LOL

Friday, April 11, 2024

Yesterday was National Dog Day, and I didn’t post photos of my dogs. Today is National Hamster Day, and I haven’t one of those pets. Years ago, I adopted a sweet Peruvian Guinea Pig from an animal rescue. His coat was very long and needed trimming regularly, or else, formed into rolls and grew into dreadlocks.

The guinea pig was a cute little fellow. He and my bunny, Speedo, were each pleasant pets. Speedo was a domestic white that turned up loose, hopping on my property and nibbling hay in my barn. Using an apple as bait, I trapped Speedo, and he became a house bunny. The sweet guy had been litter-box trained by somebody.

While I was thinking about interesting sorts of pets, George Rodrigue’s “Blue Dog” images began appearing in my FB feed. Years ago, I spent a week in New Orleans and I discovered The Blue Dog Gallery. Rodrigue’s sense of humor delighted me, and wow, still does.

Rodrigue, an excellent artist, snuck the Blue Dog into his larger, serious paintings. The dog always looking out of place and bewildered. This example is “Millenium 2000.”

Notice the dog has wings, is a butterfly out of place physically, and trying to process mentally.

Many Rodrigue paintings include his dog character, always out of place, trying to process.

I saw Rodriguez’s Blue Dog as representing elements of himself. Also, that dog represents an element of ourselves.

On a lofty side, we are that dog while viewing and interpreting works of art. Also, in daily living, we are that dog, for being in today’s world and attempting to comprehend the predictable vs. the unpredictable.

I enjoyed the art and that dog, but couldn’t afford a painting. Still, I barely managed to resist.

Rodrigue passed recently and that increases the value of his art. While value is a consideration, to me, his works represent more. They reflect much about ourselves.

Beyond the artist’s humor and insight, his Blue Dog is all of us, in all our whimsy.

Dear Friends: Here’s to enjoying a chuckle at ourselves. Diana