Oleh Minko is a Ukrainian nonconformist artist representing "hermetic" art. He created images with a double meaning, where he narrated the theme of the work through the symbols of objects and human gestures. The style of his paintings is influenced by ancient Ukrainian iconography and European modernists: Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and Giorgio de Chirico. Oleg Minko's works are kept in state museums of national importance in Ukraine and private collections in Ukraine and abroad. The artist had personal exhibitions in London, Helsinki, Brussels, Copenhagen, Washington, and Vilnius.
"Running Horse" is a work of the Expressionist period of Oleh Minko. He operates with sharp geometrized forms, emphasizing the contradictions and tragedy of the canvas. The clear ribs and thin, wrinkled legs indicate the animal's fatigue and exhaustion. The horse tries to rise above the world, but a heavy horseshoe press prevents it from moving forward. Oleh Minko often personifies in horses the image of a country that has recently gained independence and, it would seem, should develop with new forces, but the political yoke imposed on it does not allow it to move forward.
