Horse

Jarret and Darley travel with Ten Broeck to Natchez, Mississippi by riverboat. Jarret refused the accommodations Ten Broeck reserved for him, preferring to stay with Darley. After Darley won his final race as Harry’s horse, Harry asserted his right to his percentage of Darley’s winnings. Ten Broeck conceded, then offered Dr. Warfield twice what Harry could have paid for Jarret’s freedom to secure Jarret for himself.

Ten Broeck and Viley have changed Darley’s name to Lexington. Ten Broeck is sending Lexington and Jarret to a plantation called Fatherland, where Lexington will be trained under a man named John Pryor. Ten Broeck presumes Pryor will mentor Jarret as Jarret continues to work closely with Lexington. In Natchez, Jarret and Ten Broeck visit a barber shop belonging to a free Black man named William Johnson, who voices his skepticism that Pryor will prove cooperative. At Fatherland, Pryor, immediately rough and harsh in his handling of Lexington, banishes Jarret from the stables.

Jarret is relegated to the quarters of the enslaved residents of the plantation. He asks Ben, a messenger, to ask William Johnson if he will write to Ten Broeck and explain what happened. Jarret tries to stay appraised of Lexington’s status, tormented by their separation. When the cotton harvesting season begins, Jarret is required to participate. He is struck by the profound difference between his own experience as the son of a celebrated horse trainer and those of the enslaved people forced into agricultural labor.

Before going to view the painting of Lexington, Jess and Theo, accompanied by Clancy, meet for lunch. Jess comes to appreciate the closeness of the bond between Theo and Clancy. Jess notices an irregularity in the bones of Theo’s hand, and asks how he came to break it. Theo shares that it happened during an Oxford polo match, and that injuries are common. Jess asks if it was the physical demands which caused him to quit, but Theo avoids answering. He is flooded with memories of the racism and ostracism he experienced in boarding school and at university. Despite his superlative athletic skill and the prestige and success it afforded his team, his achievements never earned him respect or acceptance. He only tells Jess, “I guess I loved it more than it loved me” (168). Theo finds himself drawn to Jess, intrigued by her directness, her curiosity, and her ability to quickly win Clancy over.

Jarret is summoned to the stallion barn and finds Lexington in a severe state of colic. Lexington had broken into the feed store and gorged himself on corn. Jarret is furious that Pryor waited to summon him while Lexington’s condition worsened. Jarret takes charge, demanding resources he requires. After Jarret treats Lexington, Pryor attempts to dismiss him, but Jarret refuses. Jarret asserts that if Pryor had allowed him to remain with Lexington, Lexington never would have had the opportunity to overeat. Pryor relents, and Jarret moves into Lexington’s stall.

Inseparable again, Jarret leaves Lexington only to visit an enslaved man named Jack, who has begun teaching Jarret to read. When he feels Lexington has recovered sufficiently, Jarret begins riding Lexington again, easing slowly into a carefully structured conditioning routine. On the flat, Jarret spends time developing Lexington’s library of verbal commands. Jarret is careful to keep an eye out for long-term adverse effects of Lexington’s colic. Lexington and Jarret are summoned to New Orleans for a race. Even Pryor expresses his disapproval that Ten Broeck would decide to race Lexington so soon.

Theo and Jess stand before a 2 x 3-foot Thomas J. Scott portrait of Lexington, a later rendering than Theo’s painting. Lexington has grown into his body, no longer a gangly colt but a powerful, remarkable example of intentional heredity and careful, expert conditioning. They learn that it was acquired as part of Martha Jackson’s collection, which was gifted to the museum upon her death in 1980. Martha, a well-known gallerist and art dealer in mid-20th-century Manhattan, was known for her exclusive interest in modern art. The presence of a 19th-century equine painting is a notable exception.

Martha was a friend of Jackson Pollock. When Jess mentions Pollock’s death in a car accident, Theo is reminded of the moment he learned his father’s official vehicle had crashed while he was on assignment, killing him. The dean of students had been the one to inform him. When Theo asked for his mother, he was told she would call him later, but she never came to visit. He thinks about how his mother would surely disapprove of the time he has been spending with Jess, and his growing fondness for her.

In 1954, Martha Jackson watches as Jackson Pollock, furious with a critic’s review, defiantly flings paint at his canvas. His wife, Lee Krasner, sits nearby, ready to intervene when Pollock inevitably collapses upon completion of the project. Martha appreciates Pollock’s work, and has been instrumental in improving his notoriety, but resents the needy, selfish, and manipulative behavior he uses to control her friend. Martha and Lee, both aspiring artists, met when Martha first moved to New York City. Despite expert instruction and her best efforts, Martha had realized with regret that she herself would never be a great artist. Her instructor encouraged her to nurture her natural talent for discernment and embrace her potential as a gallerist and art dealer. Now the owner of a small gallery, Martha has earned the respect, loyalty, and admiration of artists and collectors alike.