Fire Down Below, an Illumination

Thank the flame for its light,
but do not forget the lampholder
standing in the shade
with constancy of patience.
-Tagore (Little Birds 64)

If in your heart you make
a manger for his birth,
then God will once again
become a child on earth.
-Angelus Silesius

Fire Down Below (c) Sybil Archibald
(Click image for larger view)

See listing here.

This piece is about joining Spirit and Earth. That is why it was important for me to use all handmade materials from natural, earth sources. I used medieval recipes which are deeply steeped in spiritual symbolism.

It is painted on sheep skin parchment which, for the medieval artist, represented the body and the painting the soul.

I made these paints myself from azurite stones, different colored earths, plants including indigo, and metals. The grinding of the deep blue azurite stones into pigment is a meditative process which helps me to clear my mind and enter fully into the creative process.

The 22k gold leaf is applied to a raised bed of gesso. This gesso is likened to the clay from which the Divine formed Adam the first man. To activate the glue in the gesso, the artist must breathe on it. When the artist breathes, it symbolizes the Divine blowing the breath of life into Adam. Gilding is not easy. It requires the proper deep diaphragmatic breath or it will not work. To create this breath, the artist must achieve a calm focused meditative state. For more on the meaning of this process see here.

The style of the painting is influenced by medieval Armenian manuscript illumination.

Thanks for looking!