A painting by artist Bev Doolittle, titled Pintos, is taking the internet by storm, sparking a lively debate about just how many horses are hidden within the artwork. It’s reminiscent of the famous “is the dress blue and black or gold and white?” debacle that once divided the internet. If you’re still recovering from New Year’s celebrations, you might want to look away! Pintos shows a group of chestnut horses set against the rugged landscape of the American Southwest, but there’s a catch. Thanks to Doolittle’s clever use of “line, color, and pattern,” the horses seem to blend seamlessly into the rocks and snow. As Art Discovery explains, “The lines of snow in the rocks blend with the lines of white on the horses. The shapes of color on the horses are the same as the rocks behind them.” In other words, Doolittle’s painting is a visual riddle.
The image has even made it onto the National Institute of Environmental Health Science’s Kids Environment Kids Health website, where a scientist weighed in, saying there are actually seven horses hidden in the scene. This revelation has only fueled the debate, as Doolittle herself has said there are five horses in total. According to the Kids Environment Kids Health site, “We’ve heard there are supposed to be seven horses (including some partial horses, like a horse head and rear) shown in the picture.”
To help viewers find them, one scientist broke it down, describing clusters of horse faces, a sideways-standing horse, and even a lone horse rear. “Unless I’m hallucinating,” they joked, acknowledging the mind-bending challenge. Not everyone is convinced, though. As one skeptical commenter put it, “I see four horses and one colt because a colt becomes a horse after the age of four…which is why no horse has ever won the Kentucky Derby; it’s a race for three-year-olds.” Another chimed in with a humorous critique, “Experts on WHAT? Unless those last two horses are invisible, pink, and unicorns, I ain’t see s**t. Five horses.”
Doolittle’s painting has spurred countless Twitter discussions as viewers share their own counts. “The artist says there are only five horses; experts say seven. Because I’m woke, I see an infinite number of horses—horses being an arbitrary social construct,” one person joked. Another added, “Count the legs. I got to 19. So unless there’s a couple legless horses laying about, the answer is five.”If you’re still only spotting five or six horses, you’re in good company. Most people, including Doolittle herself, only see five horses. So, whether you find five, seven, or maybe even that elusive invisible unicorn, Pintos continues to baffle and entertain art lovers around the world.