I purchased a framed print by the artist Dona Gelsinger from a thrift store in west St. Paul, MN. The image, rich with religious iconography, features a white angel girl looking up to the sky in prayer in front of an illuminated lighthouse by the shore. Surrounding the angel are two rabbits, a chipmunk, and a colorful array of flowers and trees. The original piece is either titled “A Little Hope",” or “A Little Hope Lights the Way,” but I am unclear as to which one is correct.
Size - 15.5 x 13.5” framed.
Original Price: $7.00
Dona Gelsinger is known for her religious iconography and runs a successful business in Oregon creating art for publishing and licensed products. Items on her website for sale include figurines, nightlights, home decor, stationary, greeting cards, cardboard cutouts, puzzles, X-mas decorations, and much more! One website proclaimed Dona to be “one of the most distinguished angel artists in the world! Her paintings are a colorful celebration of love, faith, and hope. Dona’s sense of personal spirituality helps her in creating new and exciting pieces of inspirational art with great sensitivity and expression.”
I painted a rubber duck wearing blue rabbit ears on the print and donated this ‘new’ artwork to the Goodwill Thrift Store (1627 County Rd B W, St. Paul) on May 4, 2026, around 7:30pm.
A successful collaboration! Thank you Dona for your contribution to the piece.
The finished thrift store painting by Dona Gelsinger and Seamus Liam O’Brien, 2026.
The original framed print that I purchased at a thrift store.
After painting the duck I added my signature to the bottom: Dona Gelsinger + Seamus Liam O’Brien - 2026
After finishing the painting I dropped the piece off at a thrift store in St. Paul, MN.
I painted a yellow rubber duck wearing blue rabbit ears on the print.
The rubber duck toy I used as my model for the painting.
Artist Seamus Liam O’Brien holding his completed painting in front of a Goodwill Thrift Store in St. Paul, MN.