26 April - 31 August, 2008




One of the National Gallery's most iconic images is heading to York in 2008. Whistlejacket was painted by George Stubbs who spent his early career in York - even marrying in the city.

This exhibition will showcase this magnificent work and will bring together work from local galleries and private collections, including a portrait of the famous racehorse Gimcrack, his midwifery illustrations and a selection of his drawings for The Anatomy of the Horse.

There will also be a selection of contemporary watercolour paintings and prints depicting York Racecourse, plus other related exhibits.

George Stubbs

Stubbs was born in Liverpool in 1724. He was the son of a leather worker and spent his early career painting portraits and developing his interest in anatomy.

He arrived in York as a young man in 1746 from Leeds and settled in the parish of Stonegate. He married in York and two of his children were born here and baptised at St Helen's Church.

Through his friend Charles Atkinson, a surgeon at York's new County Hospital, he became a superb anatomical draughtsman and supplied the illustrations for a treatise on midwifery published in 1751.

From 1756, he rented a farmhouse in Horkstow, Lincolnshire, where he dissected horses in order to make detailed studies of their anatomy. The result of his work, The Anatomy of the Horse, was published in 1766. The Horkstow drawings are now owned by the Royal Academy.

In around 1758 he moved to London, where his career took off. He died in 1806.

Whistlejacket

Whistlejacket, foaled in 1749, was a race horse owned by the Marquess of Rockingham. His most famous victory was in a race over four miles for 2,000 guineas at York in August 1759.

Stubbs painted his life-size portrait of Whistlejacket for the Marquess in 1762. According to some writers of the period the original intention was to commission an equestrian portrait of George III, but is it more likely that Stubbs always intended to show the horse alone rearing up against a neutral background.

York Racecourse

York Racecourse, situated on Knavesmire to the south west of the city, is one of the country's top flat racing tracks and hosts 16 days of horseracing every year, most famously the Ebor Festival in August.

The first race was held at Knavesmire in August 1731 and the first grandstand was built in 1754, designed by architect John Carr.

Yorks Knavesmire was also home to the Tyburn, where public hangings took place, until 1801. Highwayman Dick Turpin was hanged there in 1739.

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York Art Gallery
Exhibition Square
York
YO1 7EW
Telephone: 01904 687687
www.yorkartgallery.org.uk/