A Missing Horse (section)

Enormous storm clouds pile up across the sky in this Western scene, swelling like white mountains against deep blue. Beneath them, a lone cowboy rides his chestnut horse across open desert scattered with sagebrush. He has twisted around in his saddle to glance behind him, and the title explains his worry: somewhere out there a horse has wandered off, and he is scanning the empty land for any sign of it.

Mark Maggiori, the painter, has an unusual backstory. Born in France, he once sang in a rock band before falling for the American West and becoming one of its most beloved living painters. His work nods to the great cowboy artists Frederic Remington and Charles Russell, but the towering skies are his own trademark. Those clouds do most of the talking here, dwarfing the rider and his horse and making the whole desert feel wide and lonely.

The mood is what lingers. Nothing dramatic is happening, just a quiet pause and a hint of concern on the cowboy's face. Warm reds in the horse's coat and the man's vest sit against the cool grays overhead, and the careful detail in the leather chaps and worn gear shows how seriously Maggiori takes the tradition he paints.