Brown Black Tailed Rooster Painting By Cheri Wollenberg

Rooster Painting II

10x10 Wrap Around Canvas

Original Oil  Painting by Cheri Wollenberg

Roosters are beautiful creatures.  However, some of them have angry or mean dispositions!  Growing up in central Oklahoma both sets of my grandparents raised chickens.  The chicken yards were especially inviting to us children.  Both my mother and father were from large families so there were many grandchildren belonging to both sets of grandparents.  As an older adult I realize now that lots of little kids hanging around chicken yards would more than likely agitate roosters trying to protect their chickens and brood.  All this to say, we were warned that roosters could flog or attack us smaller human beings (LOL).  My husband and I had a few roosters when we lived on our country place.  I managed to photograph all of them at one time or other to paint.  In the next several days I plan to feature my rooster paintings on my blog.  Have a look at them.  Hope you enjoy them as much as I did painting them. 

Click the link in "blue" above for more info.

Artist Studio At Payne, Oklahoma

Two years ago in 2018 we decided to downsize from a large old farmhouse in which we had put twelve years of  hard work.  It was almost 100 years old then, but had very good bones.  We loved fixing it up.  It had the original "pecan" wooden floors downstairs and plain wooden floors upstairs.  It was not an easy thing to do because in some ways it was a dream that we got to live out, and we weren't really ready to hang up our hats.  The image above is the room I made for a studio.  This is before we replaced the 4-window wide area with a very large picture window.  The photo was also made before I brought up a lot more furniture, paintings and painting supplies.It was the best light I've ever had to paint in.  Even though I have a very large studio space now in Shawnee, Oklahoma, I still miss the north light of that studio.

If you are curious about my paintings, please feel free to visit my FaceBook page where I usually tell a little about my latest paintings.  You are invited to "like" my page if you are interested.

Old Homestead Near Cordell, Oklahoma

Old Homestead Near Cordell, Oklahoma

9x12 Oil On Stretched Canvas

by Cheri Wollenberg

This small 9x12 original painting is of an old homestead near Cordell, Oklahoma.  I've painted it several times in different sizes.  It always interested me.  In spite of the badly deteriorating state it was in it seemed to have a beautiful story behind it.  We would see it consistently every year when we traveled west toward the Texas panhandle on our trips to New Mexico.  Once it was old and gray and almost falling down, but the next summer it had been white-washed and sort of pushed back into a vertical position.  Once it looked as if it had been used as a Halloween haunted house:)  I was always so curious about this old home.  I wondered if it had been made to look good for a movie, magazine story or if it was dressed up because of Route 66 promotional materials.  Whatever....I loved this old home.  I'm very curious about past stories,  and I truly wish I were a writer and I could bring it to life by my own creative thoughts, but this will certainly not happen!!! (LOL)  If you are from Cordell, Oklahoma and have some comments please feel free to comment here on my blog or my FB page:https://www.facebook.com/ArtbyCheriWollenberg/

This small painting is listed in my Etsy store.  You can follow this link to see it.

JUNE The White Gentile Cow With Rusty Brown And Black Markings

JUNE

14x18 Framed Original Oil Painting 

Cheri Wollenberg

June is a painting that I started a couple of months ago.  I loved painting her.  The rusty brown and black markings on her white coat brought added fun to me as I painted.  My husband and I are retired now and have moved from our latest farm home.  I miss the country and seeing the beauty of God's creation displayed around the rural countryside.  So, I as I follow my inspiration I have an added  special "love" to my love of pushing a paintbrush around (LOL).  June is another cow from my son's herd in Oklahoma.  He manages SOLA (Southern Oklahoma Livestock Auction) at Ada, Oklahoma. If you live in our great state drop by and visit with my son or one of his family or coworkers.  June is displayed there for a couple of weeks and I have listed her for sale in my Etsy shop.  She will soon be available as in print.  Just click on SOLA to visit their website or take a look at her by clicking here.

Fresh Apple Trio

Fresh Apple Trio

9x12 Original Oil on Canvas

Cheri Wollenberg

Several years ago a friend and art student of mine brought about a bushel of apples to art class. We painted some of them from life and documented many still lifes.   This painting is actually from a photo. I love to do paintings from life but many times I like to use photos. This painting is one reason why! Apples are not harvested in the place I live. I wanted to paint some red things....partially because it is a favorite subject color and partially because of Valentines Day. Valentines Day reminds me of red. This painting is listed in my Etsy Store.  Have a look.  You may want to gift it to a teacher:)

Old Ford PickupTruck Painting

Old Ford Pickup Truck

16x20 Original Oil On Stretched Canvas

by Cheri Wollenberg

This original oil painting features an old, vintage pickup truck that I painted from a photo.  I took the photo while on a trip to New Mexico about 10 years ago.  It had been parked and may be forgotten by now.  It reminded me of days when my father loved the Ford brand.  Nearly all of his vehicles were Fords.  This painting would make a great gift for someone as a birthday or Father's Day gift.  Christmas gifts can always be promised at a later date since postal delivery is not a promised at this point in 2018, but, nevertheless, delivered later.  You can find this painting in my Etsy shop by clicking here.

Daddy - The Best Santa Claus Ever!

Santa Daddy

16x20 Original Oil on Canvas

by Cheri Wollenberg 2018

I am a very blessed artist!  I enjoy sharing how and why I create paintings with my friends and viewers.  Today's post is very special to me.  It is exceptional and straight from the heart of the daughter of this Santa (above) about her daddy.  How precious our time on earth is!  How important it is to love others and spread the joy of Christ!  

The Night Before Christmas!

This Santa was a small-town funeral director.  His ministry was in helping

others walk through a life-changing experience in the death of a loved one.  

With this ministry came yet another ministry!  This ministry was sharing his love by providing

years of memories for others in his community.  Every Christmas Eve he left his family for a few hours and would don the red suit, bells and boots, and start his rounds.  Checking his list that had started building since the first of November by people in the community calling in for their reserved time for his visit, he would begin his journey.

Instructions were left for him, "Pink bike in the black truck" or "10 Caboodles in the red car in the back seat" or "4-Wheeler goes at the side of the house...Ride to front fence".

One Christmas a family whom he had served as funeral director just a month earlier were home.

Their daddy has died leaving a wonderful wife and two little boys.  Santa knocked on the door and the door was opened by the mom with the boys at her side.  A belly laugh, "Ho Ho Ho" greeted them!

The mom invited him in as the little boys were jumping up and down saying, "We knew you would come!!!  Mom, we TOLD you he would come."  A short visit gave a long and remembered memory.

God gives us His joy in our hearts.  We can cap it and keep it to ourselves OR pass it on.  This Santa chose to pass God's gift of joy to others.  He did this every Christmas Eve for 25 years.  His family 

joyfully supported sharing him with others on this night.  

On his last Christmas Eve of doing what he loved...This Santa saw 110 children in their homes.

He accepted no pay for his night of sharing God's joy.  He believed..."Joy in the heart wasn't put there to stay...Joy isn't Joy 'til it's given away."

This Santa was my dad.  He died from a massive heart attack on...Christmas Eve..1971.

B.L.W