I get compelled to make angel paintings from time to time. The most recent time was this past fall after meeting with a contact of mine in my advocacy work. She had purchased an angel from me for her mother. After we talked, I was inspired to paint another angel.
I started off by writing positive affirmations and statements with water-soluble pencils and then splashing on colors that give me joy – bright pink, mauve, purple, and, of course, gold. Those colors give me joy. I’d love to use fluorescent pink (which I have) but it is not a lightfast color – that means it will fade over time. The paint I use is all lightfast, so should last for decades without any fading.
I flip the painting around a few times to see what configuration I liked the best before carving out the angel shape.
As I looked at the colors, I decided to have her wings be made of flowers, leaves, and feathers. It was at this point that I decided her name – I wanted something floral inspired that was also something that wouldn’t be the most traditional name either.
To make the wings have more of a glow, I used antique silver gold-leafing. I like it to peek out from behind some of the feathers. I also used the gold-leafing in the flower centers too. I also needed to add details to her face. Acrylics dry so quickly that I didn’t think I could have the color blending that I would like so I used oil paints to define her face.
Lots more shading and highlights added and now, she’s done! I took her to a local photographer to have high-resolution photos made of her so I can have fine art prints made. Because of the size (30×40 inches) I struggle to get level and non-skewed photos, so better to hire a professional!
I will be offering 5×7 and 8×10 fine art prints and am very excited to share that I will be also offering, 11×14 inch limited edition hand-embellished with gold leaf fine art prints that are mounted on a cradled board and will be ready to hang on your wall! I’ll provide an update when I have the items listed on my website.
I am not feeling compelled for new angels currently, though I am very motivated for art-making, so stay tuned for birdies, flowers, and maybe some landscapes. We’ll see…
Brandi Made It! 