Michelangelo Anselmi - Apollo and Marsyas. Detail. 1540
PARMIGIANINO Diana and Actaeon (Details) 1523-24 Fresco Rocca Sanvitale, Fontanellato
St. Michael and the dragon
While this took me a whole lot of time to finish, I am very pleased with the end result, both compositionally and in regard to the colour scheme.
The idea for the ornate, white armour in particular came from an illustration of St. Michael in the book of hours of Henry IV of France, which looks like this:
Also, fun-fact: my hometown celebrates an annual little festival, which as its centre piece features a moving mechanical figure of St. Michael slaying the devil, the colour-scheme of which I also referenced for this painting.
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Close-ups:
“At last I have found my calling! My calling is love!”
— St. Therese of Lisieux (via sahumerios)
Study for the head of Apollo painted by Diego Velazquez (1599 - 1660)
My faith in the gods comes in waves. There are times when I feel so dedicated, so full of love that I get emotional just thinking about the gods. Then there are other times where I feel so disconnected to them that they may as well solely be the statues on their altars - unknowable.
I've come to realize that it's ok for my faith to be so inconsistent. It's not required for us to have 100% of our faith 100% of the time. The gods understand that, like most things in life, faith comes in wave, receding back just to return in full force soon after.
So, it's ok if you feel disconnected. It's ok if you feel faithless. Give yourself time, and things will improve.