Wednesday, March 20, 2024

A Donkey Named Carlos

I always love the challenge of painting what someone asks me to do.
"Can you paint my mom's donkey?"
"Can you put him in the view from her window?"
"Can you finish before Mother's Day?"
 
These are the photos I had to work with for this piece.  I didn't have a very good photo of Carlos, but was told he spent many hours with his head over the fence waiting for a treat. 
Wait... Fence? What fence?  Ooohhhh.... there is a wire fence in front... Yikes! How to do that... 
Challenge 1 - Find a better photo of a donkey and make it be Carlos.
Challenge 2 - Use the edge of a credit card to make the fine straight fence lines.

I hope their mother will be surprised and pleased. 

Original Oil Painting on 12"x 16" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD
]

8 comments:

  1. How cute is this! I bet she will be delighted!

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    1. I do hope so! I always have a tiny streak of anxiety before giving it to them.

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  2. What a wonderful gift for Mother's day! I know what a challenge it must be working from few photos (I only gave you one fuzzy old one!) Carlos looks good, and you did good. :)

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    1. Sometimes an old fuzzy one (with a good story to go with it) is all it takes!

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  3. That is the second donkey painting I have seen commissioned in a very short time. People obviously love their donkeys. I believe that she will love the painting too

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    1. Well, donkeys are just fun. I think their people treat them more like their dogs than their horses.

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  4. You're not a painter... You're a MAGICIAN, Helen!!! Merging those two photos is amazing. Adding unseen details, too? Incredible! I'm sure the recipient (and her family) was thrilled.

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    1. Wow! That's a high compliment! I've learned that when someone has a "memory photo" that they want turned into a painting, it's rarely a great photo. And, they almost always want some tweak... like adding a donkey! Usually I can embrace the challenge and pull it off.

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