The Lighthouse Keeper has released all manner of sea life.

He holds a lighthouse to his chest facing inwards, a metaphor for having the courage to look inside for answers as much as looking to others for guidance. He believes in people following their own path.

I woke up the morning of painting him with the phrase: ”we are born a lighthouse and die a lighthouse” in my head. An existential reflection rather than an ode to aloneness. This is how I came up with the idea of assigning him a lighthouse to hold. A powerful and rich symbol. Prior to that moment he was a fisherman.

The angel on his shoulder represents a whisper of reassurance in the face of any self-doubt, especially when going against the grain of societal expectations or conventional beliefs. I used the icon of Saint John the Theologian as the basis for the Light Keeper. As an apostle he was on the margins and was visited by an angel who helped him write the ‘apocalyptic’ book of revelation. His story provides an opposing layer of synergy with my vibrant bearded man.