Acrylic horse portraits

Showcase your equine partner in an elegant, heirloom-quality portrait that places them on centre stage. A neutral background provides space for your horse to be the primary focus, empowering their individuality to shine. Each portrait celebrates the grace, power, and personality of the modern hunter, jumper or dressage horse.

Painted exclusively with professional-grade acrylic paints on gallery-wrapped canvas for a presentation that commands attention is any stable, home, or office.

Get in touch with the artist to discuss.

Custom realistic horse portrait of grey Thoroughbred Go For Soda by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Custom realistic horse portrait of bay hunter/jumper Can't Believe by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 14 x 18

Custom realistic horse portrait of chestnut Quarter Horse Perfect Possibility by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Custom realistic horse portrait of grey dressage horse Striker by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 14 x 18

Custom realistic horse portrait of dapple grey Cadence by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 20 x 24

Custom realistic horse portrait of bay jumper Patti by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 14 x 18

"I am absolutely amazed by Carolyn's artistry! From a collection of photographs, she created a stunning portrait of my mother's mare. The attention to detail is nothing short of awe-inspiring! She managed to capture not only her appearance, but also her personality. I couldn't be happier with the result and it was a beautiful gift to give. It made my Mom cry tears of joy."

— Olivia K. (Huntsville, MD)
Portrait of Sweet Potato, American Quarter Horse. Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12”×16”.
"I would highly recommend that anyone commission Carolyn Nikolai to immortalize their beloved fur babies! She has an incredible talent for capturing the soul and personality of her subjects. She was very professional and friendly taking care of the business side of our order as well. Importantly, her commissions are very reasonably priced. She responded to inquiries quickly and finished our commission by the requested date. She even had it beautifully gift-wrapped for us! The level of detail in her portrait was unbelievable and it felt like we were looking into the horse’s eyes in person. Gorgeous! From now on, I will always be asking Carolyn to lend her talent to capture our dogs and horses – she is just that good."

— Kyla D. (Nepean, ON)
Portrait of Biolek “Bronte”. Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12”×16”.

Custom realistic horse portrait of bay jumper Fernet VM "Dougie" by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 10 x 12

Custom realistic horse portrait of Isis, Cinders, Tilly, Riley, and Winnie by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 20 x 48

Custom realistic pony portrait of paint Fancy Nancy by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 12

Custom realistic horse portrait of chestnut Quarter Horse Sweet Potato by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Custom realistic horse portrait of black Canadian dressage horse Noble by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Custom realistic horse portrait of bay Mikey by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 20 x 24

"Carolyn is so talented and accommodating. She even met with us to go over photos of Faye and helped us decide what would work well together. She used different photos for the background, pose and colouring and made it work so beautifully. This painting so captures Faye; I feel like she’s right in our home! When we unwrapped the parcel, I can honestly say we all said ‘Wow’ at the same time."

— Petra W. (Ottawa, ON)
Portrait of Faye, dressage horse. Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 18”×24”.
"Noodles passed away suddenly on August 4th. My daughter, Caroline, was with him at the time. He was such a good little pony boy, and held a special part of our hearts that we commissioned Carolyn to paint his portrait. We are so impressed at how she caught his true character—the expression in his eye, the little tuck of his head, the wind in his mane. This is our Noodles! Thank you so much Carolyn!"

— Linda S. (Oxford Mills, ON)
Portrait of Noodles, pony. Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 16”×16”.

Custom realistic horse portrait of grey jumper Eskalina by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 20 x 24

Custom realistic horse portrait of bay Thoroughbred Marty by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Custom realistic horse portrait of black hunter/jumper Classic Knight by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 24 x 30

Custom realistic horse portrait of dark bay dressage horse Spice by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Custom realistic horse portrait of grey jumper Grace by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Custom realistic horse portrait of bay dressage horse Biolek "Bronte" by Ontario artist Carolyn Nikolai | Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 12 x 16

Equestrian portraits

Capturing the beauty and tradition of equestrian sports, bespoke acrylic portraits featuring both horse and rider are available.

Contact the artist to discuss.

Graphite horse portraits

Elegant and timeless, bespoke graphite portraits are also available. Each portrait is created using professional-grade graphite pencils on archival paper to ensure your artwork will last for generations.

Get in touch to commission your own custom graphite portrait.