My grandfather used to keep thoroughbreds and had a very good anatomical understanding of horses. In 1940 he was commissioned by Walter Farley to illustrate the first Black Stallion novel (published in 1941), which he did entirely from his memory and imagination, wonderful illustrations full of animation and heart that went on to fuel countless young people in their obsession for horses. He showed me his original illustrations which I studied for hours, marveling at the fluidity of his brush and ink and wishing I had half his talent. A few years later I painted this at the Hampton Classic horseshow on Long Island, and finally felt I understood his verve albeit never quite able to match the magic in his brush. What few people knew is that Keith's right hand was crushed and burned by a vacuum moulding machine when he worked as a designer for children's halloween masks at Topstone Industries in Connecticuit during the 50's. He and my grandmother were living in a basement apartment at the time and the night before the accident he dreamed that something was scratching at the open window above, as he reached to close it something hideous grabbed his hand and chewed at it, he awoke screaming! His hand was rebuilt through numerous operations but never really acquired total functionality. He would laugh at how surgeons had crossed his nerves and that he could feel sensations in his thumb if you pinched his pinky. This always confirmed for me that the art spirit is born in the heart and mind, not in our fingers.
