Side-saddle

Painted in 1899 and now at Tate in London, this equestrian work depicting a woman riding side-saddle was produced during Lautrec's recovery period following his 1899 sanatorium confinement. Horses and riding had been subjects from his earliest work — his aristocratic family background made equestrian subjects a natural part of his visual world. The return to this early subject matter in 1899 may reflect a deliberate reaching back to his pre-Montmartre artistic identity during a period of physical and psychological convalescence. The elegance of the side-saddle subject contrasts with the rawer social world of his mature work.

The equestrian composition balances the figure's upright formality against the horse's dynamic movement, with thin colour describing both the elegance of the rider's dress and the animal's musculature. Lautrec's characteristic economy of line is well suited to capturing the precise posture of the side-saddle position.