Gareth McConnell is a london-based artist and publisher. Originally from Northern Ireland, Gareth’s catalogue of work, which stretches over 28 years, is impressive and varied. Gareth’s work has been the subject of seven monographs and included in numerous anthologies. His photographs have appeared in The New York Times, GQ, The Guardian, Aperture, and Frieze, and he has spoken about his work at institutions including Tate Modern, The National Portrait Gallery, and the Institute of Contemporary Arts.

As Editor-in-Chief of Sorika, an on-going art project established in 2013, Gareth publishes and champions works by fellow artists, and also has a space to independently publish his own works. His latest book, titled The Horses, is a collection of kaleidoscopic images which could be understood as exploring the beauty, and mystery, of horses, or as a collection of metaphors.

Shot in 2022, during a trip to Iceland, Gareth’s images are visually striking, owing to his use of bright colours and movement, a technique Gareth has employed across a number of his projects.

What was the initial idea behind The Horses, and why did you want to publish this book?

The Horses is an extension of a project which was originally commissioned by The New York Times Magazine. Other than the brief, which I discussed with the magazine, my modus operandi was to just show up, and see what happens.
Other than that, I thought it would be interesting to go to Iceland and meet lots of horses. I love animals and I had never visited Iceland before. I was keen to see the country for myself, as it is rumoured to be one of the three places on earth where the powerful creative force of the Interstellar Ley Line touches down, as per the famous Bill Drummond (The KLF, K-Foundation) hypothesis.
As it transpired, it became a strangely lonely, frustrating, and even melancholic experience. It felt like I was being led by, or somehow locked in step with, the horses, as we were both united in our captivity - theirs was literal, as even in a field there is ultimately a fence, while mine was the obligation of employment and completing my assignment.

It was only when I returned, and I was creating the prints and artworks, that I thought more of that relationship of servitude, and it occurred to me that the horses had perhaps been communicating some message, or had triggered some sort of ‘self- remembering’, that I myself don’t yet understand. So, that made me consider the work in a different way, it went from being an assignment to an art project - in the sense of theory coming after practice, as opposed to before.

There is also a long tradition of horses being depicted in art, from the neolithic cave paintings to Muybridge and the birth of cinema. Up until the industrial revolution, horses were vital to creating, and maintaining, society - helping us work the land and transport goods. It seems emblematic and timely to publish a book at this time, as we again enter an age of rapid change with technologies, such as AI, ushering in as yet unknown shifts in our society, art, and industry.

Lots of your previous work has focused on people, and places. How was the experience of photographing horses different?

More manure and less talking. And maybe that’s why it seemed so difficult at the time as there was no way for me to verbally sooth my subjects, or myself.

Some have said that The Horses feels like a continuation of your previous projects Sex, Drugs & Magick, Close Your Eyes, The Dream Meadow, and The People Deserve Beauty. What themes do these works share

It’s all what I would call ‘Nature Magic’ in one way or another, human and animal, terrestrial and cosmic. They are pulling together and pulling apart. I like that friction. We live, we die, we maybe try and find some meaning in between - beyond the table of values imposed on us. I believe the Nietzschean expression is Transvaluation.

In relation to The Horses, the story of the Turin horse comes to mind… that Nietzsche’s descent into madness was triggered when he witnesses a horse being beaten in the streets of Turin and threw his arms around its neck sobbing. There is a similar scene in Crime and Punishment… Dostoevsky considered the horse the embodiment of both human cruelty and empathy.

There is a mystery and ambiguity to The Horses. The book includes no text, and the title simply describes the subjects of the photographs. Has this influenced how audiences interpret the work?

I can’t speak to the audience's interpretation, but there is a quote included at the end of The Horses, from the Edwin Muir poem of the same name. I’d recommend googling it.

The use of light and colour in The Horses is visually intense, and are almost kaleidoscopic. Did you enter the project with this aesthetic style in mind, or was your approach influenced by the subjects?

Both.

You’ve been taking photographs for over 28 years, and have lots of successful projects under your belt. How has your approach to photography changed over the course of your career?

I have now, thankfully, lost the compulsion to take photographs. I mostly have to trick or coerce myself to do anything. I think there is a freedom in that.

To celebrate the release of The Horses, Gareth will be hosting a special launch event and book signing at Donlon Books, 75 Broadway Market, London E8 4PH, on Thursday 13th July, between 18.30 - 20.30.

The Horses is available to purchase from www.sorika.com - buy the book here.