baker galloway

Atrium Level Three - Big Ideas, Near Disasters

Our CGS Level 3 Atrium is for children ages 9–12. One of the major works/activities for this age group is making a timeline of the history of everything: creation of the natural world, creation of Adam & Eve, life of Jesus, the child’s own birth, and the end of all things. To support this practical work, we decided to place a pair of murals on either end of the room to cap the ends of the timeline, with Christ at both nodes.

Big IDEA: Alpha & Omega; Beginning & End

On the west wall we chose to show the creation of the cosmos – the pre-incarnate Word of God creating the Heavenly Bodies.

On the east wall we chose to show the End of all things – Christ seated in the New (Heavenly) Jerusalem, inviting us to Himself.

All other points in our known history fall between these two bookends.

Near Disasters

I think these murals are relatively successful in what they set out to accomplish. However, there were a few close calls along the way, and some readers might like to see that process.

1.Coloring the Walls, Gates, and Pavement of the Heavenly Jerusalem

I begin murals with a yellow/orange paint to explore the composition. That went ok enough:

However, trouble came along when I began to block in the colors of the walls of the City. My first impulse was to explore a mostly green palette, since the book of Revelation indicates: “…the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.” And later, “The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.” And once more, “And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.”

So I thought, let’s try a mostly green-walled city with a golden pavement. Here is how that went…

Ew.

Some good things - like the radiance of the golden yellow ground and open gateways. But mostly, ew.

Many thanks to Isaac (9) and Max (7) Coleman for pointing out to me that the ground did not look like gold at all, rather it was, “just yellow.” This was a turning point in the color scheme development. I stopped all painting on the mural and went back to my desk. With watercolors and paper I quickly explored some alternate color palettes for this composition and found one I liked much better.

Isaac and Max both said the ground should be green grass. Even though that is not strictly what is indicated in the scriptural text, I think it works better visually in this case because green grass indicates nourishment and comfort and beauty.

And even though the walls are supposed to be greenish jasper, I am glad I changed them to a pale warm stone color with golden undertones. Once the ground was green, taken as a whole, the mural’s dominant color is still light green. In the end, a reversal of the indicated colors worked better for this composition than strict adherence to the text. Revelation’s green jasper walls and clear gold ground became gold-ish walls and green ground for this mural’s purposes. In my opinion, if I had stuck rigidly to my initial plan, the end result would have been a muddled and dissatisfying color palette. In the end, with Isaac and Max’s help, a more beautiful final product was achieved. Thank God!


2. Weird Face

The second false trail I want to call your attention to is the initial face I painted on Christ in the Creation of the Heavenly Bodies mural. The preliminary sketch in yellow/orange began with a promising start:

Even after blocking in the first few areas of color, the facial structure and expression seemed to be on a good footing:

But then somewhere during the shadows highlights modeling of the face, things went off the rails. I didn’t like what I was seeing, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what was the main thing wrong:

This face wasn’t a wholesale disaster, but it wasn’t as good as I had hoped. It’s a terrible feeling when you don’t like what you see but don’t know what to do to make it better.

So, I actually blanked out the entire face and started over. Sometimes the surest way forward is to back up and make a fresh start. I think I salvaged the previously painted neck, ear, and hair, but the face and beard are brand new.

It’s not perfect; but it’s better. I think it’s good enough for now.

Thankfully on this project I could afford the time to backtrack when I had taken a wrong turn, and try again. God grant us to see our mistakes and failures, but not to despair. Give us time to make things right that we have bent and knocked awry. If it be Your will.

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Atrium Level Three - The Heavenly Jerusalem

In this Mural we have the end of all things: Christ in the Heavenly Jerusalem. See Revelation chapters 21-22 for the textual basis of this image.

Revelation Ch. 21 excerpts:

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 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. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 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, 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.

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 splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Revelation Ch. 22 excerpts:

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. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.

“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you[a] this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

Below is the primary historical prototype image for this mural: from the Basilica of St. Pietro al Monte (Civate, Italy) – 11th Century.

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