The Names of the Apostles Part 5

“The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. ”

— Revelation 21:14

The Colours of the Foundations of the Walls of the New Jerusalem

I painted the colours of the wall foundations for the New Jerusalem, but before I could go on, I needed more research into the names of the twelve apostles, which will be on each foundation.

In my research, I found different parts of Scripture had different lists of apostles! This is too important to get wrong, so I dug deeper before painting the names. Some New Testament authors listed Thaddeus as one of the Twelve, while others listed Judas Son of James. It wasn’t unusual for the apostles to have more than one name—Simon Son of Jonah was renamed by Jesus, as Peter, the rock. But I couldn’t paint both names—which was it? I discovered that while Thaddeus was mentioned in several places, Judas Son of James was only mentioned by Luke in his books, which were written later. So the name Thaddeus seems the most likely to be in the tribute.

As I mentioned in my previous post, http://www.joancthomsonart.com/blog/2020/4/16/the-names-of-the-apostles, I settled on Matthias as Judas Iscariot’s replacement, rather than Paul of Tarsus since Matthias was numbered among the Twelve and Paul never was.

The Names of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus printed and ready for transfer to the canvas.

I chose to use Luke’s order since he told us about Matthias, the newest addition to their number.

The first layer of gold—in ink.

I printed the names from my computer and traced them onto tracing paper and from there, onto the canvas, Peter the Rock, on the first or bottom foundation then followed the list upward with Matthias at the top.

The letters were too fine for the gilding I had planned so I painted each one with a fine brush. Since I’m left-handed, I found that turning the names (and the canvas) vertically helped me reach them without smearing. The first layer was in gold fibre-tipped marker so I could see the letters better as I painted. Then two layers of gold iridescent paint (at least). A final coat of a lighter gold iridescent paint gave it extra beauty.

The finished painting. The Foundations Joan C. Thomson Acrylic on Canvas

As I painted, I thought about all these men gave up to be in Jesus’ inner circle; they all reportedly suffered horrendous persecution, with all but John dying a violent death (though the Romans did try). Oh but what they gained—a close up look at the coming of the Kingdom of God to earth, the Son of God in person! They were trained by God himself to “heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons.” What a privilege! As I painted their names, I thanked God for these men, who  passed on to us this Good News of Jesus coming to pay the price for our sin and inviting us to be a part of God’s family. The Twelve will be greatly honoured. What an honour to paint this tribute.

The Tree of Life and The River of the Water of Life—Part 3

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. ”

— Revelation 22:1,2

The Bible mentions the Tree of Life (at least) thirteen times—very important. We’re told some of what it looks like, this marvellous reward that gives life, that lasts forever and holds healing for the nations, but not much about what it looks like.

Both the prophet, Ezekiel and the apostle, John, saw it in heavenly visions as “bear[ing] fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.” Ezekiel 47:12

The River of the Water of Life—Indian ink on gold leaf—excerpt from painting by Joan C. Thomson

Painting process of the Tree of Life surrounding the River of the Water of Life

“On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. ”

— Revelation 22:2

People have speculated as to whether there is a singular tree straddling the river or multiple trees lining each side. Since the Bible interprets itself, I’ve taken my cue from Ezekiel and painted multiple trees on each side of the river. Superabundance!

There are twelve crops of fruit, so I painted a sampling in four colours. Part of the idea of the twelve crops is that the fruit will never run out. And God loves variety!

The leaves are wonderful means of healing for the nations! Anything I could say about how much that is needed today, would be an understatement! We’re not told how that works or what the redeemed nations on the new earth could possibly need healing for. Neither are we told what the leaves look like, so I asked God, “What do they look like—standard fruit tree-shaped? Deeply lobed, slightly scalloped? How do the leaves grow on the trees, straight across, alternating or cascading from the top like a palm?” I haven’t yet gotten a direct answer, but I prayerfully settled on a shape that can represent them for now.

