Hands: Holy Moments Collection
There is a moment when an ordinary gesture or a common movement becomes something more.
When a hand is offered and received, when palms open in surrender, or a fist loosens—then these everyday movements become holy. They become more than they were.
Certain positions can represent something greater and deeper than the eye can distinguish.
These are the moments that I have attempted to capture in this series.
The position of the hands may be common, but the meaning and motivation behind them is hallowed.
The ordinary transcends into the sacred, but so quickly it is easily missed.
Hopefully these pieces recognize and mark these hidden, holy moments.
Design elements of the collection
After researching hundreds of gestures I narrowed down the ones that conveyed a message.
They were more than just a specific position, but rather represented a moment worth noticing.
Then I explored color palettes and accents that would help draw attention to this holy moment.
Halos worked well to highlight the transcendence of the moment.
Lines and light spoke of outward and inward movement.
Decorative accents helped express the energy of the moment.
It was important to me that the skin tone be varied to represent how these moments transcend geography and race.
Creation of the collection
After getting the sketches to a place I was very excited about, I started each piece by drawing the hand(s), halos and or lines on fine, cold-pressed water color paper.
Then I cut them out and adhered them to the gesso-prepped canvas with gel medium.
I weighted them while they dried to avoid buckling and achieve a firm hold.
Once dry, I painted them with oil paint and accented them with metallic oil paint.
Each piece also receives a nice coat of varnish to secure and preserve the final, finished piece.
I love creating in this collage/mixed media approach because of the amazing depth and variety of texture it brings to the pieces.
Although it is much more time consuming and a bit tedious at times, the value that it adds makes it all worth it in the end.
Details and embellishments
