Religious Paintings
for My Gallery
I have a gallery that a local businessman financed. He
wanted a place on the town square that featured religious
paintings. I’ve been busy buying religious painting for
several years. I have found some very nice pieces and I
have a lot of people purchase paintings that I’ve found.
One of my favorite artists is someone that I actually
stumbled across when I was buying religious paintings. He
was not famous, but he had some of his pieces at a local
show. I found that he primarily paints and sells his work
on the internet.
It is hard to describe all of the feelings that I had when I
saw his first piece. I really liked that he used the
scripture Psalm 139:14 and made it gently legible within the
layers of fresco colors. I thought that this was an
excellent choice for my gallery. Buying religious
paintings is very rewarding.
When my painting arrived, it was on gallery wrap ¾ inch
stretcher frames and was ready to hang. My patrons came
to a private preview of the piece and were so happy with my
success at buying religious paintings. The piece was
actually five original canvases, each 15” X 30” with black
painted gallery wrap edges so that no frames were needed.
The title of the piece was long, but appropriate. The
title was “I will praise thee for I am fearfully made marvelous
are Thy works and that my soul knoweth right well”. One
of my patrons wanted to buy it and hang it in his home. I
had to convince him to let me show it for four months before he
did that. It is hard work finding and buying suitable
religious paintings.
In all the time that I’ve spent looking at and buying
religious paintings, I am starting to feel like an
expert. I try to find paintings in a variety of mediums
to keep the gallery feeling fresh and vibrant. My
favorite religious paintings use fresh earth minerals,
pigments, oil glazes and acrylic varnish.
I actually have no preference if an artist signs his canvas
or not. Most of my patrons, however, want their religious
paintings signed. So, when I am buying religious
paintings, I try to find ones that the artist signed.
The artist that I decided was my personal favorite uses the
lost language of symbolism in his original paintings. He
told me that his religious paintings are inspired by the
ancient storytelling frescoes of Pompeii, Italy. He has a
trademark style that he calls Religious Graffiti.
I get a lot of requests for certain subjects in the
religious paintings that I buy. I have been looking for
religious paintings of Mary and Jesus and also painting of Mary
and Angel Gabriel. I have several families that have
wanted these classic images in their homes. I have
another family that wants me to find an oil Madonna with Child
to hang in her church.
There was one religious painting that I bought that was very
sweet. The image of Our Lady, Jesus and St. Giovannino
was very provocative and it hung prominently in the gallery for
six months before I let it go. I get attached to the
religious paintings that I buy and then get to view every
day. I have a policy that no painting will leave the
walls of the gallery for four months.
My new favorite piece is an abstract triptych that I found
while I was in Atlanta buying religious paintings. The
piece was called Guardian Angel and I love it. My patrons
fell in love with it as well. They have asked me to track
down the artist and see if he has anymore religious paintings
available.
The only religious paintings that I actually do not buy are
ones that reflect the image of Jesus on the cross. I
don’t have a problem with them, some of them are extremely well
done and would more than likely sell well, but my investors
made it very clear when they financed the gallery that I would
not put that image into it.
|