Paintbrush and easel

by Dr. Lori Verderame

Horse Paintings

Active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, American artist Gean Smith is best known for his paintings of trotting horses. Compositions featuring equines and equestrians were of particular interest in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.

Joe Patchen at Belmont Stakes

Smith’s paintings of the race horses included a depiction of one of the most famous horses of the day. In 1900, Smith painted a horse called Joe Patchen, a famous American trotting horse, to document the horse’s victory and new track record set at New York’s Belmont Park racetrack. This horse was as well known to early 20th century society as the Kentucky Derby and Secretariat are known to us today.

Smith painted an important horse race and placed Joe Patchen’s new track record of 2:01 1/4 set on the Belmont racecourse directly onto the canvas. Smith captured a moment in sports history through this painting. In both American genre painting and the sport of horseracing, Joe Patchen and artist Gean Smith are well highly regarded.

Request an online appraisal of your Gean Smith piece from Dr. Lori.