Not long ago Judith and I went over to
spend Christmas with friends of ours in L. A. I had a purpose in mind, as
part of the trip, to go into a place called Monument Valley. The
geographical features of this area are very interesting and are formed
through thousands of years of natural erosion by wind and water. Located in
Utah, on Navajo land, Monument Valley was made famous by John Wayne in his
early Westerns. There is a museum, at the nearby Gouldings Lodge where we
stayed, which has photos and artefacts from those early black and white
movies.
Places like these fascinate me because they have such vast and prehistoric
qualities about them, and so we were up before the dawn in the high desert
winter air to get the shots which form the basis of this painting.
The person who commissioned this painting is a long-term collector of my
work. I recalled him telling me of a photo he had seen, of a painting which
hung in a Sydney art gallery, and which for years had inspired him to get
something similar done for himself. It was of a Phoenix rising and emerging
from the clouds with the sun shining through from behind. I have always been
interested in doing some surreal work, so I asked him if he would be
interested in commissioning my own composition of the idea. Because the
photo for the original inspiration had been mislaid at the time, I had not
seen what this painting actually looked like and so painted both from the
client's description and my own interpretation. In Mr. Churchill's own words
he is "more than happy" with the result.
"Firebird" has also been released as a limited edition of one hundred
numbered and signed giclee prints on canvas.
Please contact me for further information. I
do take commissions for original paintings and sculptures, so if you have an
idea for something you would like me to consider, don't hesitate to get in
touch.
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