#imaginativerealism

A WORLD OF LIGHT AND SHADOW (2011) Acrylic on Gessoboard - 20” x 40” I’m as surprised as the next person when some of these ideas come to me and tell me that they need to be painted, especially the ones that come in my dreams. I don’t know where they come from, but they feel important. 1/3 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism

ORBIS SCIENTIARUM (1997) Acrylic on Panel - 24” x 36” It is frequently assumed that if we try hard enough, there are no limits to our understanding of the universe. 1/4 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #fadedstar

THE END OF NATURE II (1998) Acrylic on Canvas - 30” X 48” The second in a series of paintings about our relationship with nature. All the figures are supported by nature, but the support is eroding and in danger of giving way completely if we don't pay attention and nurture it. Simply put, if nature falls we all fall down with it. 1/2 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism

WAVE (1994) Acrylic on Canvas - 48” x 48” Of all the paintings hanging in my home, this one probably elicits the most comments. It's also a good example of why I am reluctant to say too much about my work. Some people are frightened by it, some view it as peaceful and some are just struck by its abstract qualities. 1/2 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism

THE DIVINING HEART (2005) Acrylic on Canvas - 36" x 24" "Stepping stones" of ammonite fossils represent the lessons of history and are the only havens of safety for the figure in the foreground. If her journey toward the future is guided by the foundations of the past, she can reach the horizon. https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/divining-heart/ #personalvisions #fineart #imaginativerealism

THE RIVER (1996) Oil on Canvas - 48” x 36” In my personal work, the red glass heart evokes the world of the senses and things that appeal to those senses. That’s material possessions for some or pleasure seeking and gratification for others. 1/3 #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #meditation

WINGING IT (2008) Acrylic - 36" x 24" American history is full of examples of artists who were illustrators and became recognized fine artists—Edward Hopper and Winslow Homer come to mind—but I didn’t know whether I’d be able to pull off that transition. 1/3 #personalvisions #fineart #imaginativerealism

TIME AND TIDE (2009) Oil - 24” x 18” This painting started out to be just a morning exercise, kind of a companion idea to TIME'S PASSING. But once I added the water, I was drawn into the scene—pardon the pun—and it ended up being a finished work. https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/time-and-tide/ #fineart #perosnalvisions #imaginativerealism #portals

ISLAND (2007) Acrylic on Panel - 30" x 40" There is a long tradition of using the concept of “island” as a metaphor for the world as a whole, as in “This Island Earth.” This painting—the first in a series of works employing that metaphor—began as a meditation on the necessity for humanity to explore beyond the reaches of our immediate environs in space. 1/7 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism

PRUDENCE (1996) Acrylic on Panel - 12” x 11” The classical notion of Prudence is an important theme to me, as it was to the ancient Greeks. Possessing knowledge of the Past, and a desire and ability to order the Present so as to bring about a more ideal Future. https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/prudence/ #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #virtues

EQUANIMITY (2000) Oil on Panel - 12” x 9” As with so many others, this is a virtue I feel a lack of in my own life. The figure is meditating that equanimity is found in the contemplation of the fullness of time. 1/2 #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #fineart #virtues

SENTINELS (1988) Acrylic on Canvas - 22” x 33” After more than a decade of continuous illustration work, this was my first non-commissioned painting. Who can resist imagining a peaceful world where children are enjoying nature and the symbols of war are falling into ruin? 1/6 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism

DOORWAY TO THE WEST (2006) Acrylic on Panel - 12” x 9” Another search for the light. Creating the illusion of texture in paint, the process of actually painting it, can be an act of meditation. If it were not so, the painting of all those rocks would be torture, especially for someone like me with an impatient nature. https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/doorway-to-the-west/ #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #portals

HIGHGATE MIST (2010) Acrylic - 10” x 8” Looking for sketching subjects, I started to seek out sculptures of angels and enjoyed using them as models. 1/2 #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #fineart

LUMEN 6.2 (2001) Oil on Canvas - 48” x 42” From an idea I had been carrying around in my head since the late '70s. “Lumen” is a word with multiple meanings (light, cavity, window) and all the paintings in this series deliberately make use of them. In each one, there is a figure struggling to reach the light, seemingly trapped in a closed-in space by insurmountable obstacles. https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/lumen-62/ #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #fineart #lumen

FREEFALL (2001) Acrylic on Panel - 12” x 12” Another small reflection in the “Faded Star” series of my gallery work. Like LEAP OF FAITH, this was a visual representation of the unease and excitement I felt at jumping into fine art painting with the barest of lifelines to sustain me. https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/freefall/ #art #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism#fadedstar

OUT OF THE SHADOWS (2014) Acrylic on Panel - 12” x 24” With this painting I revisit themes developed in my "Passage" series, featured heavily in my first couple of one-man shows at the Tree’s Place gallery. 1/3 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #passage #fadedstar

GENTLENESS (1997) Acrylic on Canvas - 11” x 13” Not a classical Virtue, but based on observing my young son with our aging family cat. It's how I hope we'll care for all the earth's creatures. https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/gentleness/ #fineart #personalvisions #virtues #imaginativerealism

THE ASTROPHYSICIST (2008) Acrylic - 24" x 36" When I started this painting, the major theme concerned the power of the human intellect to light our way into the universe. The balls in the picture came from a conversation I had with my son Adrian. 1/5 #fineart #personalvisions #imaginativerealism #neildegrassetyson