ARTIST
PHOTOGRAPHER
HORSEWOMAN
finding beauty on DUSTY
DIRT ROADS
Kimerlee Curyl is known for her unique and artistic approach to capturing and celebrating these National Icons. Her intimate works evoke emotion, drawing the viewer even closer to this untamed beauty. Illuminating the majestic lives of the American Wild Horse, the lands they call home and the plight they continue to face. Through art, she sheds a light on the importance of advocacy and awareness.
Unlike other subjects, wild horses can not be directed or contrived. You wait. Patiently. For what they offer you, then hope the magic of the right light and the right angles collide. When they do, there is something so beautiful that is not only captured in time, but a spark is lit in that moment. I wish to engage you, the viewer, into a bigger, more profound conversation.
Conservation and their protections matter.
xokc
Wild Mustangs. Without them the great west was not possible. We traveled, explored and built this land by holding onto their manes and riding the spirit of their hearts. We can honor that gift by being their voice. These beautiful legends, magnificent symbols of freedom and grace are being stripped from their homes, families torn apart and an icon will soon be lost forever. It is my hope to not only celebrate the beauty and magnificence of these creatures but to help them. They are a living breathing history museum, a vital element in our heritage, to our eco-system and to our humanity. To lose them would be a tragically irresponsible disrespect to our past, present and future.
The GREATNESS of a NATION and ITS MORAL PROGRESS can be JUDGED by the way ITS ANIMALS are TREATED. - GANDHI
Kimerlee has long known the healing power of horses, and it is this connection that allows her to share extraordinary, visual stories with an intimate approach through her craft.
The Hollywood dream moved her west from Minnesota, but it was the heart of a horse that changed everything.
As a creative force, Kimerlee has a rare gift having worked on both sides of the camera—the natural ability of capturing emotion and authenticity. Her body of work, illuminating the American wild horse, has been unfolding since 2004. Delivering imagery described as unique, dramatic, and evocative. Emphasizing graceful lines, rich textures, and a view of the horse not seen before. With elegant sophistication, she has been capturing these iconic, wild creatures so intimately that she leaves you, the viewer imagining their very breath upon your face.
Self-taught and deeply passionate, she has cultivated a style that is undeniably her own, instantly recognizable and deeply resonant. Her travels have taken her to remote corners of the world, capturing the essence of stunning horses. Yet, her muse lies with the wild ones, in all their untamed beauty found in their natural habitat, the rugged terrain and harsh elements of our American Western landscapes.
The work reflects passion and purpose, fused with environmental consciousness. With an unwavering dedication to the protections of wild horses, with which she hopes to inspire others, not only to appreciate the beauty of these creatures, but to take an interest in helping preserve their place on this land. The same land they enabled us to travel upon as our forebears explored this country not so long ago.
Her works are more than images; they are a connection to our greater wild world and inspire a conversation for conservation. We are each stewards of this Earth, and it will forever be up to us to cherish and protect our magnificent wild and untouched lands.
Kimerlee lives in the beautiful valley of Santa Ynez, California and has had two very significant horses in her life, a paint mare named Sequoia and an adopted wild mustang from Wyoming named el Regalo. She is represented by one of the country's largest fine art publishers, prestigious galleries, world-renowned interior designers, along with national, international, and celebrity collectors. Her work has won numerous awards and has been used in a variety of advertising campaigns and product branding.
Most importantly, her work has become a voice for those who don't have one...our remaining wild horses who roam the untamed reaches of our American West.
Regalo lived wild and free for about the first two years of his life, in the Great Divide Basin, Wyoming. One of the most magical places to ever place yourself.
In October of 2011 helicopters descended on his family. A prey animal, chased for miles across rugged, dangerous and diverse landscape with a soaring, loud machine over your head. Did you know that a horse can hear the ultrasonic shriek of a bat, which is inaudible to a humans ear? Just think about that? He was then, immediately removed from his family band, loaded on a livestock truck with his mother and shipped for hours to a facility in Utah.
Imagine, being chased with your family for miles, quite possibly hours by helicopter, forced into tiny steel pens after living two years of your life on over 800k acres of territory. Never seeing a human before and now they are yelling and waving plastic bags in your face. You are exhausted as your little legs should never of had to run that far, that fast and that scared. Now you begin the 6+ hour journey in a loud, bumpy metal box stuffed with other scared wild mares and youngsters. You arrive and are unloaded into a flat pen surrounded by fences. The following day you are taken from you mother, run through a squeeze shoot, given vaccines, gelded and moved into a pen with only other newly gelded youngsters. Mother now gone forever.
With all of that happening to him, this is the smartest, most curious, mostly confident horse I have ever been privileged to know. If communicate with well, he loves to learn, if forced, he grows in height and becomes hundreds of pounds heavier of “No, you can’t make me do anything”. I am completely fascinated by him.
I adopted in 2013, his name means “the gift” and that is exactly what he has been to me. My first wish is freedom for wild horses and burros. And while not all wild horses do well with captivity, the ones that do are remarkable. For the past few years we have been learning to joy of jumping. Yes, a once wild horse now representing the American Mustang with the art of jump. He thrives on it! He is my “wild child” and I could not be more proud of this amazing creature.
INTERVIEW FOR THE #IMWITHTHEBAND CAMPAIGNS RELEASE
Kimerlee Curyl speaks about her journey with wild horses over the past 17 years.
A VOICE for WILD HORSES
Kimerlee's unwavering commitment to the plight our American wild horses face has given her a platform for which she has championed the cause to diverse audiences. Shedding a light on the past, present and future of what is happening to these majestic creatures in the name of special interests.
Speaking at engagements such as the renowned EarthX, private workshops, engaging high school students, art openings and galas, movie premieres, private collector dinners and so much more.
She has traveled to numerous and often times isolated locations documenting in an artful form, the life of the American wild horse. A life that is woven into the very fabric of our land.
Kimerlee believes in the art of visual storytelling, and through this medium she has inspired many. If her endevavors resonate with your passions, and raising awareness feels profound to you, we invite you to reach out and hosting an art opening or event to share and expose the issues these icons face. Please contact us at:
info@kimerleecuryl.com