In the picture "Angel and birds" (100 x 60cm) by Svyatoslav Ryabkin two birds, an angel and a tree are stylized and bright; they are painted with white colour. The scratching technique is made by the tip of the brush. It distinguishes Ryabkin's unmistakable trait. In 2014 he painted this oil on canvas.


On background the sky has got an undefined colour: light violet is mixed with light blue and deep blue. These cold colours create a muffled atmosphere where silence reigns. You can listen to only the verse of birds, like the sound of the Birds of Paradise.


At bottom right the big bird draws your attention. Dear Readers, try to follow it with the glance: it takes you upward where it reaches the second bird. Then it goes down again. This unusual flight reminds me of the secret of the geese that flying higher than Everest! It would be too difficult to fly horizontally due to the altitude because the frequency of the wing beat increases. So, they fly upward and down like these birds.


And here, a sweet angel appears. She seems to go out from the tree. It has got a thick and bright green foliage. Her palm is upward and it seems to offer food to the animals. This image reminds me of the significance of trees for the Celts: a refuge, a source of food (for fruits) and care (for leaves and berries).

Among all films starring the angels I invite you to watch The sky above Berlin (Der Himmel über Berlin, 1987) by the German film director Wim Wenders. Have you ever seen it? With great skill it tells the story of two angels approaching the earthly world to experience the feelings of human beings, both positive as love and negative as sufferings. In this film the slowness is a conscious choice that makes it even more fascinating, a masterpiece!


The subjects painted in "Angel and birds" remind me of the Tree of Life of Cabal for this tree and the balance between the male and female parts. In fact, the angel is a woman (she is on the left side of the canvas as in the Tree of Life) and the birds (I think they are male) are on the right side. The feminine and masculine aspects of the divine creation coexist in this framework too.


In the Celtic symbology the tree trunk represents our world, the branches are the complex plot of our life and their knots are the problems that we have to face. The Tree of Life represents the spiritual evolution from the inferior worlds (the roots) to higher worlds (God).


"Angel and Birds" is a dynamic framework due to the flight of birds (that we all can see) and the flight of the angel (that you can see only on a deeper level of interpretation). In the Cabal the angels represent our awareness: they rise and fall continuously as our awareness does. What do you think about it, dear Readers?


After travelling with thought and exploring these topics, I invite you to look at this image: the tree does not fear the weather and lives strong on the grey rock. It reminds me of the mountain vegetation and especially the high altitude flowers that grow at low temperatures. So beautiful!


Even the Christmas Star plant (Euphorbia pulcherrima) is typical of the Christmas period and it lives in "extreme" conditions. In fact, it needs little light, little water andmonthly fertilizations. It is native to Mexico and first the Mexicans presented this plant at Christmas for good luck for the future.


Now this painting is at the permanent exhibition "Non solo pane" @ "Per.Gola" restaurant in Martellago (Venice, Italy). The welcoming ang great environment satisfies every own sense in a noteworthy artistic and tasting path. You are all invited!