauly said.
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Tight Quarters
His portraits of Thoroughbreds and jockeys grace the walls of the racing elite, including his life size portrait of a jockey wearing the silks of Kentucky Derby owners Kenny and Lisa Troutt’s WinStar Farms. “It is truly an impressive piece and I am honored that it is in the collection of the great WinStar Farms in Kentucky,” Pauly said. Jockeys are Pauly’s favorite subjects and his portfolio includes portraits of many of the all-time greats. “I enjoy portraying the jockeys with their colorful silks riding up on their champions, but I also like to portray them in the walking ring waiting patiently for their mounts,” he said. Since 2009, Pauly has been volunteering with The Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF) to assist with their graphic designs. “We are very grateful to have a gifted artist like Tom Pauly share his time and talents to support our mission, stated Nancy LaSala, Executive Director PDJF. His work with the PDJF and compassion to help the men and women we serve enriches our program and is greatly appreciated.” Pauly’s 5’ x 12’ triptych titled Gates Open, They’re Racing and his Racing to the Wire were recently featured in the National Art Museum of Sports exhibit Speed and Motion: Racing to the Finish Line. Not too bad for a kid who started out playing with comic books.
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Barbaro
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To Their Mounts
TOM PAULY
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