A Little Gray Donkey (a.k.a. Clip Clop)

Doesn't he just look ornery! I bet the farmer who feeds him is either aggravated or laughing at him all the time.
His name is Clip Clop.

When my daughter was about three, her little choir at church sang a song about the donkey that Joseph led as he and Mary made their way to Bethlehem.  Each little one had a pair of rhythm sticks to tap together as they sang.
     
     Little gray donkey,
     Clip clop, clip clop,
     On the way to Bethlehem. 

     Little gray donkey,
     Clip clop, clip clop,
     On the way to Bethlehem. 

     Little gray donkey,
     Clip clop, clip clop,
     On the way to Bethlehem. 

Maybe there were more words, but I think they just sang those three lines over and over until they finished.  It was so cute.  
I think this little donkey is pretty cute, so I've named him Clip Clop in honor of the song.

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

Still Life - Blue Pitcher & Pink Roses

I finished this painting a while ago, but I got stuck wondering what to say whenever I sat down to write a post about it.

My art mentor, Cheri, had prepared this as one of my lessons on how to paint roses.  Her still life paintings are so beautiful. I am grateful to learn from her.

As we painted and talked, STYLE was a subject we kept coming back to.  I am fascinated by artistic style.

• Loose brush strokes or tight
• Simple subjects or complex
• Bright colors or muted
• Reaslistic or impressionistic
• Lost edges or hard
• Formal tone or comfortable
• Textured paint or smooth
• Do you choose your style, or does it choose you?
• Can you change your style, or should you even try?
• Am I guilty of saying, "It's my style" if the truth is I was just too lazy to make it better?

I was a teacher of writing long before I became a painter.  Style is that elusive feature of writing that's hard to put your finger on, but it's the reason we recognize and either enjoy or dislike a person's writing.  I don't choose to read a book or blog because the author put all the commas in the right place and spelled the words right.  It may be the subject matter or content that cause me to discover a blog, but it's the author's style that makes me want to "follow" it.

I think it's the same for style of art.  If you search "rose painting" on Etsy, you'll find about  4,500 listings.  How do you choose which one to buy?  Ah ha... style... (and maybe price.😉 )

Original Oil Painting on 12"x 12" Wrapped Canvas

It feels a little weird offering after that little rant... maybe there's a more positive word for when you go on and on about something you are interested in... maybe "sharing of thought"... but... If you'd like to own this little rose painting more than any of the other 4,499  rose paintings listed on Etsy, just click here.