Lexi K. Nilson / MFA Illustration Practice ‘22
Black Beauty, A Love Letter
2020
Digital
Black Beauty, written by Anna Sewell in 1877, is a children’s novel written from a horse’s perspective. Throughout the story, Black Beauty fills many roles, experiencing love, loss, joy, and pain in a life dictated by the actions of the people who claim him. For the 5 year old me, who connected better with animals than people, the story was an introduction to the human experience and taught me to consider my actions in a world full of things whose lives I touch with my own.
This piece is a reaction to a reconnection with a tale from childhood as I reflect on the deeper truths that have stayed with me. With this animation, I write an animated love letter to a story that, for me, exemplifies the life experience we share as creatures of this world. While the star motif illustrates the theme of light found in darkness and the blooming flower signifies growth that comes from pain, the animation itself represents the transitional interconnectedness that unites man and beast alike.