Drawing excerpt of Tree of Life by joan C. Thomson

I traced my drawings onto the green “grass” background then painted the trees with sizing (special gold leaf adhesive). After the sizing became the right level of tackiness--about an hour, I gently laid in the thin sheets of artificial gold-leaf (it’s actually copper since real gold would cost about twenty US dollars per five-and one-half inch square sheet! It does have to be varnished to avoid oxidation), and lightly brushed away the excess with a soft brush.

Excerpt of Tree of Life painting process

When I previously gilded (applied gold-leaf) the River of the Water of Life (in the centre of this painting), I happily discovered that the Indian ink I had on hand, poured beautifully over the gold-leaf. I had just the colours for the fruit too! Unfortunately, though I don’t know why, the ink beaded up on my golden trees. I had to trace the tree drawings on top of the gold, so maybe the graphite caused the ink to roll up. Plan B. I chose the most transparent acrylic paints I had, to repaint the trees and fruit; the beaded ink below showed through a bit, making more dimension. I applied several thin layers to cover the gold yet let it shine through.

The completed painting—The Tree of Life Surrounding The River of the Water of Life by Joan C. Thomson

The Tree of Life on either side of The River of the Water of Life. Jesus is about Life—he is the Life.

“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.””

— John 14:6

The Light of God Part 3

“The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.”

— Revelation 21:23

The Light of God by Joan C. Thomson

In the Garden of Eden, plants of every kind flourished before the sun and the moon were created--in the light that emanated from God. As in the beginning, lovely and useful as they are, the sun and the moon will no longer be needed in the new heavens and new earth, because God  will make his home there with his people. God is light. In him there is no darkness at all—no dark side or force, so there will always be light.

“This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. ”

— 1 John 1:5

Detail of the Light of God by Joan C. Thomson

Here is the final layer, my finished painting of The Light of God. Close-ups show the iridescent white and glimmering gold brushstrokes, which can only be seen when the light shines on it from certain angles—outshining the dull grey, lightless sun and moon sinking off the canvas.

Iridescent detail of The Light of God by Joan C. Thomson

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.””

— Revelation 21:3

The Light of God Part 2

More layers of light! More layers to represent the many facets of light, but also because more layers give depth and keep the eye looking for longer. How to make another luminous layer, especially since I’ve chosen a limited palette of yellow, white, and gold for this painting? First, there is more than one colour of yellow and of white—even of gold, and tints of each (adding various amounts of white). Good. But this painting of God’s own glorious light needed more.

Acrylic paint on Mylar sheet awaiting transfer to a canvas

I studied printmaking in college; I’ve loved it since learning to make linocut prints in school when I was twelve. I enjoy combining art techniques, particularly adding printing to my collages and paintings. The idea for the next layer came in a flash; that Mylar wrapping (thin, transparent and flexible but still a bit stiff, plastic) that I had saved from one of my orchid plants would work to print a layer of paint. We artists think nearly everything will either help make art or be art! I cut a piece the size of the area I wanted the layer to cover and squirted yellow (cadmium hue) acrylic paint in a starburst pattern. It did look a bit like mustard.

Transferring acrylic paint from Mylar sheet to canvas

Fortunately, the paint is thick enough that I could reverse the Mylar without dripping. Using a favourite printmaking tool--a bamboo rice spoon, I rubbed the dry side of the reversed Mylar—transferring the paint to the canvas. Then I lifted it to see if the results were what I wanted. Definitely! However, the paint was too thick for the layer, so I had to carefully lift the excess with a brush and search for other paintings-in-process that could benefit from some cad yellow paint. No paint wasted!

The finished layer of “light”

More layers to come!

The Light of God

I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.  The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendour into it.

Revelation 21:22-24

The Light of God outshining the sun and moon.

When the New Jerusalem comes to the new earth, the sun, and the moon that reflects it will no longer be needed because the light of God—the light, which the earth basked in and the plants grew before the sun and moon were created, will be more than enough.

I’ve scumbled several layers of yellows tints in acrylic with a layer of titanium white on top, applied with a wide palette knife. The light colours burst forth from a centre point representing the throne of God—not the dull grey of the dead sun and moon.

More layers to come.

