Today we’d like to introduce you to Jacqueline Mask.
Hi Jacqueline, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
A shy, introverted little girl is bound to like one of two things. Horses or art. I am very lucky to have a passion for both. I began riding when I was around 7; my best friend Caitlin and I would ride her mom’s horses bareback through a Navasota ranch. We would take turns cantering in circles and seeing who could stay on the longest. When I was in school, I felt alienated in everything but art class. From then on, my notebooks had nothing but horses in them. I was accepted into Maryland Institute College of Art and moved to Baltimore. There I painted a portrait of Secretariat, the great racehorse, and it happened to be seen by a Trustee of the school. He sought me out and insisted I visit his farm in the county. Thinking he just had a barn with a couple of horses on it, I was floored when I realized he and his wife owned and operated one of the most respected Thoroughbred breeding programs in the region. They were so kind to me and loved that I was an artist. So, I worked for them for summers between school and on the weekends. Cleaning stalls and walking yearlings. It was hard work. But I would stare at the Richard Reeves portrait of one of their broodmares, hoping I could make something like that one day. Eventually, I moved back to Houston and began working at the Houston Polo Club as a riding instructor. I took some classes at the Glassell Studio School at the MFAH just to keep my eye sharp. As I focused on my horses and less on my art, one day a client of mine asked if I had ever done an oil painting of a horse, and she’d love if I could do one for her. Not knowing that portrait of a sweet palomino quarter horse would launch me into the last two years of living off my paintings. I am so grateful to all the people on my journey who got me to where I am, in my perfect niche.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Sometimes, one skill would eclipse the other. Sometimes, I’d be working so hard at the barn that I would go home and just be too exhausted to draw or paint. My dinky little home studio sat empty for a while. Then, the pandemic hit, and our lesson program was forced to shut down. Our horses moved out to the country, and I was almost forced to sit down and draw. I would have gone crazy had it not been for art. Now, living on my work, some months are much leaner than others. I’ve been lucky to have worked with a lot of high-powered and driven women who may get knocked down but never stay down long.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My specialty, of course, is equestrian portraiture. Every single horse is unique. I can look at the pasture of bay horses and be able to tell all of them apart before I open the gate. “There’s Bella, Archie, Tocalla, Tootsie…” Their conformation or anatomy, how their neckties into their chest, and how both hooves may point their toes out slightly are all subtle ways of making the horse who they are. When someone comes to me about a portrait of a horse they love, who they take hundreds of pictures of and spend thousands of dollars on, they are going to know if I get a detail wrong. Immediately. While it is a big point of pride in my work, being fastidious, it also makes me tremendously slow. Sometimes, I will spend an entire week figuring out the anatomy of a certain leg or shoulder. I am grateful for the training I received from all the Thoroughbred breeders and agents I have met, who have trained my eye to watch a horse walk and stand. That all being said, I still enjoy exploring my skills and trying something new. I’ve begun experimenting with landscapes and concepts of the surreal in Western art. Sometimes, the occasional abstract piece ends up on my easel. It’s all about balance.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Waking up, working on the pieces I have on my wall, and then driving to my barn to ride my horses for fun.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jacqmask.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jacqmaskartist/
