Like Prayers Toward Heaven

18x24" by Ellen MacEwan

watercolor and mixed media on cradled panel

Artist Bio
Ellen MacEwan is an Arizona-based artist creating contemporary equine portraits in
watercolor and mixed media. A former World’s Champion equestrian, Ellen has always been captivated by the grace, power, and sensitivity of the horse. She uses a
spontaneous, intuitive process to capture both the physical presence and the spiritual essence that have made the horse an enduring muse for artists across generations. Her paintings invite stillness, reflection, and a quiet moment of connection.

Story Behind the Artwork
My relationship with horses began long before my artistic practice. A former World’s
Champion equestrian, I have long known the horse as both companion and muse. An
archetype of grace and power, the horse also possesses a profound intuition that
borders on the spiritual. These animals are like mirrors, showing us the deepest parts of
ourselves.
As a lifelong horse girl, I naturally have gravitated toward equine subjects in my art
through the years, but becoming a mother freed my artistic practice. This precious
life—my daughter—had been entrusted to me, and I felt wholly inadequate at times.
Children come with no manual and have ways of activating your deepest fears and
insecurities, of opening old wounds, but also unleashing unfathomable beauty as you
become more resourceful, more tender, more healed. When my daughter was born, I
found my matrescence manifested in my art in profound ways. My art changed. As I
connected with my intuition as a mother, much like a horse, my process mirrored my
personal transformation, becoming more spontaneous, less concerned with perfection.
The horse remained my subject, but its meaning and appearance changed, each fluid
wash and expressive gesture a physical record of my new identity.