Description
The Lippizaner represents Ouranos, third of the gas giants and first of the ice giants. Named for the the primordial Greek god of the sky and heavens, its name is sometimes Latinized as Uranus. Ouranos was the father of Cronus (Saturn) and the grandfather of Zeus (Jupiter). The symbol for Ouranos can be found in the upper-left corner, while the angular chevron and triangular patterns represent the water, ammonia and methane crystals prevalent in its upper atmosphere.
This is the third in a series of pieces depicting our four gas giant planets as horses. For Ouranos I chose to use its original Greek spelling, because it annoys me when people make jokes about unfortunate coincidence with the Latinized version of that name and a certain human orifice. Ouranos is a beautiful and unique planet, and deserves better treatment, I think.
Speaking of which, in a nod to Ouranos's unique angle (it's poles are almost in line with the ecliptic, thus earning it the nick-name of "the sideways planet") this is the only piece in the series which is rendered in "portrait" orientation.
Coming next: Neptune as a blue Fresian.
Mixed media: watercolor and ink, colored pencil, silver paint pen on vellum bristol board. Art and related prose © myself.
Other pictures in this series: