The Box Canvas---FINISHED!!!!!

Well folks, you've been quite patient, and today I have all the photos of the box canvas posted; you get to see the sum of all the little parts and tidbits you've been teased with! I have to admit I am more than happy with it---in fact, I really don't want to give it away but go it must.

I'd also like to add that the photos that are the lighter yellow reflect the real color of the piece. It was one of those shades that just went weird every time I would go for a close up and I am far to lazy to readjust color each time...... ;)

The cross was built up with layer after layer of rice paper and gel medium. This allowed a slow but manageable shaping of the piece. What surprised me when I painted it was the fact that it really looked like wood! A nice surprise!

This is, of course, a liberal interpretation of a Jerusalem Cross, which usually has four small crosses in the corners representing the four gospels. Well, why not put the evangelists there instead? So right to left, top then bottom; Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. They are secured in the bottle caps, as small gilded frames, with a bit of superfine glitter acting as halos around the edges.

This is a very BAD close up of poor Matthew.....he's really not that orange.....
Then on each side of the canvas, I picked an appropriate Latin verse.

On the left side: "Be mindful, O Lord, of Thy servants."

On the top: "By the words of the Gospel may our sins be blotted out."

On the right side: "May Almighty God bless you: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost."

And obviously, on the bottom, as all prayers are ended; "Amen"

The worst part of the text was going through font after font after font to find something that looked very much like the old fonts used in prayer books, and then remembering that the first initial of each phrase was a decorative cap, in *that* red, and the rest of the verse in a plain font. The text was probably the worst to put together in the sense of imitating an old missal.

But the back......ah......it was glorious to work on! Again, the first photo is the most accurate for color and I can't help the quality of the close up...it's better than it was when I first uploaded it.

I did a tremendous amount of searching for the right icon image to put in the cavity--most were far too stylized and stern for my liking. Then I came across this one, but only a tiny JPEG, so I kept looking and lucked out, finding a very large photo. It was printed, applied with gel, painted over with fluid acrylics, metallic gold paint and German glass glitter around the edge of the halo. I sealed the glitter with Triple Thick Glaze, because I was NOT sure it would stay in place due to the nature of a canvas to expand and contract with weather.

The skin tone on the piece is actually a very natural color, but again, I kept getting RED. So you have to use your generous imaginations on this one!

After taking the photos, I finished with different varnishes; matte, satin and gloss. The background is satin, the body of the paper, matte, and the face and halo, gloss. It is very effective. I intend to experiment more with the combination of finishes, as it allows things to be pushed forward or back, as desired. Tonight we have our Artists Co-Op meeting and I am taking this to show.

So thanks for sticking with me on this piece, and a very big WELCOME to a new follower! While I am glad this is done, it is with sadness, too, because it truly brings to reality the fact that our minister will be moving on. Steve is a great man, has put up with me like a saint (the patience of Job, we're talking...), endured my raucous and unfit jokes I have been compelled to e-mail him, and has been a pillar within our community.

Reverend Steve Ailes, you will be missed. Sorely. This is a very small gift to remind you of your community and home in Peru.

To the rest of you, take advantage of each day, try new things, cherish those about you.

And make ART!!!!!!