In high school, Don Ripper knew that painting was something he was really good at. “I was one of the best in the room,” he says. “I had great art teachers and I entered contests…and I did more and more. It set the stage. I painted the backs of jean jackets. I couldn’t go to the movie theater without seeing ten jackets I had painted!” 

Born in D.C., Don grew up in Burke, Virginia and most of his family still resides here, in Fredericksburg. He received his BFA from the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design in D.C. (now part of GW). “They taught me commerce at a young age. My thesis show during my senior year earned enough income for me to live for a few years— and that was from one show. I definitely lived modestly in the 90s, but the show gave me a leg up and I made lots of connections. After college, creating art became the easiest way to make money.”

His portrait work began with his own daughters. “I painted them in the beginning…and it opened up a whole new market using different media. And at some point I wound up in Maine, and that’s when things really started cooking. I was commissioned for a client's Victorian mansion, they said, “come up and stay here…we want something massive for this dining room. It was a year's commitment, and I also made 20-30 paintings during that time to support it. I worked with Tom Moser out of Freeport, and I was picked up by the Artemis Gallery in Maine.”

“In the winter I should be painting hard, spring is when people buy a ton. And every other year, I have a major show up in Maine and it takes me eight months to get ready. By the fall, I’ll start to create enough to have up to 26 pieces.” One show can net a year and a half’s worth of income.

So when did the framing business also come into play? “I was in a rock band, I used to be a drummer, and the bassist and I were good friends. He had the skill set for framing, and I had a lot of professional contacts and we opened a shop in Merrifield (now the Mosaic District). We did picture frames, and we were slowly breaking even. We tried to be a serious gallery, and even took over a whole building, a three-story townhouse. The gallery business is tough, tougher than being an artist.”

In 2006, he moved his business to Del Ray with partner, Jeff Erickson, also an artist. “It’s great, we have a studio here and in Old Town (Erickson & Ripper Framing), and it’s a nice fit. Framing doesn’t pay the bills, it’s a complementary service. It helps you see how the work is displayed as an artist, how it’s framed…how it’s presented. Having worked in a shop for over 30 years, I have learned how to make it fit for a lot of different niches and have gotten creative with how I make art…the processes and chemicals used.”

He adds that he likes “a lot of retro photography, old Civil War era. I started doing tintypes and I have fun with it. One creative process can influence my painting…and out of it comes a couple 100 portraits. I switched into cyanotypes from the same glass negatives. It gave a modern edge and a new twist to things I’m already known for.” He also works with a lot of charcoal and paper, and “nine times out of ten – oil paints. Oil on linen…oil on board.”

Don prefers to paint live, and not from a photograph. When someone is sitting for him, “the real personality traits come out, and you have to put that in the painting.” A portrait can take up to six months to complete; he’s not churning them out. “The sittings are part of the experience.”

He’ll have five to six paintings going on at once with some starting out, some finishing up. “I don't like to do one thing too often. With portraits, there’s a long approval process with myself. If it sits in the studio for a month without me messing with it, I nailed it.” 

When I ask him what’s the most rewarding, he shares, “when you do an unveiling – even when it’s a landscape. When the client tears up, I tear up, you have an emotional response…you feel like you did good.” 

When speaking of his immediate future, he refers to his fiancée Maria Elizabeth. “We’re going to get married most likely in the fall. She used to live a couple of blocks from the studio…and came in for some framing. And I was thinking, ‘how is she not taken?’ I got to know her as a friend first. We would just sit outside the shop drinking wine, taking it all in.” And soon they’ll make it official.

Check out Don’s Street Style:

ABOUT DON

Neighborhood: Del Ray

What is your hometown?  Born in D.C., grew up mostly in Burke, VA.

What would surprise people about you?  I was a God on the drums before I decided Visual Arts was ultimately for me. 

Favorite book:  A Moveable Feast

Guilty Pleasure: Midnight Jeni’s ice cream delivery 

Latest binge-watch: Killing Eve

Bucket list travel destination:  Japan

STYLE

Define your style in three words or less: British Cowboy 

The go-to piece in your wardrobe: John Varvatos blue jacket

Favorite trend:  Modern rocker mullet 

Beauty product you can’t live without:  Face scrub, currently Rodan & Fields.

Boots or sneakers? Boots

WELLNESS

Go-to way to de-stress: Netflix and Tequila

Most fun way to stay active: Walk to work and light yoga in the morning with my girl.

Wellness goal: Become more flexible.

Want to try: Fencing and falconry

Proudest wellness achievement: Slim pickins there. I rowed once?

HOME

Favorite room in your home: That’s a tossup between the deck and the morning coffee nook.

Antiques, modern, or a mix? Eccentric modern

Last item bought for your home: Bed

Favorite way to entertain: By the fireplace with chill music or out back on the deck. 

Clutter-free or well-lived in? Clutter-free is the goal, but well-lived in is sometimes the reality. 

Next planned purchase: Feeling the need to upgrade the deck area with a hot tub. 

ALEXANDRIA

What do you love about Alexandria Stylebook? It’s the connection with the community that I love the most. Discovering new businesses I didn’t know about and learning more about the ones I do. 

Favorite spot in Alexandria: Honestly my studio. It’s a place where I feel creative and have the space to express it. Outside of that I love meeting my friends at Pork Barrel BBQ and Piece Out. Truly love our little neighborhood. 

Your go-to shop: Del Ray Hardware Store  

Best food spot: Nasime on King Street blows me away every time.

Favorite local organization: A Space of Her Own is an organization that I really admire and really believe in their vision. 

Annual Alexandria event you most look forward to: The Doggie Halloween parade in Del Ray for sure!!

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