Prohászka László: Equestrian Statues - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1997)

Close-up of the Horseherd

esting composition. The horseman is not seated on the horse; instead, he is standing beside it. The committee in charge of the architectural development of the Castle decided in 1899 that a valuable art work should be erected emphasising the Hungarian characteristics of the royal residence.

Thus Vastagh was commissioned to create a piece to be thematically related to the Riding School. That he was selected for the job was by no means accidental. Vastagh already had a well-deserved reputation as a young artist for his exceptionally life-like animal statues.

The artist sculpted a genuine Hortobágy horseherd with a characteristic pointed moustache, busy restraining an untamed steed. To model the horse, Vastagh carefully studied the horses in the Bábolna state herd. In the well- conceived composition, horse and master are both clearly visible from any angle as neither is hidden by the other.

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