Stencil Painting | Roses, Here Today Gone Tomorrow

"Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose" ~ Gertrude Stein

In my previous post, A Page From My Sketchbook | Roses! I wrote about wanting to draw or paint plants and animals for my future artwork. My favorite subject matter has always been portraits but I also want to improve my skills in other areas. So today I decided to paint some roses! They are stencil roses to be exact and perhaps to some people it is not a real painting but stencil art is part of my eclectic style.

When I think of roses or flowers in general, I am amazed at their beauty. I know it sounds very corny or cliche-ish but what I mean is that NO ONE/HUMAN ever invent them. They just come to being as part of our natural world. Many people do not believe in the existent of God and I respect that but to me, I believe God is the master artist who invented these beautiful flowers. His creativity is so infinite, just consider these facts:

There are 100 different species of roses
Rose hip is a fruit of rose and it is edible and can be turned into jams and tea
Rose bush can live for a long time. (The oldest rose bush grows on the wall of the Cathedral of Hildesheim in Germany and it has been documented since A.D. 815)

But roses are just roses. Despite their beauty, they are not blessed with the capability to think and reason. They are just flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow. If we admire and revere them as something precious, don't we humans worth more than them and deserve to be treated the same way and better?

Jesus said it perfectly in the Book of Matthew in the Bible

“And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet (King) Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?" ~ Matthew 6:28 - 30

He was referring to the wild lilies growing on the hill slope but it could be any kinds of flowers. Here today, gone tomorrow. Pretty but brainless. We, humans, are worth so much more than flowers, so treat yourself and each other with respect, kindness, and dignity.

Here are the progress photos: