I thought up the idea of the Children of Eden after reading the story of Adam and Eve. Their beauty and light captured my imagination and I began imagining what the world would look like if we were still in the Garden of Eden. The perfect landscapes, peaceful creatures and innocent people were everything that I wish the world was like today. In a world full of hate, pain and death, I think that Eden is the paradise that all mankind longs for - whether they realise it or not.

“And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”

I love to paint light. Before I began painting Eden landscapes, my artwork almost always had a glowing sunset (or sunrise). The sun created the warmth and glow that I found so beautiful; the light made the picture feel peaceful. I have always loved sunsets, especially the powerful colours that they produce in the sky.

So now that I have begun painting the children of Eden, I want them to possess that light. In the garden we were not the mortals that we are now. We were spirtual beings; glowing with the light of the Almighty, respected by the Angels themselves. We were designed perfectly, with the same light that radiated off the inhabitants of Heaven. I attempt to show that light in my portraits either from the people themselves or their surroundings. I especially love to create little glows, which are sometimes fireflies or just, ‘sparkles’. They brighten up a picture, especially nocturnal scenes, and create that wonder and ethereal feel that I love.

“Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness”

One aspect that you will instantly notice about my portraits are the wings. I do not want to confuse my figures with fairies, as they are not. The reason behind the wings lies in Genesis 1:26 “in our image”. The Angels have wings as is often described throughout the Bible. I do not know if Adam and Eve had wings, but I want to show that connection to the spiritual realm. I also add feathers to my wings to reaffirm that Angelic connection.

My figures will also be seen as idealised, which is exactly what I want. We were idealised. We looked perfect and beautiful which I want to show. I want their stances, movements and overall look to be delicate and idyllic.

I am still quite new to painting portaits and hope to improve with each piece. I definately enjoy painting people - it’s quite different to anything that I have painted before and I really enjoy it.

I have just finished my first “child of Eden” painting - Starlit gaze. I am so pleased with how it turned out and am very pleased to be starting a new portrait. This new painting will be of a boy playing a harp, listened to by a fawn. The background is going to be full of light, with hints of a rainbow just visable through the peach coloured glow. The harp that the boy is playing is a nod to King David, a man after God’s own heart - which I believe is perfect for my series. The boy shall also have a glow radiating off of him, it will definately be a very light painting!

My goal is to create a whole series of ‘Children of Eden’ paintings and I have several in the works- so look out for them in the shop!

The Children of Eden