Maria made this artwork, this symbol at the request of Blue-Star Eqiculture, the retirement and rescue home of the New York Carriage Horses and other draft animals. They have turned it into a blanket, on sale now for $52 – they have already sold nearly 50 of them.

The blanket and the symbol speak to the ancient connection between human beings and horses and other working animals. We share the joys and travails of the world with them, we need them and they need us. In our world, people have lost respect for the horses and their work, they are sending them away. In New York, there is a great struggle to keep the horses in the city, working with people and living among them.

Maria learned of the “Blue Horse” story and it inspired this logo, which she designed in her Schoolhouse Studio. It is a striking piece of art.

“Everywhere around the world,” writes Pamela Rickenbach of Blue-Star,  “all peoples and cultures express their gratitude for this ancient partnership in their creation stories and myths. The Blue Horse story is just one shared on the BSE farm from a Kallawaya Elder, Don Valerio Cohailla, from high in the Andes in Peru. He spoke of the horses as “angel helpers” who want to be alongside mankind to help them reach their destiny of creating “Peace on Earth” promised in all of the religions of the world.”

There is much at stake in the horse’s struggle to survive in our world, much rides on their fate. Those of us who live and work with animals grasp the importance of the story right away. You can help support the partner between people and working animals, from horses to border collies and sheep and goats by purchasing one of the “Blue Horse” blankets. You can order one here and help restore this ancient bond and our own imaginations, tradition and culture.

All the proceeds go to help animals.