Georgia Magazine - July 2018 - 17

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LOREN MCPARTLAND

Savannah Main holds the painting belonging to her grandmother, Loren McPartland.
McPartland used Thor's painting to inspire
her art students.
July 2018

uses different brushes to get different strokes, but all of the brushes
have to have big enough handles
for Thor to hold them between his
teeth. Flat-handled brushes work
the best, though he enjoys using
a round one to incorporate swirls
here and there. He occasionally
refuses to release the brush, insisting on a few more strokes before
relinquishing it. The only part he
doesn't paint is his signature, which
Hennings does on his behalf.
Thor's paintings are sold all
over the United States and cost $20
to $60, depending on the size of the
canvas and framing.
One proud owner of a Thor
original is Loren McPartland of
Buford, who bought one of Thor's
paintings with a specific purpose in
mind. Every year, Gwinnett Technical College in Lawrenceville hosts
summer camps for children. McPartland taught classes for the art camp
and used Thor's painting to inspire
her students.
"This might be the first time
they explore painting," McPartland
says. "I tell them, 'If a horse can
paint, you can, too!'"
The green and blue strokes with
hints of red let her students know
that their paintings do not have to
be perfect replicas of fruit bowls or
landscapes. They can have fun and
paint like Thor.
Hennings also donated one of
Thor's paintings to the Bethlehembased Georgia Equine Rescue
League (GERL) for its annual GERL
Rescue Challenge auction. (See the
sidebar on page 18 for more information about GERL.)
More online at www.georgiamagazine.org

AMY SCHNEIDER

Dorinda and David Hennings
have owned Thor since birth and
quickly discovered his intelligence
and willingness to learn new things.
His painting hobby started by
chance in March 2015.
"He picked up a clean paintbrush and was playing with it,
and the idea came into my mind,"
Dorinda Hennings says. "I taught
him to paint in 15 minutes!"
Hennings picks the colors and
puts the paint on the brush for him.
Thor takes the brush between his
front teeth, positioning it with his
lips until he gets it just right. Then
he creates colorful, abstract paintings with shakes and nods of his
head.
The horse is completely engaged in his painting activities. He

COURTESY DORINDA HENNINGS

ou've heard of a jack-of-all-trades or a Renaissance
man or woman, but what about a Renaissance horse?
Thor, an 11-year-old American Sugarbush Harlequin
Draft horse in Lizella, loves attention and has learned many
tricks to get it, including dunking a small basketball, smiling
"like Elvis Presley," bowing, prancing-and painting.

In addition to his painting skills (top), Thor
has learned to flash what Dorinda Hennings
calls his "Elvis smile" (above).

A pleasant surprise
Horse rescue is near and dear
to the hearts of Dorinda and David
Hennings, especially considering
how Thor came into their lives. The
couple bought Thor's mother, Xena
the Warrior Princess, from a horse
auction in Hazlehurst on June 25,
2006. Dorinda Hennings says they
"went there to get a saddle but ended up coming home with a horse!"
Xena was won at the auction
by a man known to sell horses for
slaughter, but her original owner refused to sell to him. That was when
the Henningses swooped in to take
Xena home with them. They paid
only $300 to rescue Xena, a pure17
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - July 2018
