Yeats’s interest in rural race meetings began during his childhood in Sligo, where his uncle George Pollexfen acted as steward at Bowmore racetrack, near Rosses Point. The excit.mes nt generated by such events amongst the local communities was a great source of inspiration for the artist and he refers to such meetings in many of his sketches and paintings, throughout his long career. Hilary Pyle connects the ‘long low’ composition of the painting to that of an 1899 watercolour by Yeats, also entitled ‘Going to the Races’. (H. Pyle, Jack B. Yeats, A Catalogue Raisonné of the Oil Paintings I, p.96 ; H. Pyle, Jack B. Yeats. His Watercolours, Drawings and Pastels, Irish Academic Press, 1993, p. 82)
The oil painting differs, however, in its clever juxtaposition of the rapidly moving crowds and the stillness of their surroundings. In this little oil, the racing, amusingly, is being enacted by the horse driven carts full of spectators hurrying to the track, rather than the race itself. The thickly applied greens, blues and greys, is offset by touches of reddish brown. This creates a colourful and dynamic expression of Irish country life. The elegant sweep of the horses’ heads as the animals move along adds to the sense of harmony between humanity and nature. The result is a positive, almost magical evocation of the West of Ireland and its citizens.
‘When he worked as an artist reporter during the 1880s, picturing boxing matches and sporting events, he realised that life was in the making around him, and it was this phenomenon which was his subject matter.’
The vivacious and dramatically cut-off composition of the lower half of the painting contrasts with the enormous expanse of pale overcast sky. The grey clouds create a neutral framework against which the heads of the figures are silhouetted. The thatched, white-washed cottages and the network of stone-walls mark the uniqueness of the setting. In contrast to the serenity of this backdrop, the foreground is filled with people and horses from the distant left to the extreme right. Their forms, all heading in the same direction, dominate the foreground of the composition. On the right an old man holds the reins of a horse, the body of which is not visible in the painting. The strained facial expression of the horseman and his tightened clenched fists suggest that they are moving at some speed. Behind him, seated on the vehicle, are two identical young women, each wearing a blue dress and lace collar. In the centre, is a side cart, driven by a younger man in a flat cap. His lively grey horse gallops ahead, its mane blown backwards by the breeze. Passengers sit back-to-back in these side jaunting cars, placing their feet on wooden footrests that extend in front of the spoked wheels. On one side a young boy chats to a demure looking and well-dressed young woman, while on the other side an older woman gazes into the distance. Behind them is a different type of cart pulled by two horses. It is full of men in hats and overcoats.
Yeats pays close attention to the individuality of all the characters and as always to the subtle differentiations in social standing amongst them, indicated most obviously in the details of their dress and comportment. The painting creates a vibrant tapestry of rural Irish life centred on the communal pleasure of the race and its temporary displacement of the daily routine by this exhilarating alternative experience.
Dr. Róisín Kennedy