Annunciation © D. Yael Bernhard
Many Christians around the world are commemorating the Annunciation at this time of year. This story from the Book of Luke tells of the angel Gabriel’s announcement to the Virgin Mary that she will conceive a son by divine spirit, foretelling the incarnation of Jesus Christ. It’s a powerful vision which has inspired paintings for centuries, including one by Leonardo da Vinci in 1472, and by Boticelli ca. 1485.
This was not the first miracle child to be conceived by divine intervention. Well over a thousand years earlier in the Book of Genesis, the Biblical matriarch Sarah, barren until well beyond her childbearing years, also receives a message from three visiting angels that she will bear a son – none other than Isaac, who becomes the father of Jacob, the progenitor of the twelve tribes of Israel. Sarah laughs in response to this announcement, for her heart is lightened, and she is amazed by this seemingly impossible fulfillment of her lifelong desire. Mary, who is equally incredulous, has a different response, echoing the words of Abraham, Moses, and the prophet Isaiah, among others, when she says “Here am I, the servant of the Lord.” Faith and surrender to divine will are the theme that resounds here and throughout ancient scriptural literature.
With all this in mind, I was most honored to accept the assignment to illustrate this passage for a Christian publisher, albeit a small-scale rendering. I’ve actually illustrated the Annunciation more than once, for two different occasions several years apart. The one shown here is my second version. I’m not Christian, but I love the idea of a powerful vision that strikes directly into the soul, promising to manifest as the fulfillment of a sacred promise. Though the promise may come with a heavy price, it’s deeply inspiring. In painting Mary’s vision, I was struck by a vision of my own of how to depict it. The message of what is to come takes the form of a dove that enters Mary as a winged emissary of the angel. The dove is at the end point of a spiral that unwinds from Gabriel’s halo, representing the light of God. To lend a sense of mystery, I surrounded Mary in radiating violets and blues. I tried to keep the entire composition simple, pure, and striking. The publisher did not want facial features, which suited me just fine – the more symbolic and universal the figures, the better.
What I hoped for most of all in creating this image was to inspire my viewers to imagine their own angels, their own visions, their own apprehension of divine mystery. It could be the birth of anything new and unexpected. It happens to me all the time as an artist. I don’t know where my ideas come from – many of them appear unbidden in my mind’s eye. These are small gifts that I’ve learned to trust, though surely less is at stake than in the stories of the Bible. Those archetypal tales are exaggerated beyond ordinary reality, in order to make a lasting impression on our collective minds. Interpretations of these stories have changed over time, taking different forms in different cultures and centuries. Medieval depictions of the Annunciation are flat and stylized, perhaps stilted by modern standards, (although I find this one quite elegant). Renaissance versions employed architecture and explored newly-emerging ideas of perspective and space. For me, a spiral sufficed as the structural basis of the image. The holy spirit spirals into the receptive feminine as a seed of inspiration, then gestates and grows and spirals back out into the world as creative form.
I love it.
A good week to all –
D Yael Bernhard
http://dyaelbernhard.com
children's books • fine art • illustration
posters • cards • calendars
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