Nativity
oils and acrylics
with photography
14" x 11"
back
oils and acrylics
with photography
14" x 11"
back
© Ron Orpitelli 2006
This piece began as a
light-hearted study in texture
inspired by the sight of large
curls of white paint peeling off
damp interior walls of the old
military fort at the foot of San
Francisco's Golden Gate
Bridge. But after building up the
armature with canvas and
gesso on tin, I added a religious
theme that felt too weighty and
resulted in my setting the
painting aside for a number of
years.
That theme came out of the very
painful situation in which my
growing faith and spirituality
began to come into direct
conflict with that of the religion
into which I was born and
raised. For this piece, I
envisioned a traditional Roman
Catholic nativity scene rendered
in renaissance glory, but
moldering and falling away to
reveal a new sky underneath.
Recently others dear to me have
been facing similar challenges
to their faith, prompting me to
reexamine my own feelings and
return to this piece to gain a
sense of completion.
The final element added to the
painting was the underlying
photograph which I took
specifically for this project on
October 9th, 2006 from the East
Summit above Avalon on Santa
Catalina Island.
light-hearted study in texture
inspired by the sight of large
curls of white paint peeling off
damp interior walls of the old
military fort at the foot of San
Francisco's Golden Gate
Bridge. But after building up the
armature with canvas and
gesso on tin, I added a religious
theme that felt too weighty and
resulted in my setting the
painting aside for a number of
years.
That theme came out of the very
painful situation in which my
growing faith and spirituality
began to come into direct
conflict with that of the religion
into which I was born and
raised. For this piece, I
envisioned a traditional Roman
Catholic nativity scene rendered
in renaissance glory, but
moldering and falling away to
reveal a new sky underneath.
Recently others dear to me have
been facing similar challenges
to their faith, prompting me to
reexamine my own feelings and
return to this piece to gain a
sense of completion.
The final element added to the
painting was the underlying
photograph which I took
specifically for this project on
October 9th, 2006 from the East
Summit above Avalon on Santa
Catalina Island.
© Ron Orpitelli 2006