A French Lullaby

20x20cm
Acrylic on canvas

From the blog: nelliewindmill.com

The sheep are singing the French lullaby "Frere Jacques" (or "Brother John" in the English version). They're also sleeping and counting themselves, because they're good at multi-tasking that way.

The inspiration for this piece came from a dream I had way back when we were still living in Australia and planning our exodus to Europe. I dreamt we were in Europe, I think it was France. We were driving through a mountainous region and the hills were literally made of patchwork quilts.

I think the sheep made an appearance because I spent a lot of time painting this throughout spring in the English and Scottish countrysides. Wherever we went, frolicking lambs and daffodils abounded. It seems fitting that they're singing in French, given that I completed the painting here in France.