This painting takes on an almost ethereal feel with so much of the canvas dedicated to the evening sky. The position and posture of the ponies was captured at a moment of awareness - when the white mare took notice of the photographer. Nevertheless, with such a strong presence, the mare commands the entire scene.

The photographer was Dan Miller, a Wyoming cowboy whose education, curiosity, and passion for rangelands took him far from home. In the mid-’70s, Dan began working in Asia eventually joining USAID as an experienced pastoralist and range management expert. He spent most of the last 50 years in Asia, cultivating enduring relationships between the U.S. and foreign governments through his work with nomadic shepherds and herders. An incredible and oft published photographer, Dan – also known as the WildYakMan - retired from USAID several years ago but continues to work and spend several months abroad every year, routinely nourishing his special kinship with the Mongolian steppe.

This painting recognizes 2026 as the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (https://iyrp.info/), the Chinese Lunar Calendar Year of the Horse, and commemorates my dear friendship with the WildYakMan.