The Names of the Apostles New Jerusalem Foundation Part 4

“The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. ”

— Revelation 21:14

The names of the twelve apostles are written on the twelve foundations of the wall of the New Jerusalem, but which twelve apostles?  Who is the twelfth? Certainly not Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus, since Peter declared that Judas left his ministry to “go where he belongs,” (Acts 1:25). Is it Matthias, chosen by lots to replace Judas (Acts 1:15-26)? But what about the Apostle Paul, hand-picked by Jesus in a supernatural overtaking when Saul (then named) was on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians?  Many argue that this man, writer of most of the New Testament, called personally by Jesus like the other eleven—unlike Matthias, who only won the casting of the lots, must surely be the twelfth apostle.

As I pondered this question before the Lord—I had to know before I could finish this painting, and researched on the internet, the answer (and there definitely is one) initially became less clear.  A huge number of internet articles argued both sides—convincingly. We’ve never heard about Matthias again but without Paul, most of us would never have heard the good news of Jesus bringing the kingdom of heaven to us.  Surely he deserves great honor.

“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. ”

— Ephesians 2:19,20

And there’s the key; it’s not about what either of them deserves, though the right actions of followers of Jesus can bring them eternal rewards. I eventually came to see that there’s a bigger picture.  The naming of the foundations is about representing “The Twelve.” The Apostle Paul, great as he is, and for all the good things he’s brought to the world (yes, even to women—much of what he said about women has been abused and twisted) was never listed or reckoned as one of “the Twelve.” He was (often painfully) aware of this (2 Corinthians 11:5). However, Matthias was brought in as one of “The Twelve,” in response to the believers’ prayer (Acts 1:23,24).  Casting lots was a God honouring Hebrew tradition throughout the Old Testament for deciding matters “in the presence of the Lord our God” (Joshua 18:6).  As far as I can tell, while our brother Paul will certainly be honoured and rewarded—Matthias gets this one, his name emblazoned on the top foundation.

I’ve ordered the names based on a list in the Bible after finding that there were several lists—that didn’t immediately match up.  Thaddeus was listed sometimes and not others—why?  Because he had more than one name, rather like Simon, who was also called Peter. I studied and studied it, settling on this order only to find yet another list.  Sometimes more knowledge stalls, but I needed still more research before I could commit the names to gilding. This is too important to get wrong, yet in the end I can only “see through a glass darkly” (1 Corinthians 13:12), and do the best I can with what I can learn as I seek God.

I researched and painted then got hit with a (different) virus. Now that I’m recovering, I’ll delve back in to the research.  Meanwhile, since I work on more than one painting at a time, I’ll post next time about my The Light of God painting in this series.

Sometimes I hand draw my text. Being left-handed I’ve had to teach myself to draw letter forms and do calligraphy since my teachers didn’t know how to teach me.  Other times, I use printed text to trace and transfer either because of the size or the amount of lettering.

All the Colours of the Wall--New Jerusalem Foundation Part 3

“The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. ”

— Revelation 21:19,20 NIV

Twelve colourful stone foundations for the walls of the New Jerusalem—detail of painting by Joan C. Thomson

Progress!  All the gem colour “stripes” for the wall foundations in the New Jerusalem (in my painting series) along with their gold “mortar” are painted.  I’m struck with how contemporary the colours look.  Gorgeous!  Imagine the light of the glory of God shining through the stones and reflecting off them.  

I’ve also painted the detail of the bits of “gold” (pyrite) on the lapis lazuli or “sapphire” foundation.  Looking at pictures of the various stones on the internet was helpful but better still, is seeing the real stones.  I was pleased to find three of the stones at our local German Christmas Market: chrysoprase, carnelian and lapis.

Chrysoprase, carnelian and lapis lazuli—three of the stones in the wall foundations of the New Jerusalem.

Jasper, according to Pliny the Elder—a first century historian, was green. Sapphire was the name for lapis lazuli though the other stones seem to have kept their names.  There are different versions of the stones on the internet—and in various Bible translations, but I’ve tried to stick close to the literal Greek words and their meanings (biblehub.com).

Faceting of gemstones didn’t begin until much later, so it’s likely that the Apostle John saw smooth, highly polished stones.

