Bio

Marie Knapp is the founder and artist of Oak & Stirrup Studio, a fine art studio devoted to heirloom equestrian works inspired by the distinguished horse culture of Kentucky and Florida.

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Her acrylic originals interpret the strength, discipline, and noble presence of the horse — from the power of Thoroughbred racing to the precision of hunter/jumper and dressage sport, and the enduring traditions of Bluegrass farm life. Each composition is created to embody permanence and quiet authority, reflecting the stature of the equine as both athlete and legacy.

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Working deliberately and with measured restraint, Marie builds her paintings in layered brushwork that imparts depth, movement, and gravitas. The result is art that feels established rather than decorative — pieces intended for refined interiors where heritage, lifestyle, and tradition are not trends, but values.

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Through Oak & Stirrup Studio, Marie offers collector-level equestrian art that honors the enduring prestige of the horse and the cultivated world that surrounds it — art created for those who understand that equestrian life is not simply a pastime, but a lineage.

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Having grown up in the heart of the Bluegrass in Kentucky, she developed a lifelong love for horses almost as soon as she could walk. At just five years old, she was riding her first pony, and by eight, her father had purchased a spirited Quarter Horse named Twister—cementing what would become a deep and enduring bond with the equine world.

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Her introduction to the magic of the Kentucky Derby came at age seven, when she placed her first bet with her grandmother and won her very first draw with Seattle Slew—a memory she still treasures. Family friends owned a Thoroughbred farm that she visited often, giving her a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the racing world and occasional opportunities to mingle with jockeys.

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Between the ages of eleven and thirteen, she worked with horses on a local farm in exchange for hunter-jumper riding lessons. She attended several shows and even spent two years running scores at a large equestrian event, further deepening her knowledge and appreciation of the sport.

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Life later led her into early motherhood, and she stepped away from horse ownership and riding. Yet her love for equines never faded. After graduating from art school, she explored a variety of artistic mediums before ultimately returning to one of her first and truest inspirations—the horse.

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Today, her work reflects a lifetime of lived experience, reverence, and affection for the equestrian world.

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"The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance."-- Aristotle

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