The Girl with Seven Horses is photographer Ulrika Kestere's story about seven imaginary horses that come to life within her photographs. The images are based on a childhood fairy tale because Kestere believes that she is “very much still a child in [her] mind” and therefore it's “easier for [her] to stay in a fairytale.”
Within each image, the horse form is incredibly playful while the overall tone feels melancholy. The young girl appears indifferent about locating her missing horses, even after such a long search. Regardless of the bleak mood, Kestere's landscape and color palette choices allow the viewer to delve into the mystery of the story without letting go of the magnificent aesthetic.
The story goes: Once upon a time there was a girl who had 7 invisible horses. People thought she was crazy and that she in fact had 7 imaginative horses, but this was not the case. When autumn came the girl spent a whole day washing all her clothes. She hung them on a string in her garden to let the gentle autumn sun dry them. Out of nowhere, a terrible storm came and its fierceful winds grabbed a hold of all her clothes and all seven horses (authors note: since they are invisible they obviously didn't weigh much). The girl was devastated and spent all autumn looking for each horse spread around the country, wrapped in her clothes.
