A world of possibilities for Horse Lovers from Betsy
For over 20 years the History of this Collection of numbered artistic equine renderings has brought life to the Equine Horse World. It started as a fundraiser in Sante Fe, New Mexico, and the enjoyment spread like wildfire.
It was a truly New Mexico project as the sculptor who created the original design is from Santa Fe. These are horse figurines to collect. The company that cast the figures in polyurethane is in Albuquerque and the artists who transformed the horses into fabulous works of art were from all over the state.
WESTERN SKIES60TH RELEASE – NEW FOR NOVEMBER 2024
WAR PONYLAKOTA FIGURINE OR ORNAMENT
Star Liana York created two models of the horse form: one was standing and the other was running. Artists measured their skills, philosophy of life, symbols, imagery, and explored their connection with a basic equine who over the years of history has symbolized freedom, multi-cultural expressions, human emotions, spirit of women, earth – fire and water as well as peace. The list of effective imagery is hard to record you really need to see them.
The results were magnificent. The artists incorporated themes of memorium, mythical images, the ancestral horse, futuristic, and all facets of life. These magnificent horses are placed in many locations throughout New Mexico.
In history the “Painted Pony” meant the “war horse” of the Native Americans and many of the New Mexican artists incorporated those themes, one being the “War Pony” designed by Rance Hood. As stated in the official book, The Trail of the Painted Ponies TM, ” This startlingly realistic recreation of a Comanche war pony reflects the vibrancy of mystical quality of the horses that populate this popular artist’s paintings.”
THEN, the numbered collectible horse statues, or figurines, were produced as replicas of the artistic collection which originated with the Trail of the Painted Ponies in New Mexico. Similar to the Cow Parade in Chicago, these animals of choice are on display throughout the city and also will be travelling the country. For over 20 years now, individual horses were adopted by well-known artists, and some by unknown artists. Companies sponsored their favorites, and it has been an over the top, successful fundraiser.
As of 2025, there have been 451 Painted Ponies made, 102 Holiday Ponies, 19 Exclusive Designs, 5 Holiday Centerpieces, 4 Seasons, 1 Masterpiece Collection, and 2 Celebrity Collections.
The first company to manufacture the figurines for the Trail of Painted Ponies (TOPP) was Westland Giftware. After the 15th Release, 2010 Winter the license was changed to Enesco. For future success of the Collection, TOPP felt Enesco would care take the Collection like they had many of the Disney characters for many years. Figurine production has been accomplished in China until 2020 during the pandemic and the process was moved to Thailand. Again, showing how dedicated the TOPP are in continuing this most popular collection in the USA.
Artists are invited to submit designs for future Painted Ponies which can be submitted through the http://www.trailofpaintedponies.com website and can be on paper or by painting a figurine. A large size model is no longer used.
As a dealer since the very beginning, I continue to look forward to helping you with your Painted Pony Collection, Happy Ridin’ ~ Betsy
