Felix Berroa, The Histories Teller

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"El Angel"

The last year, one of my best friends, the painter and sculptor North American Richard Jacobus, invite me to go with his wife Connie to church in Thanksgiving Day. The temple they attend is a United Methodist Church.

The church has two temples. One large and traditional, with its stained glasses, arches, etc. . Behind this temple is another smallest. So much the decoration, the live music, system of image projections, the liturgical service by the Rev., etc., has an avant-garde vision. My friend Richard Jacobus has a couple of his works there and from other artists. Richard ask me if I would be willing to donate a work for the church and I tell him yes.

Immediately I get some ideas in my mind for the topic of the work to be donated. I have always thought that the magnitude of the faith of a person is in its capacity to love and to concern to the other ones, to follow the earthly and divine laws, etc. In short, it is a question of individual conscience. In other words, "each person is a church". The temple is a sacred bwild in where the faithful ones meet each other. That is to say, in where all the "small churches" get together to unite forces in pray and Bible study.

A person will be good or bad, of religious faith or no, of strong or weak faith, of feelings that had been absorbed through its life, depending of the spiritual level and sensibility. That proportion of religious surrender, of faith and devotion, are represented in the painting in the size of the "tower of church" that I paints in the head of each person. Is means that there are big and small "churches people". All that led me to a painting that I titled "Every Person is a Church." An Acrylic and I oil on canvas, 44x48 incheses.

"Cada persona es Una Iglesia" (Each Person is a Church). Acrylic and oil on canvas. 46"x48". 2007.

When my friend saw the work, he had the doubts if the painting will be not well interpreted. I told him that I would create other and that I would take "Every Person is a Church" to exhibit in Santo Domingo by November 2007.

I recreate the Angel on top of the church and I gave a touch of hope, of light and spirituality for this new year 2008 and I title "El Angel "

 

"El Angel" (Español)

El año pasado, uno de mis mejores amigos, el pintor y escultor norteamericanos Richard Jacobus, me invito para ir con su familia a la iglesia el Dia de Gracias. Ellos pertenecen a la iglesia Metodista.

La iglesia tiene dos templos. Uno enorme y tradicional, con su torre, vitrales, arcos, etc.. Detras de este, se construyo una extension donde se instalo otro templo con una version moderna. Tanto la decoracion, la musica viva, sistema de proyeccion de imagenes en el altar, el servicio liturgico por la pastora, etc. tienen una vision vanguardista. El amigo richard Jacobus tiene alli un par de obras y otros artistas. Este me pregunto que si yo estaria dispuesto a donar una obra para la iglesia y yo le dije que si.

Inmediatamente se me ocurrio una idea para el tema de la obra que seria donada. Yo siempre he pensado que la magnitud de la fe de una persona estas en su capacidad de amar y respectar a los demas, las leyes terrenales y divinas. En fin es una cuestion de conciencia individual. En otras palabras, cada persona es una iglesia. El templo es un lugar donde se reunen los fieles, es decir, todas las pequeñas iglesias para unir fuerzas mediante la oracion.

Una persona seras buena o mala, de fe religiosa o no, de fe fuerte o debil, de sentimientos que se han absorvidos a traves de su vida, dependiendo del nivel espiritual y de sensibilidad. Esa proporcion de entrega religiosa, de fe y devocion estas representada en la obra por el tamaño de la "torre de iglesia" que pinte en la cabeza de cada persona que expresa la idea de que hay iglesias grandes y pequenas. Todo eso me condujo a un cuadro que titule "Cada Persona es una Iglesia". Un Acrilico y oleo de 44x48 pulgadas.

Cuando mi amigo vio la obra, tuvo las dudas de si seria mal interpretada. Yo le dije que crearia otra y llevaria esa a mi exposicion en Santo Domingo en Noviembre del 2007.

Recree el Angel sobre la iglesia y le di un toque de esperanza, de luz y espiritualidad para este nuevo año 2008 y lo titule "El Angel".