Angel of the Evening

There is an ancient town in the hills of Italy.  Below the town are the Greek ruins of a temple.  In the evening as the sun sets, the people feel they have been blessed by a special gift.  It seems that as the sun sets, they all feel a connection to each other.  They walk the main street, stop at sidewalk cafes for a visit and a drink together.  The children run and play together and the adults visit and sit at the outdoor cafes talking about the days events.  Teenagers get together, talk and walk in groups.  Everyone knows one another and they share stories of their day and  life together in the town.  They have been friends for many generations these families.  Sometimes they share a meal.  There is music and laughter in the air and the wonderful smell of food.  This is their social life.  Is it the Angel of the Evening that keeps watch over them?  They share happiness and sorrow. 

I wanted to paint a picture of an angel that appears to float across the landscape.  The warm colors of the beginning of dusk with the bright colors of the evening.  There is for me a love of the temples from ancient peoples.  It seems that they are always in a very spiritual spot and when you visit these sites, you get the feeling of a guardian, presence of spirit, the transcending of human understanding.  They are always beautiful places and I wanted to capture that in this painting.  I love the old with the ancient in the towns of Europe.  I imaging the torn sheet music to be steps to the ancient temple.  On the lower left hand corner is a ghost image of a woman and a man.  They appeared in the work as I painted.