Richard Stone Reeves (November 6, 1919 – October 7, 2005) was an American

equine Equinae is a subfamily of the family Equidae, known from the Hemingfordian stage of the Early Miocene (16 million years ago) onwards. They originated in North America, before dispersing to every continent except Australia and Antarctica. They are ...

painter whom ''

Blood-Horse magazine ''The Blood-Horse'' (also referred to simply as ''Blood-Horse'' and displayed on its nameplate in upright all-capital letters without hyphenation as BLOODHORSE) is a news magazine that originated in 1916 as a monthly bulletin of the Thoroughbred ...

'' described as perhaps the greatest modern-day horse painter. Born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, Reeves grew up in Garden City on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

. His father's family included a painter and his mother's owned race horses. Those influences, plus living near

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a thoroughbred racing, thoroughbred horse racetrack in Elmont, New York, just east of New York City limits best known for hosting the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the American Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United Stat ...

, resulted in his love of horses and desire to paint them. Reeves graduated with a

Fine Arts In European academic traditions, fine art (or, fine arts) is made primarily for aesthetics or creativity, creative expression, distinguishing it from popular art, decorative art or applied art, which also either serve some practical function ...

degree from

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

. He served with the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

after which he embarked on a career as a painter of horses. His big break came when ''Life'' magazine featured his painting of 1947 Horse of the Year,

Armed Armed (May, 1941–1964) was an American Thoroughbred gelding race horse who was the American Horse of the Year in 1947 and Champion Older Male Horse in both 1946 and 1947. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in ...

. That publicity led to his being hired to do private portraitures for many American and European horse owners. As well as portraits, Reeves did a number of action scenes from memorable races. More than a dozen of his works can be found in the

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred horse racing, Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and Horse trainer, trainers. In 1955, the museum ...

Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. When asked, Reeves said: "

Buckpasser Buckpasser (1963– March 6, 1978) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a ...

was the most perfectly proportioned Thoroughbred I have ever seen." Only two horses,

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who was the ninth winn ...

and

Affirmed Affirmed (February 21, 1975 – January 12, 2001) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who is the eleventh winner of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States), American Triple Crown. Affirmed was well known ...

, have since been "in a class with Buckpasser". Reeves died October 7, 2005, at Eastern Long Island Hospital in Greenport, N.Y.

Books

* ''Horse named Kelso'' - Pat Johnson and Walter D. Osborne (1970) - Illustrated with Richard Stone Reeves' paintings. * ''Thoroughbreds I Have Known'' (1973) - portraits by Richard Stone Reeves. * ''Classic Lines : A Gallery of the Great Thoroughbreds'' (1975) - with Patrick Robinson. * ''Decade of Champions : The Greatest Years in the History of Thoroughbred Racing, 1970-1980''. (1981) - with Patrick Robinson. * ''The Golden Post'' (September 15, 1985) - with Patrick Robinson. 2,000 copies, signed and numbered. * ''Legends : The Art of Richard Stone Reeves'' (1989) * ''Belmont Park: A Century of Champions''. Edward L. Bowen. (2005) - Original paintings by Richard Stone Reeves.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reeves, Richard Syracuse University alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century American painters 20th-century American male artists American male painters 21st-century American painters 21st-century American male artists Equine artists 1919 births 2005 deaths Painters from New York City