Some of my thoughts on the creation of this painting are going to get a bit weird, but here we go: My paintings usually come from ideas that sit at the back of my brain. I often notice how infrequently I look up to the sky. In fact my viewpoint is always facing either forward towards where I am walking, or down at what I am focusing on, such as a phone, screen or book.
But by just tilting my head slightly back, things get put into perspective.
Things like: I live on a planet flying through space and time. This world doesn’t revolve around me. I am very small compared to the hugeness of the universe.
And every time I let myself become aware of the spiritual world, it’s expansiveness, power and colour, I also get similar feelings, but I also feel blessed to be so intrinsically connected to those spiritual heavens that surround us.
Page 6 of #TheTemptationsComic is live! Read the full page through the link in my profile
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In page 6, Jesus has been baptised, and is literally driven (according to Mark) by the Holy Spirit into the desert to be confronted by the devil. He goes into a fast mode, which is accompanied by intense prayer.
I looked at quite a few photos of the wilderness where Jesus went. It’s an ares believed to be the rocky and uninhabited area between Jerusalem and Jericho, with a spot on Mount Quarantania traditionally being considered the exact location. The desert was seen as outside the bounds of society and as the home of demons such as Azazel (Leviticus 16:10).
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I tried to capture the movement of Jesus be pushed by the spirit towards the place of confrontation, and the warm purples of the desert. The topography seems sinister, but the skies (the heavens) are positive and draw in the eye. —