Pierre Bellocq
Encyclopedia
Pierre Camille Lucien Hilaire Jean Bellocq (born November 25, 1926 in Bedenac
, Charente-Maritime
, France
) is a French
-American
art
ist and horse racing
cartoon
ist known as "Peb". As a small boy, his family moved to Maisons-Laffitte
where his father worked at the local race track
. There, at a young age Pierre Bellocq used his natural talent to begin creating caricatures of horses and horse people. At age 19, the French racing journal France Courses gave him national exposure when they published one of his cartoons of a jockey
. Bellocq signed the drawing as "Peb", a signature which would become his lifelong moniker. Within a few years Peb was widely known and an emerging artist who also gained recognition for his caricatures on sports advertising poster
s..
owner John D. Schapiro to do drawings for the inaugural running of the Washington, D.C. International Stakes. He settled in the United States and in early 1955 accepted an offer to work as the staff cartoonist for the Morning Telegraph newspaper and its sister paper, the Daily Racing Form
, a job he held until December, 2008..
Pierre Bellocq has produced several books; his first consisted of 150 cartoons and was titled Peb's Equine Comedy. It was published by Random House
in 1957 and is still in print. As well, he did the illustrations for the 1969 Joe Hirsch
book A Treasury of Questions and Answers from the Morning Telegraph and Daily Racing Form. In 2004, he created drawings for author Ed Hotaling's book on jockey Jimmy Winkfield
whom Bellocq had known personally when the African American
rider was living and racing in his hometown of Maisons-Laffitte, France..
He received the National Cartoonists Society
1991 Sports Cartoon Award and their 1999 Newspaper Illustration Award. In 1998, the Daniel Wildenstein
Art Gallery in New York held an exhibition of Bellocq's work titled "The Racing World in Sketch and Caricature." From July 24, 2004 until December 31, 2005, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
put on a special exhibition of his works titled "Peb: The Art of Humor" that celebrated his 50th anniversary of horse racing artwork in the United States..
In 2001, when Churchill Downs
began its major renovations, one of the additions to the clubhouse was a 36-foot mural
by Pierre Bellocq depicting all 96 jockeys who had won the Kentucky Derby
from 1875 to 2004. Another Bellocq mural, in the clubhouse of Belmont Park
in Elmont, New York
, depicts the dominant jockeys, trainers and racing personalities of the track's century-long history. In fact thoroughbred breeder J. Mac Robinson named a racehorse that he used to own by Henny Hughes out of the Mr. Prospector mare Race Artist Peb Hughes in honor of Pierre Camille Lucien Hilaire Jean Bellocq a. k. a. Peb..
Bedenac
Bedenac is a commune in the Charente-Maritime in the department in the Poitou-Charentes region in southwestern France. It is one of the largest communes in the department, in terms of land area.-Population:-External links:* *...
, Charente-Maritime
Charente-Maritime
Charente-Maritime is a department on the west coast of France named after the Charente River.- History :Previously a part of Saintonge, Charente-Inférieure was one of the 83 original departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) is a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
-American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
ist and horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
ist known as "Peb". As a small boy, his family moved to Maisons-Laffitte
Maisons-Laffitte
Maisons-Laffitte is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the north-western suburbs of Paris from the center....
where his father worked at the local race track
Race track
A race track is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals , automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.A racetrack is a permanent facility or building...
. There, at a young age Pierre Bellocq used his natural talent to begin creating caricatures of horses and horse people. At age 19, the French racing journal France Courses gave him national exposure when they published one of his cartoons of a jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
. Bellocq signed the drawing as "Peb", a signature which would become his lifelong moniker. Within a few years Peb was widely known and an emerging artist who also gained recognition for his caricatures on sports advertising poster
Poster
A poster is any piece of printed paper designed to be attached to a wall or vertical surface. Typically posters include both textual and graphic elements, although a poster may be either wholly graphical or wholly text. Posters are designed to be both eye-catching and informative. Posters may be...
s..
Career
By 1954, Bellocq's work had achieved international recognition and he was contracted by Laurel ParkLaurel Park (racecourse)
Laurel Park is an American thoroughbred racetrack located just outside Laurel, Maryland which opened in 1911. The track is 1 1/8 miles in circumference. Its name was changed to "Laurel Race Course" for several decades until returning to the "Laurel Park" designation in 1994...
owner John D. Schapiro to do drawings for the inaugural running of the Washington, D.C. International Stakes. He settled in the United States and in early 1955 accepted an offer to work as the staff cartoonist for the Morning Telegraph newspaper and its sister paper, the Daily Racing Form
Daily Racing Form
The Daily Racing Form is a tabloid newspaper founded in 1894 in Chicago, Illinois by Frank Brunell. The paper publishes the past performances of race horses as a statistical service for bettors on horse racing in the United States....
, a job he held until December, 2008..
Pierre Bellocq has produced several books; his first consisted of 150 cartoons and was titled Peb's Equine Comedy. It was published by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
in 1957 and is still in print. As well, he did the illustrations for the 1969 Joe Hirsch
Joe Hirsch
Joe Hirsch was an American horse racing columnist and the founding president of the National Turf Writers Association.-Biography:...
book A Treasury of Questions and Answers from the Morning Telegraph and Daily Racing Form. In 2004, he created drawings for author Ed Hotaling's book on jockey Jimmy Winkfield
James Winkfield
James "Jimmy" Winkfield was a Thoroughbred jockey and horse trainer from Kentucky, best remembered as the last African American to ride a winner in the Kentucky Derby....
whom Bellocq had known personally when the African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
rider was living and racing in his hometown of Maisons-Laffitte, France..
He received the National Cartoonists Society
National Cartoonists Society
The National Cartoonists Society is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops...
1991 Sports Cartoon Award and their 1999 Newspaper Illustration Award. In 1998, the Daniel Wildenstein
Daniel Wildenstein
Daniel Leopold Wildenstein was a French art dealer and scholar, as well as a leading thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder....
Art Gallery in New York held an exhibition of Bellocq's work titled "The Racing World in Sketch and Caricature." From July 24, 2004 until December 31, 2005, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
put on a special exhibition of his works titled "Peb: The Art of Humor" that celebrated his 50th anniversary of horse racing artwork in the United States..
In 2001, when Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs, located in Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby annually. It officially opened in 1875, and held the first Kentucky Derby and the first Kentucky Oaks in the same year. Churchill Downs...
began its major renovations, one of the additions to the clubhouse was a 36-foot mural
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
by Pierre Bellocq depicting all 96 jockeys who had won the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
from 1875 to 2004. Another Bellocq mural, in the clubhouse of Belmont Park
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in Elmont in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, on Long Island adjoining New York City. It first opened on May 4, 1905...
in Elmont, New York
Elmont, New York
Elmont is an unincorporated census-designated place located in the northwest corner of the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, along its border with the borough of Queens in New York City...
, depicts the dominant jockeys, trainers and racing personalities of the track's century-long history. In fact thoroughbred breeder J. Mac Robinson named a racehorse that he used to own by Henny Hughes out of the Mr. Prospector mare Race Artist Peb Hughes in honor of Pierre Camille Lucien Hilaire Jean Bellocq a. k. a. Peb..