More Progress with the portrait of Lil and Mike

Click on the image for a larger view of the portrait in progress

Another update on my portrait of Lil and Mike, which is being painted
in oil over gold leaf.

A peek at my progress with the portrait of Lil and Mike

portrait of Lil and Mike Campbell, in progress

Lil and Mike Campbell

Here is my preparatory drawing for the painting of Lil and Mike Campbell.  I welcome all comments on the spiritual content of my art and of this blog, as well as comments on the physical content.  Please see my previous post for more on this one.

What Does It Mean?

What does gold leaf mean to us when it is used in a painting?  To me it means the breath of God has been added into it, but that's only part of it.  And yet is God not in every painting that an artist does, so  that in another way it becomes a conundrum if we try to actually designate or pinpoint that this or that is what the addition of the gold actually means?

Okay then, what if we set aside gold leaf for icon writing, the painting of an icon?  What if we say that this icon panel above, with this particular shape, and covered with this gold leaf should have an icon painted on it?  Then what if we ask, should it be a mundane person or human being, or should it be a saint, --- except that a saint is one who has been at once a human being, and God's own servant too?  And what if following this train of thought means in some fashion that we could actually stretch this out and encompass both the human and the Divine, and we know that it's a bridge of sorts to have this icon window?  Does this mean it's a bridge that goes only one way... or can it be two ways?

The two people I want to paint on this icon panel are my friend Mike, and his mother Lil, who are both dear people in my life, and in the lives of many others.  Here is the beautiful photograph I will be painting from, taken by Mike's father, who passed away early, when Mike was only 12 years old.

With this loving pose, does their body language or something in their eyes evoke for you Mary holding the baby Jesus, not in a way that equates them with this, but is this in some way a window to them too?  If I don't put a veil on Lil, or include halos around their heads, is part of Mary still resting within Lil as a mother, and is part of Christ as the baby Jesus still within Mike, even to this day now that he is an adult and one who has many responsibilities to others?  If I try painting their countenances on gold as if it is an icon, what will this mean?  These are only some of the questions I am constantly asking myself and sincerely wishing to explore, not only in my work as an artist, but also in my spiritual life.  It is a sincere exploration that only continues to raise more questions as I go along.

Can I make a work of art like this even as I am exploring these issues, or is there more I must actually understand, about icons, and about gold, and even about what it means to be a saint, first before doing so?  I hope I've opened a conversation about this with you, my readers, and I'd like to continue this conversation by doing a series of posts on some of the various existing religious traditions surrounding the use of gold leaf, and on the making of icons too. 

I'll close for now with an invocation.  It came to me some years ago from my Reiki teacher Delia, who has also been an important spiritual teacher of mine.  The various colors of the Ray Elohim are said by some to be the creators of universes!  Hard to even begin to wrap the mind around this application of  of gold, or this idea of the Rays in general too, expansive as it is.  In some ways the invocation itself is full of mystery, and yet maybe even within its veiled words lies its very power.

                                             Invocation to the Gold Ray

I call upon the Elohim of the Gold Ray to pour Divine Wisdom into my consciousness.  
I call upon the Elohim of the Gold Ray to reveal the weights and measures, 
the balance and proportion of the universes.  
I call upon the Elohim of the Gold Ray to illuminate my mind so it will grow peaceful  
with understanding.
May I be wise in my actions, balanced in my emotions, peaceful in my mind.

More progress, and more about rose petals and Devi Bhava

"Mary in Amma in Kimberly", (still in progress), egg tempera on panel

After some consideration I decided to remove the shadow from Kimberly's left, in order to show the rose petal shower in an open, (as opposed to a shallow), space.  I hope this will help me to create a feeling of the petals also going deeper into space by showing the petals smaller as they go back in space.  At times I've also changed a petal entirely, in one instance three times, to get the feeling going that I want, and I feel I'm finally getting a rhythm going on this part now.


Having experienced Amma's Devi Bhava petal shower for myself, it is hard for me to describe the blessing feeling that it gives a person, but I can tell you that I wish I knew more about it's mysteries!

