This is the start for 'Revelation'. I really liked the way this knot looked. It was different than most of the knots that I had done in the past. What I liked was the way the knots were larger at the bottom. It gave it a nice weight. My thought was that it would make a nice element to the border of a painting.

Now I just needed to see what I could do with it.

Now putting it together, I added the original knot top and bottom and side to side. Instead of a border I placed them around a center focus point. Adding the knots in between was really filling in nicely. This knot had kind of a flower look to it. I also added the swirl in the middle of this knot. I love swirls; they have a pleasing effect to art.

Also, adding this around the circle gave me the idea to add the sun knotwork. This was giving it a nice center piece and effect. It was also starting the theme for the painting. All kind of ideas were going through my head at this time.

Adding more detail and filling the drawing out I could get a feel for how it might look. The sun in the middle was looking good and was starting to stand out as a center piece for the drawing.

However, I noticed that it was looking a little too square for a drawing of the sun. I needed to rethink this a little bit.

So I made some adjustments to the knots to the center knots and around the center piece to make into a circular pattern. This fits the picture much better. I decided to use gold and copper on this piece. The knots in and around the center piece are laid with alternating 23k gold and copper. It's a little hard to see in the photographs because of the strong reflection of light but in real life that really make a big difference. The contrast between the two metals just play off of each other.

Now let's add some color.

Now with the color added the painting takes on a all new look to it.

This painting gives the viewer the feeling of looking upward. As if looking upward through a lush forest or jungle and then seeing the light from above. The centerpiece of intertwined knotwork, which is done with 23k gold and copper, represents the Light. The revelation is the light of God. As you look upward you see the beauty of God in the form of beautiful light. 1 John 1:5 describes God as light.
Looking around, you see the hidden four eyes which represent seeing God. Meaning we can see God everywhere we look if we are only willing to stop and put things in to perspective.

This the original sketch for "ANGELS WATCHING".

Ideas typically start as just interesting geometrical shapes. Almost a kind of "doodling" if you will. They then involve into piecing these doodling sketch's together into something similar to what you see in the original concept sketch. At this point, for this painting, I didn't have a theme selected; it was just an interesting design that I liked. Typically, I have hundreds of scrap paper with shapes doodled with interesting knots, swirls, or designs. I pull these sketches from time to time when I have a thought of something that I'm piecing together.

My focus at this point was really on the knotwork lace with circles or spheres in the center of the knots. To me it looked like it could be a piece of jewelry. It was looking like it could be a drawing for a necklace. (Maybe someday I will create this into a necklace.) So it looks like a necklace with a larger gem in the center and progressively smaller gems as it goes from the center.

The next step is to take the original vision and work some detail into it. My designs are all about the intricate design of the knotwork and weaving some type of theme or message into the painting. This is what gives the painting life.

So here I broke out a piece of the design. When I did this one something really jumped out at me. I first saw what appeared to be a halo above a head (of course you have to be a little unusual like me to visualize upside down looking at an angle). That was it, "It's an angel." That is the other thing I am always looking for... the connection back to God.

So here it is, it's an angel, with a halo above it's head, arms crisscrossed, with a robe donned with an interesting pattern.

GOOD START, now what's next?

Well the next step is to bring it back to the original vision. Like so much of my artwork I love to repeat patterns. This just adds to the intricacies and also adds symmetry to the art. I could see here that this would work nicely.

One thing I like to do is look at things from different perspectives. Here I have reversed the design and put the angels outward standing on a single point in the center of the design. This design looks good as well and could work just nicely.

It forms somewhat of a cross, which is another thing that I love to paint. This could easily be expanded to pronounce the cross more. Also having the four angels intertwined into the cross would make an interesting story to it. Nice theme.

However, I wanted to stick to the original concept. Plus, I like the way the angels were holding hands in the first design. I was also very excited to work on the angel's robes and I still had the visions of the knotwork as a piece of fine jewelry in my mind. I wanted to do something special with that.

The concept was clear. It was time to go to work. Let the fun begin, I LOVE MY WORK!

Now it was time pull it all together. The idea is to put on the final touches and the intricate detailed work is added to give it an artistic beauty. In true fashion to my art work the underlying theme is Celtic art. Each piece of art has the celtic knotwork in it. I love to add as much detail as I can to make it as interesting as possible.

At this point it was shaping up nicely and I could see the four angels looking back at me.

One of the things that makes my art unique is the use of metals. Here I start to apply the 23k gold to the painting and illuminate the art. This has the connection to the ancient illuminators that illustrated the pictures in the early Bibles. Illuminating the art is a special technique and can be very tedious. However, the effect is amazing! There is nothing that can shine like real gold.

The technique is called illumination. This is because art illuminated with gold shines like it has it's own light. Even with little light the metal gives off an illumination. Let the light hit it then you have a piece of art that comes alive!

Now with the gold applied it's time to add some color. I love the use of color. The more vibrant the better.

Usually, most art that consists of angels has them in white brilliant robes, white everywhere, no color anywhere. Not in my painting. I believe that in heaven there will be more colors than we have ever seen before and such vibrant colors than we can actually feel them. So here these angels are robed in colorful robes.

"ANGELS WATCHING"

Angels watching, can you see the four angels looking down from above directly at you? With their brilliant gold halo and donned in their bright colorful robes. The robes are illuminated with 23k gold encircling the brilliant colorful jewels. These are no ordinary angels. There is a explosion of power about these angels with all the colors and light imaginable.

These four angels have gathered their hands to bring their individual power together. The power of four angels coming together in unison to be as one. Praying to God on your behalf.

I had the overwhelming feeling that this was perhaps what Jesus may have seen as He looked up from the cross. What do you think, have you ever thought about it?

I purposely left their faces blank. I couldn't imagine the way that they would have felt to see sweet Jesus nailed to that cross. Were they crying because of all that He had to go through on that cross or, were they elated that the work was almost done?

Angels are watching over you.