The story behind the painting and presentation.
Sean died on
November 21st,
2015 at the age of 29 years which is symbolized by the 29 angels (including the winged-lion of
St. Mark) portrayed in this painting.
Archangels
Michael,
Raphael and
Gabriel are depicted with halos and battle gear. The
Feast Day of this trio is celebrated on
September 29th. All three illustrations are actually renderings of the same archangel Michael.
The two slain demons represent ‘depression’ & ‘addiction’ and are positioned below and behind Sean's ascending soul. This represents Sean leaving his worldly struggles behind for the angels to dispose of once and for all.
The demon on top of the car is being attacked by an archangel seen clutching golden scales in one hand which signifies that Sean has already been judged and found to be worthy of the
Kingdom of Heaven. Thus the scroll held by the messengers directly above proclaims: "He sends His command to the earth, His word runs swiftly".
Psalm 147:15
The opening frames of the presentation are of an angel seen trumpeting a victory-announcement to all of the angels and
Saints in heaven. "
Angel's calling me" by artist: Denean was the song played during the slideshow.
The depiction of the
Lion of St. Mark (bottom, left of painting) was inspired by the bible verse: “Behold, I send My messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way.”
Mark 1:2
A similar verse was captioned on the opening slide:
“Behold, I send an angel before you, to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared.”
Exodus 23:20
I think that by adding the winged lion-creature to the visual narrative contributes a 'sort of' surreal dimension to the painting and somehow makes the presence of the angels to appear more convincing.
The depiction of the
Blessed Virgin Mary (top, left of painting) is in reference to the Assumption (the
Virgin Mother’s ascension into heaven) and creates a connection to the accession of Sean’s soul.
Cherubs, offering a bushel of wheat from heaven (top left/ under the
Blessed Virgin), is symbolic of
Gods' eternal abundance offered to His chosen people.
The Virgin Mary is seen pointing as if to be signaling the cherubs in Sean’s' immediate direction: “
Look, there he is
... go to him!”
The angel embracing Sean’s bodily silhouette represents his earthly guardian, assigned to him since birth and seen here lifting and gently guiding his soul, in union with the
Holy Spirit, towards
Jesus’ beckoning arms.
Within a split-second of Sean’s' mortal retreat, you can sense Gods' overwhelming peace as it permeates his consciousness and is reflected in his glowing smile.
Sean’s' lifeless body was found on the passenger side of his 2008 gray
Honda Accord. The personalized license plate sketched on his car represents a metaphorical grave marker: (
RIP SRT)
The 23.5” x 33.5” oil painting was commissioned in
Chiang Mai, Thailand from a local
Thai artist named "Da".
Words cannot express my admiration for his talent and for creating this uplifting visualization.
Khun Da finished the painting in a month, working 6 or more days per week. We communicated in broken-english and discussed visuals which I'd printed and prepared as a collage. I visited the studio almost daily after work to observe progress and every detail of the undertaking; And in some instances, surely to his dismay.
Remarkably, our anticipated language barrier proved nearly superficial. Khun Da thoroughly exceeded my expectations and his personal embellishments only served to better my conceptions.
Some more ’gee whiz’ facts:
To calculate your Thai
Buddhists birth year, just add 543 to your birth year. Sean was born in the year
2529.
This slide show was published on 2.29 (
Leap Day, 2016)
There are 43 scenes in this slideshow which corresponds to my age when Sean died.
-Inspired by and in loving memory of Sean R.
Thompson (1986-2015)
- published: 29 Feb 2016
- views: 7