I had mentioned in a previous post that while Devi Bhava includes petals from ALL the flowers which are given to Amma during darshan, I chose to portray rose petals for Kimberly's Devi Bhava experience for several reasons. Kimberly is a quite a rare individual as a professional healer in her life. She performs many kinds of healing, beautifully so, across several healing modalities, and it is one of her practices to always have fresh roses in the treatment room where she does her work. A spiritual teacher common to both of us once told us that angels love to be present where there are flowers, but in particular where there are roses. Roses are also Amma's 'theme' flower. Yet, as I'm still adding rose petals to this painting, has anyone noticed there is just one flower petal that is a little different?

Mary in Amma in Kimberly ~ continued progress

"Mary in Amma in Kimberly," in progress

Still on this, more petals are still to come, and the background is beginning to lighten and warm up. A few small areas have been removed (washed or sanded off) for revisions/additions, such as adding a petal or repositioning the green leaves at bottom right. Sometimes removing an area is easier than adding extra layers of paint, due to the translucency of egg tempera paint.

Mary's Inner Beauty in Kimberly

"Mary's Inner Beauty in Kimberly", graphite on vellum trace © Mona Diane Conner

(click the image to see it larger)

Here is a study for my next panel painting for the Divine in Kimberly series, size still t.b.d.

"Mary in Amma in Kimberly" in progress

egg tempera on panel in progress

I'm again in the midst of adding more petals to this painting which now has an official title:  "Mary in Amma in Kimberly". Devi Bhava is a special evening darshan which celebrates the Divine Mother and the divine feminine aspects of God. Beginning with an Atma Puja for world peace and including the chanting of the 1000 names of the Divine Mother, and darshan from Amma as the Divine Mother, Devi Bhava concludes with Amma showering flower petals on everyone present as a final blessing. While the Devi Bhava flower petal ceremony traditionally includes flower petals of all kinds, I have chosen only rose petals for this painting because roses are not only Amma's theme flower, but also the flower that Kimberly loves most.

Although it's a bit long (approx. 8 minutes), I found on YouTube this sweet link about Amma's Devi Bhava. For those unfamiliar with Devi Bhava, the film shows only snippets, but perhaps it provides a glimpse for you of what this all night darshan encompasses: What is Devi Bhava?

Update and Scanned Detail from Kimberly With Roses

Scanned detail from my egg tempera portrait in progress of Kimberly With Roses

Sorry not to have posted an update in a while, but I have resumed working on the upper half of this egg tempera portrait of Kimberly, and I thought it would be interesting, even though my scanner bed is too small to encompass this 19 1/2" x 15 1/4" work, to try a scan of a detail from the painting at this point. A scan shows you the brushwork and details better, and also the depth I am beginning to achieve with the painting as the layers are building. My digital camera has perhaps only captured a portion of this in previous posts, but you can also see a bit of progress with the painting itself.

More Petals and Fringe

"Kimberly With Roses" in progress, egg tempera painting on panel (click image twice for a larger view)

Still adding more rose petals, and working on the gold fringe of her shawl, I'm also beginning to layer in a warmer tone over the background.

falling rose petals

"Kimberly With Roses", 19 1/2" x 15 1/4", egg tempera panel in progress (click the image twice for a larger view)

I'm so sorry that my work to promote portraits in general has kept me absent so long from this blog, but here's another update. As you can see, I'm starting to add falling rose petals and working on the areas around the petals as I add them to the painting.

Please feel welcomed also to visit Mona Conner Portraits, where I feature my commissions.

progress on Kimberly With Roses

"Kimberly With Roses" in progress

Here is what I'm working on; the current version is on top.

Spiritual Art For Your Gift-Giving Too

"Niche in Aix en Provence," framed dimensions: 3 3/4" x 3/4", egg tempera on vellum, $350 on Etsy

"Madonna in the Leaves," framed dimensions: 4 3/4" x 6 1/8", egg tempera on vellum, $600 on Etsy

"White Madonna in Aix en Provence," 23" x 35 1/2", pastel on Wallis pastelboard,

© Mona Diane Conner 2010 (not currently available online)

A purchase link to each painting is provided if you click on the art.

In case a special gift is needed for your Christmas

"Christmas Flowers," egg tempera painting © Mona Diane Conner 1985

"Grandmas's Cookie Tree," egg tempera painting, © Mona Diane Conner 1985

"Victorian Christmas Tree," egg tempera painting © Mona Diane Conner 1985

Christmas At Our House, A Family Memory Book

My special gallery series of spiritual portraits is in need of support, and if you need a special gift for Christmas, or just wish to help, it's the only reason I interrupt the flow here to let you know that I also have great art for sale online, and it's at this link: MonaDianeConner.Etsy.com.

