Born of the Wind – A Tribute to the Mustang Spirit

 

Born of the Wind – A Tribute to the Mustang Spirit

Born of the Wind – A Tribute to the Mustang Spirit

There are horses… and then there are Mustangs.

The first time I drew a Mustang, I didn’t just sketch an animal — I captured a force of nature. The way the wind seemed to ripple through its mane, the fire in its eyes, the grounded power in its stance — it wasn’t just a horse. It was freedom itself.

Mustangs are descendants of wild horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish hundreds of years ago. But make no mistake — they belong to no one. They run wild, untamed, and proud across the deserts and plains of the American West. For centuries, they’ve lived in harmony with nature, surviving storms, harsh lands, and human cruelty. And yet… they still run.

To me, the Mustang represents:

Freedom — the kind that can't be bought or broken
Strength — not just of muscle, but of spirit
Wilderness — the beauty of what exists without control
Speed — swift as thought, raw as instinct
Energy — wild and alive, pulsing like the earth’s heartbeat
Connection to Nature — not separate from it, but part of its rhythm

As I drew this portrait, I felt that connection come alive in every pencil stroke. The wind, the dust, the thunder of hooves — I wanted to honour the sacred untamed spirit that the Mustang carries.

We live in a world that often cages the soul. That tames, trains, and quiets the wildness in us. But the Mustang reminds us:
We were not born to live small.
We were born to run with purpose, to stand strong, to feel the earth beneath our feet and the sky above our backs.

This drawing is my tribute — to every wild spirit, every free soul, every Mustang heart that refuses to be broken.

— Vera
Five Wonders Art

Wisdom in Her Eyes

 

Wisdom in Her Eyes – A Portrait of a Hupa Elder

Her name has been lost to time, but her eyes still speak.

She was a Hupa woman, born into the sacred forests of Northern California in 1853. In the lines of her face, I saw mountains. In the tilt of her chin, I saw resistance. And in her eyes — I saw wisdom that stretched beyond centuries.

The Hupa people have lived in the Hoopa Valley along the Trinity River for thousands of years. Known for their deep relationship with nature, the river, and the redwoods, they are a people of ceremony, of vision, of earth-bound spirituality. Like many indigenous tribes, they endured colonization, forced assimilation, broken treaties — yet never forgot who they were.

This old woman, wrapped in woven cloth, hair silver and wild, did not wear her age with sorrow. She wore it like a warrior’s crown. I loved drawing every detail of her portrait — the strong cheekbones, the patterns etched by the sun, the softness that held strength like fire wrapped in wool.

When I draw indigenous people, I don’t just see a face — I see a living archive of truth. A mirror of the soul. A sacred connection that the modern world has forgotten.

The Hupa, like many noble tribes, never stopped standing for their freedom. They fought for their land, their language, their rights, their dignity. And in many ways, they still fight — not with weapons, but with ceremony, presence, and memory.

To me, indigenous people remind us of something that cannot be colonized: the spirit.
They remind me of the wildness within us, of the sacredness in nature, of the whispers of God in wind and water. They carry the old wisdom — not written in books, but carved into bone, sung into the air, woven into baskets, and held in the eyes of elders.

Eyes like hers.

When I drew her portrait, I didn’t want to change anything. I wanted to honour her. Every line, every wrinkle, every shadow — a symbol of resilience. She didn’t ask to be remembered, but she deserves to be. Through art, I want her story to live.

Because in her gaze, I saw a prayer.
Not for revenge.
Not for glory.
But for us — the disconnected ones — to remember.

To remember who we are.
To return to soul.
To live with earth.
To see spirit in everything.

That’s why I draw.

That’s why I honour indigenous people through my art — to keep sacredness visible in a world that too often forgets.

— Vera
Five Wonders Art