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Revival of an old tradition, Roman and Baroque: cherub paintings. Click on the small pictures for larger versions.
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A. Artist cherub. Coloured pastel drawing on paper, approx. 11x7 inches (28x18cm).
B. Garden cherub 1. Oil on canvas 18x14 inches = 45x35cm (23x19 inches = 58x48cm including frame).
C. Garden cherub 2. Oil on canvas 14x11 inches = 35.5x28cm.
The five elements. Oil on prepared paper, unframed size: each 5.8x4.1 inches (14.8x10.5cm). All of these are now elaborately framed, in the style shown in the picture of the earth cherub below; the overall size of the frames is 12.25x10.5 inches (31x27cm).
Inspiration: Earth, as you can see, is based upon my garden cherub no.2 with some dried poppy stalks in the background; Air is 'borrowed', in the ancient tradition of artistic plagiarism, from Karoly Lotz, who painted something remarkably similar on the ceiling of the Budpest Opera; Fire is freely adapted from an image in the Book of Urizen by William Blake, but I have turned the cherub round and given him wings at the suggestion of my daughter Jessie; the Water cherub is more or less copied from inside the dome of St Peter's in Rome, but I invented the fish. The fifth painting, Aether (not shown) is very loosely based on a young angel by American artist Abbott Thayer (see the reference on the links page for a website dedicated to this artist). If you like these images I am happy to take the credit; if not, I only admit to the fish.
All images copyright 1999 Martin Dace
The fire cherub in the elements series is a development of this painting, which in turn was inspired by a small illustration by William Blake. Oil on prepared paper 19x17 inches.
All images copyright 1999 Martin Dace