WILD HORSES OF THE WEST
An intimate, pictorial look at the majestic equines who roam the public lands of the Mountain West.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Take an intimate look at the majestic equines who roam the public lands of the Mountain West: Wild Horses of the West provides a front row seat to a world rarely glimpsed by most people. Stories highlight specific horses known in the area, such as “Old Man, One Ear, and the Cremello Brothers, whom the photographer, Jan Drake, has been following with her camera for years. More than 200 photographs are divided into sections including Family Bands, Band Stallions & Bachelors, Mustang Challenges, Mares & Foals and Cedar Mountain Mustangs.
FAMILY BANDS
While the mare leads the band, the breeding stallion travels at the rear, protecting the mares from threats or other bachelor stallions.
STALLIONS & BACHELORS
Young stallions form close-knit bands in their youth, known as bachelor bands, until they become restless and realize they need a band of their own.
CHALLENGES
The onset of a fight is the most interesting part to watch. The stallions snort, posture and kick up dust with stomping and pawing. It is a threatening display of power and sets as a stunning stage for photography.
MARES & FOALS
The foals form bonds with other foals in the band as they age. The young colts play together, learning to fight in preparation for their departure from the herd.
CEDAR MOUNTAIN MUSTANGS
The Cedar Mountain herd is the most colorful herd of horses in the west, and one of the most challenging to photograph. If they see a human or a vehicle before you catch a glimpse, they disappear.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Horses have been part of my life since I was a kid. Our first horse was one of the ones you see outside of the local Kmart store - the kind you put a quarter in for a 3 minute ride. Our father, a route salesman for a beverage company purchased one of the full-size horses for us when I was four years old. It was a beautiful black and white paint. We spent many enjoyable hours playing on that horse.
I traded the horses for a more convenient mode of transportation: my car. That Ford Galaxy 500 soon segued into having multiple Ford Mustangs which helped define my love for the mustang horse in some crazy way. This was also around the time I picked up photography, a hobby that would serve me into adulthood. Photography became, for me, an outlet that allowed me to create and manipulate photographs into different types of art. I started with film, of course, developing my own pictures, and continued to photograph architecture and wildlife until I moved out west. There I discovered the mustangs.
A friend made a comment one day that I should make a coffee table book about the wild horses. I couldn’t stop thinking about it so with some help from great friends, I was able to publish Wild Horses of the West in 2020. The book has garnered wild success and has won awards! But the most rewarding part of the book is knowing the story of the Cedar and Onaqui Wild Horses has reached global audiences. This book, along with passion for keeping these wild horses wild, is what sparked Wild Horses of the West Foundation.