Twenty-five years ago I created 33 paintings for a Christmas memory book for Harper Collins called Christmas At Our House. Above are a few of the select framed original paintings from this book which are posting for sale in my Etsy shop, along with some great miniature paintings and small works, including some of my Madonnas you've seen here and other items of interest.

I'm always adding new works of art for purchase in my Etsy shop via Paypal, so if anything looks interesting, please visit MonaDianeConner.Etsy.com to see what else is there, now or at anytime, and thanks for checking it out.

Progress Update 12: Kimberly With Roses

"Kimberly With Roses" egg tempera on panel in progress (click the image twice for a larger view)

Due to several projects I must work on this Fall offline, it's been a while since my last post, but my work on "Kimberly with Roses" continues. I have laid down an initial underpainting in two layers on the background, added to the bottom of the painting, and have also decided to re-work several portions of the veil on the left side, to balance out the amount of decoration on the left and right sides of the veil. One advantage egg tempera has over acrylic and oil is that I can still either wash off or scrape off with my palette knife an area which is already dry to the touch and completely re-work it as you can see me doing here on the lower left side of the painting.

Miniature Show Preparation

I'm currently preparing for a miniature competition, and welcome you to visit my miniature painting blog, The Ruby Slippers, if you'd like to see what I'm up to, (including my first self-portrait in miniature!) I'll continue here with my progress on "Kimberly with Roses" in about two weeks time, if not sooner...

Progress Update 11: Kimberly With Roses

"Kimberly With Roses" egg tempera on panel in progress (click the image two times for a larger view)

I've been continuing my work on her veil's gold fringe, and on related areas in the forehead, face and neck, continuing to establish tonal layers.

Starting the gold fringe, applying for a grant, and an important word about my blog themes

19 1/2" x 15 1/4" egg tempera on true gesso panel in progress

Here I'm starting the gold fringe, which will have further layers of paint applied once it is established.

Some of you are aware, and others may not be, that I run three active painting blogs, all of which are listed on my links (also a fourth blog, Windows of the Soul on miniature eye portraits is remaining online just as an intro to eye portraits in miniature). I truly appreciate your interest in my art no matter whether you just enjoy watching one of my blog themes, or all of them, but I thought it might be helpful just one time to explain why I prefer separating my art into separate themed blogs, and where the action will be for now.

With this spiritual portrait series in particular, which has continued for almost two years now, I am actually unfolding and at times discussing on-blog a personal theme through an ongoing body of work in portraiture for a gallery or museum show. So I feel it is more meaningful in the long run to develop this theme in it's own context, separately from Mona Conner Portraits which is more about portraits and portrait commissions in general, and separate from my miniature painting blog which is primarily about my work in miniature painting. I may, for example, get more into discussion of technical aspects of painting on Mona Conner Portraits, whereas here on Grander Joy of Spirit I'm really attempting to zero in on the spiritual aspects of the art and hopefully evoking responses from my viewers, too, on this level.

So far my spiritual portrait series has been done completely uncommissioned, and only with the cooperation of several interested friends who have willingly and kindly posed for me for this purpose. However, I am also quite open to the opportunity of creating a commissioned spiritual portrait if anyone desires one. I sometimes do a portrait in miniature, which may overlap with Mona Conner Portraits, and very much enjoy also the treasured theme of the Madonna and the Divine Feminine in my art, which at times I will also portray in miniature. Eventually you can expect men, too, to appear in spiritual portraits on Grander Joy of Spirit, so it is not only the Divine Feminine aspects which I'd like to explore!

And while I may need to spend time on Mona Conner portraits, to foster portrait commissions when sales of miniatures are not proceeding fast enough to cover costs, my single most important goal as an artist remains this spiritual portrait series of paintings on Grander Joy of Spirit. Right now I'm at work on an artist grant application, just to help me be able to continue with this particular body of work which is so very dear to my heart; so please keep my grant application and my efforts with this series in your prayers and wish me luck!

Update #9: Kimberly With Roses in Progress

Kimberly With Roses in progress, 19 1/2" x 15 1/4", egg tempera on panel

Another Update: Kimberly With Roses in Progress

19 1/2" x 15 1/4", detail of the egg tempera portrait in progress (click the image twice for a larger view)