Forcado Painting

A few years ago I traveled to Portugal with my French Classical Dressage trainers, a philosophy of riding that focuses on the well-being of the horse. The horses we own and ride are Lusitano stallions, which are trained for and used in Portugeuse bullfights. As a result, they took us to see a bullfight in Santarem Portugal. I was hesitant to go, thinking of bullfights as bloody and brutal. But I found that Portuguese bullfights were different. There, the bulls are on more equal footing because they face off against the horse and his rider, so that the bullfight is about the agility of the horse against the power of the bull. It also helps that the bulls are not killed, but revered for their bravery. The horses were gorgeous and so athletic it took my breath away, but it was the small troupe of men called the Forcado, which means bull grabbers, who intrigues me. These men enter the arena after the bullfight to capture the bull and return him to his stall. They do this by performing the pega de cara, which means the “face catch” and that is literally what they do. Eight men confront the bull without any protection or weapons. They form a wedge facing the bull and the front man, the cabo, steps toward him and straightens his body, raising his head and thrusting out his chest to form a “challenge” posture to get him to charge. As the bull charges toward the man, he meets it head on, his hips fitting between the horns as he is lifted in the air. The other men pile on behind him, slowing the bull to a stop, when the last man grabs the bull by its tail so they can lead him away. I created this composition to capture the tension of that moment between the bull and the cabo – the tension of the bull and of the cabo’s challenge and the danger to the man, as well as the tension of the whole concept of bullfighting. I chose to emphasize a strong diagonal to convey a sense of energy and motion. I then balanced these with horizontal lines in the background to create a blend of power and dynamics. I began working on the painting by sketching these compositional lines onto the painting and then doing a quick outline sketch of the figures, measuring to be sure they were placed correctly. From there, I began painting to form the figures and background. There are many people who, like me, will feel uncomfortable with this subject matter. But it was a painting that expresses the machismo of the bullfight has been demanding me to paint it. So I did.

Painting:Oil on Canvas

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:46 W x 24 H x 1.5 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.