The theme of competition is important and topical: The spiritual battle. The war in Ukraine, which started on the 24th of February, surprised us all. I spent many days just listening to the news, crying and wondering: How could this be still happening in Europe, in an almost neighboring country, after the Second World War and all that suffering?! It was comforting to be able to pray and start to think: how can I play a small part in supporting the suffering Ukrainian people? In these days I completed a painting called Wounded – The price of Freedom.
I have been studying a lot the about the picture heritage of the undived church from the first 1000 years after Christ, where the icons are one essential part
- so they also belong to the common picture inheritage of all Christians. My artworks are not (orthodox) icons, my work are oil on canvas.
Angels have a special task in the service of Tabernacle in the wilderness and later in Jerusalem temple - and also in the heavenly service in Revelation of John.
The second image shows this angel in the Altartriptychon at Pispala church in Tampere. Here the angels, Gabriel and Michael are serving the Almighty. In the final image, the angel is at the Helsinki cathedral crypta, a Lenten installation. Here the serving angels show the way to the Cross, "AMORE MIO". Beside the Crucified are the sorrowing angels ( in a spiritual world) - like in he Christmas night the angels were celebrating in a visible way about Messiah's birth.
Angel painting: “ By this sign, you are victorious” includes quotes from Ephesians 6: 10 – 18, the descriptions of the angels in the Book of Revelation as well as the fact, what the history of ecclesiastical art is telling of the emperor Constantine the Great. Before he became the Emperor of Rome and made Christianity the state religion, he had a challenging battle near Rome, the Battle of the Milvian Bridge against Maxentius on the 28th of October in 321. The number of the enemy was nearly four times more than the army of the Constantine, but in the end he won the battle. The night before, while preparing for the battle, it has been told that Constantine saw a vision in the sky. He saw the Greek letters X and P, which are the first two letters of Christ. At the same moment he also saw or heard a sentence: “In hoc signo vinces” (in Latin), “By this sign, you are victorious.” It has been told that Constantine ordered the soldiers to paint on their shields the letters X and P (Christ monogram, one of the first Christian symbols).
These words came to my mind while I have been anxiously thinking about the situation in Ukraine and they were transferred to my angel paintings, in the form of shields of faith. “Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one “ (vers 16). Praying the miracle of God for Ukraine.
Just before Easter week 2022 I organized an art exhibition, which I had been planning for a long time, to be held in the Crypt of Helsinki Cathedral. The art exhibition was during the period of fasting, from the 27th of March until 10th of April and the theme is called: The Salvation. The exhibited paintings have been for decades the main theme of my image theological and historical study of ecclesiastical art.
My spiritual calling is to paint the main happenings in the life of Jesus and the main points in the history of salvation. My work has been influenced by the joint Christian pictures and paintings of the ecclesiastical art. In our time, we need the Word of God as well as art and pictures, inspired and committed from the Bible, a visuality, that makes God´s Word come alive. Music has had this kind of status for a longer time already, also in church services. God approaches each of us personally. I have been impassioned by: visions of His image, within a church building or during a church service. In my lonely childhood I didn´t have anybody, who could have told me about Jesus.
In my spiritual battle it has also been important for me to paint angels. In the Bible, starting from the Old Testament all the way up to the Book of Revelation, there have been many descriptions about angels. These servants of God, messengers and heavenly soldiers are all very different from New age characters.
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The paintings can be reserved by contacting me for example sending an e-mail: laineenannukka1@gmail.com. The final price depends on the postage and necessary insurance. After contact we agree on the terms of delivery. The price of the painting is 2.500 € not including the Vatt, which does not need to pay. The customer is committed to pay postage and insurance. The paintings will be safety packed and categorized as collis fragile.
Before sending the painting, we agree the delivery time, the total price and payment method, such as a secured prepayment by bank transfer.
Please see other options in the links.
1. Register of Finnish National Artists
https://kuvataiteilijamatrikkeli.fi/taiteilija/annukka-laine
2. Tampere House of culture, Gallery Laikku. Paintings – “Before and After” 2019.
Excellent video - 16 minutes.
https://youtu.be/80ZxdA02ksM
3. Artway.eu https://www.artway.eu/content.php?id=1844&lang=en&action=show
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