I was lucky enough to get to illustrate a beautiful Gorilla sculpture for Paignton Zoo. He took me 18 months to complete as he was under a purpose built awning at my house. Too hot and the pens dried up, too cold and my fingers froze! He now sits at the zoo and I miss him terribly! He Was decorated using acrylic markers on a white gloss base then varnished with car varnish.
This is a painting of a first century Galilean fishing boat, most likely the very type of
boat used by Peter when he was called by Jesus to follow him.
This illustration is part of a bigger mural I am working on, about the ministry of Jesus
the Christ.
If you notice, the boat is beached facing backward, with the fishing net coming from
the back of the boat. This is to signify that Peter, like all the other apostles, except
Matthew the tax collector, dropped their fishing occupation and followed Jesus, Who
would make them the fishermen of men’s souls.
Here is a truth about me as an artist. Two parts of this painting gave me trouble in
carrying out this illustration. The fist was illustrating the ropes of the rigging. My first
attempt was horrendous it took me a second try to get it right. I had to look up pictures of ropes on the Internet to overcome this challenge.
The second was illustrating the rocks on the bottom of the Sea of Galilee and the
reflections of the boat on the water. I must have made about five attempts until it
finally clicked. Even when I kept looking at the reflections of boats on water, I could
not make the breakthrough.
In creating the kind of art that I do, it is very rare to find a model that meets all my
requirement for what I am illustrating. So, it takes photos and imagination and the
grace of God to create an illustration that looks better than a stick figure and communicates the message intended.
So, I figure God has me go through these challenges to keep me humble because, without humility, God is not able to use our talents for His glory.
(October 12, 2017)
I did the water texture according to a tutorial by James Chapman, found on Instagram. The steampunk seahorse was an idea from a lady I am following on Instagram as well (look for @carrieisartsy) This piece is done on a paint chip card with poscapens, a gold marker and fineliners.
