Creating My 2026 Art Calendar: A Year of Horses

Creating My 2026 Art Calendar: A Year of Horses

With the Year of the Horse approaching, I found myself naturally drawn to the idea of dedicating my 2026 art calendar to this powerful and elegant animal. For months, I had planned to use my frog paintings as the calendar’s main theme—a body of work I had been developing steadily since early summer. But as I spent more time teaching my students how to draw horses, studying their forms and gestures together, I sensed a shift. The energy and presence of horses began to resonate with me more deeply, and I realized they were a better match for the direction my work was taking. Even though much of the preparation for the initial theme was finished, I decided to make the change.

This calendar project will feature twelve horses, each painted on 9 × 12 cm cold-press watercolor paper. Two paintings are now complete. One depicts a dark horse glowing against a deep, textured background; the other shows a quiet white horse emerging through soft mist and muted light. Both pieces, though different in mood, were created with the intention of capturing the movement, vitality, and grace that define horses.

For this series, I am focusing heavily on the wet-on-wet watercolor technique. The natural diffusion of pigment on damp paper—the unexpected blooms, organic textures, and fluid shapes—beautifully mirrors the essence of a horse in motion. The wind-swept mane, the subtle shifts in muscle beneath the coat, the rippling energy of a body ready to run—all of these can often be expressed more truthfully through the flow of water and pigment than through deliberate, controlled brushwork. When creating the first washes, I try to let go of intention and simply observe how water and color respond to each other. Once the first layer is dry, I build forms slowly with additional layers to refine the structure.

Ten more horses remain. These next pieces will reflect the character of each season. A spring horse will be light, soft, and full of newness. A summer horse will carry strength, brightness, and movement. An autumn horse will have deeper tones and a grounded, contemplative presence. A winter horse will stand quietly in cool, crisp air. Rather than simply adjusting the background to match the seasons, I aim to express how a horse’s mood, texture, and energy might shift with the environment around it. In this way, each painting becomes a translation of nature’s rhythm into equine form.

Creating a 2026 art calendar with twelve watercolor horses. A journey exploring movement, elegance, and seasonal moods through wet-on-wet painting.

Working with my students on horse anatomy has also deepened my understanding. Horses are not only visually beautiful; they possess a quiet resilience and inner force. After completing the first two paintings, I feel even more inspired to meet the next ten horses waiting to be painted. Though they share the same subject, each one will emerge with a completely unique atmosphere and emotion.
My goal is to finish the entire series by the end of this month. It is an ambitious schedule, but painting horses gives me energy rather than taking it away. What first felt like a burdensome shift in plans now feels exactly right—something that will ultimately make the calendar stronger and more meaningful.
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This will be my first calendar themed entirely around horses. As I imagine the twelve paintings coming together, I feel excited and grateful to be on this creative journey. I look forward to sharing the process, step by step, as these horses come to life on paper and eventually fill the pages of the 2026 calendar.