Waiting

Waiting for his next load on Liverpool docks, the working horse monument was commissioned by the Liverpool Carters, the men who latterly worked the horses up to when they were eventually replaced by mechanical vehicles. The horse commemorates more than 300 years of moving ship loads of goods from all around the world. (Liverpool was the lifeline for all imports to the north of the country.) The horse stands proudly on the Albert Docks between the Tate Modern and the Liverpool Life Museum.

In my research talking to the carters and looking though old photographs I discovered that Liverpool horses had their own unique design of gear (harness). The wagons were pulled by two horses in tandem, but the horse here is the shaft horse. He is wearing Liverpool gear which is the harness unique to Liverpool, for example the blinkers are based on shells whilst the saddle, which goes around the horse’s middle is of a design not seen outside of Liverpool. In practical terms the metal shoes on the sculpture have toe bars and calkins which enabled the horses to negotiate the cobbled streets safely when maneuvering with their loaded wagons.

I really enjoyed making him and based Waiting on a friend’s Shire, working from the real horse in the stable in order to capture the essence and the gentle nature of the animal along with the sense of strength. A touching moment occured for me and the carters when they came to my studio to approve the sculpture before casting. They walked in and were overcome by emotion, one even kissed his nose. The emotion for the carters was to see their vision finally fulfilled after many years of raising both the funds and the profile of the working horses of Liverpool.