-Donkey c. 20th century

This small cast iron donkey in the Minneapolis Institute of Art has a surface that is a mix of gray, brown, and red. It's like a landscape in miniature, all worked into this little donkey. I imagine the artist, somewhere in a foundry, carefully layering paint, figuring out how to capture the animal's essence in metal. The orange saddle blanket with the heart-shaped lock hanging off the side makes me wonder, what's so important that it needs to be locked up like that? Is it about security, or is it more like a symbolic gesture, a little joke? I feel like that lock also speaks to the donkey's resilience. You know, they're often seen as stubborn, but that's just because they're so strong. This unknown artist, working with simple materials, is part of this long conversation. The artist finds something in the animal, something in the material, and then they share it with us. It's an invitation to slow down, to really look, and to find our own meanings in the simple things.