With this series of paintings, I’m hoping to provide a glimpse into what this heaven-coming-to-earth looks like but even the best image falls short of seeing the real thing in person.  The New Jerusalem is the place that Jesus has prepared for those who follow him—believing is seeing.

The next stage in this painting will be to add the names of the apostles—one on each foundation colour, in gold leaf.

““Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

— John 14:1-3

The Colours of the Foundation Part 2

The wall is built of jasper, while the city is pure gold, clear as glass. The foundations of the wall of the city are adorned with every jewel; the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. Revelation 21:18-20 NRSV

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New Jerusalem Wall painting process first four foundations

Amid a flurry of year-end paperwork, I’ve been diligently exploring how to paint the colours of the foundations of the New Jerusalem walls—and painting them. I wanted to attempt to capture the luminous qualities of light glowing through and bouncing off this variety of precious and semi-precious stones.

Since this body of work is largely abstract or abstracted realism, I chose to represent the “adorn[ing] of the walls with every jewel,” with a stripe in each gemstone colour. To create the appearance of translucence, I mixed a little of the paint colour with acrylic glazing medium, building layer upon layer, varying the brushstrokes for visual texture of crystal formations in some of the gems. However, the character of paint being what it is, not all colours, such as red-orange and yellow lend themselves to transparency. Some of the stones themselves, such as lapis lazuli (sapphire) are entirely opaque.

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New Jerusalem Wall Foundations Painting Process

It’s a joy to watch the vibrant colours emerge—what a combination! The majority in any one colour are a version of green—four out of twelve, so it seems that the answer to the age-old question of God’s favourite colour is green. According to Pliny the Elder, a writer and historian of the first century, jasper was green—the entire wall above the foundations is jasper. Sometimes different sources have different colours for the same stone and some, like beryl can come in red, yellow, blue or green, as in emerald; emerald is already the fourth foundation so the eighth—beryl, can’t be the green one. We’ll see.

The Glorious Colour of the of the Walls’ Foundations

“The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.”

— Revelation 21:18-20 NIV

“Heaven will be paved with streets of gold,” when I was growing up, that’s about all I heard about heaven. Back then, gold didn’t excite me but when I read that the foundation of New Jerusalem’s massive wall (1400 miles high and wide on every side!) is “decorated” with—the Greek says “adorned,” every kind of precious stone” (Revelation 21:19), I was overwhelmed. Wow, what colour! When the pure light of God shines on the gems, it will be glorious!

“The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. ”

— Revelation 21:23 NIV

Over the years, I’ve researched the colours of the stones and found that some were different than what we think of today.  In the first century “sapphire” was what we call lapis lazuli; Pliny the Elder, an author of the time,  wrote that jasper was green! I drew colour swatches in the back of my Bible as a reference. Different sources sometimes describe the stones differently but I’ve put them together as I could, checking the Greek words for each stone.

Whichever gems they are, one thing I know--they will be stunning! I’ve spent years traveling around telling people that colour is good, because God made it for us. These walls are one more proof!

River of Life Part 1—The Great Street

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb  down the middle of the great street of the city. Revelation 22:1,2

This new River of Life painting began with a swath of gold paint through the middle of a square canvas as the River of Life in the New Jerusalem will flow through the centre of the city down a street of gold.  Gold paves the way. 

Applying Composite Gold Leaf Over Gold Paint and Special Sizing

I’ve made the street straight since many passages of Scripture call for making the way straight and leveling hills.

“A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. And all people will see God’s salvation.’” Luke 3:4-6

Next, I added a covering of very fine (composite) gold leaf.  I’d brought some with me from the US, when we moved to UK, knowing that one day it would have its time.  That day has come. But I had to learn how to apply it first and am very thankful for YouTube.

Composite Gold Leaf Squares

Composite gold leaf is made of copper and zinc and pressed very finely into sheets with the appearance and gleam of gold.  It’s a delicate procedure to maneuver the floaty, easily crinkled squares onto the prepared sizing—don’t sneeze! Or even breathe much. But oh the shine! It does give a hint of the streets of gold in the golden city of God.

Completed Gold Leaf “Great Street”