Plagues, wars, famines, earthquakes, floods, fires, murders - does all that sound like much of our daily news?
Yet , these same catastrophic events are also described in many Biblical texts, including of the Book of Revelation or the Apocalypse.
My paintings in this exhibition are the beginning of a series on the themes of the Book of Revelation. More specifically I have focused on some of the Angels - Messengers - who appear throughout John's vision. The layers of events in this book are complex referring to the present and to the future. The figures in my paintings do not represent literal angels of the text but are inspired at times by several angels, symbols or acts at once; such as the sounding trumpets, the plagues bowls, destroying fire, the chain binding Satan. The Ode the Joy stands apart in it's focus on the message of hope, which underlines the text of Revelation. It represents a heavenly banquet in the new Jerusalem.
The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. (Rev. 8:12)
The first angel sounded: and hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth. (Rev. 8:7)
And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. (Rev. 16:13)
Then the third angel sounded: and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on third of the rivers and on the springs of water and the name of the star is Wormwood. (Rev. 8:10)
So the first went and poured out his bowl upon the earth and a foul and loathsome sore came upon the men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his immage. (Rev. 16:2)
Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. (Rev. 20:1,2)
Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever. (Rev. 15:7)
