The significance of the Pale Horse
Elisabeth Fitch- February 17, 2005

Adam Grant’s “Pale Horse” painting is one which strikes the eye as horrific. Perhaps this is because Adam Grant, a man who endured the concentration camps of Nazi Germany during World War II, is attempting to convey to his audience through his painting of a horse symbolizing the end of the Holocaust.

The pale grey horse in the center of a fiery red and orange background creates a dramatic distinction between the moods of the painting. In the background is the memory of the war, which was intense and passionate whereas the horse is left to remain a dying, helpless victim of the greedy power struggle of the Nazis. Having experienced the Holocaust, Grant is attempting to explain through his painting how he felt at the end of World War II: a starved, neglected labor animal whose spirit and physical strength were so weak that all he was able to do in order to fight to stay alive was stand with his head hung low and exist.

The horse stands over human remnants, which look as though they have been burned or have corroded. They are white and grey and by color can be associated in mood with the horse. Although it is difficult to tell exactly how the human remains have been ruined, they have been ruined nonetheless. After realizing that the horse represents the artist’s portrayal of himself as mere animal, the human remains that the horse is standing over can be recognized as the artist’s feelings regarding his own humanity: dead and corroded beneath all this animal that remains.

The surreal atmosphere of the painting attempts to portray the horror of the concentration camps and the detriment that the concentration camps had upon humanity. In the background of the horse, the bright colors and crumbling building create a shrill mood which includes the loud crumbling of the wall. The wall seems to represent the fall of an institution. The institution of civilization must naturally decay if it causes that which took place during the holocaust.

The color plays a large role in this portrayal as well as the shape of the horse with his curved back and head down. Thick, wispy brush strokes enhance the mood by bringing about a rugged and unrefined feel to the painting. The painting is not clean-cut nor is special care taken to ensure perfection, but the presentation is forceful and violent. By using oil paint on canvas, Grant is able to brush quickly and allow the brushstrokes to be visible to the eye of the viewer who can see the brushstrokes and make note that they are imperfect, contributing to the imperfection and disorder in the world.Through his surreal nightmarish scene, Grant was successful in portraying to the viewer a picture of how he felt at the end of the holocaust. His humanity had been dead long before the war ever came to an end and the background was clouded with a penetrating war, blood and dusted skies. The color supposes that there has to be life that creates the determination of war, but in Grant’s present situation, there is no life, only the grey animal that he sees when he imagines himself.