The second book in the Angelarium series is moving forwards really nicely. I'm happy to announce that Eli Minaya is going to reprise his role as writer and artist on the series. He's going to be creating alternate pieces for all the Seraphim as well as writing poetry and short fiction for the majority of the Watchers.

The piece poetry for Sariel is the first new piece from Eli that was made for the book. He'll be writing new pieces for every release and possibly a short story here and there.

The first of the Archangels is a big event for me. They are on a scale as grand the Emanations but with the elemental sort of character as the Seraphim. Instead of representing individual properties the way most angels do, they are a higher order of being. They are complicated, compound representations that require far more work to create.

Gabriel is the first to be realized. Their core themes focus on the emerging of ideas and the inspiration process. The lore that surrounds them always centers on their role as a messenger or herald. The lantern of Gabriel was something I wanted to represent but I needed to avoid depicting something too modern. I decided to deconstruct the idea into something more geometric to represent the ideal of a lantern.

The 10th in the Watchers series has arrived and he's one of my favorites. There was a profound sense of flow working on this one. No anxiety, no blocks. Without the time restrictions imposed by a travel schedule, I was able to comfortably spend time focusing on what I wanted to accomplish with this painting. Many of my favorite icons ended up slipping into the piece as a result.

Samshiel represents power that has been snuffed out. While he typically represents the sun, I wanted to create a figure that was formerly associate with the sun, but now exists without it. The burning embers at his feat and behind his mask still betray his origins, but he's a creature of shadow now.

I didn't know this piece was going to be gold when I started working on it. Purity is a strange concept. It's something we think of as good and clear but it's so often used to nefarious ends. By its nature, it is extreme, and out of balance.

This piece calls back to the famous painting by Waterhouse. It's a classic that comes to mind often. The idea of playing off a recognizable classic painting like that is something I really enjoy as an artist. It's a grand tradition and I love participating in it.

This piece came a lot later than I expected. With previous months laden with travel, I've been able to fit in enough painting time to be able to do two pieces, despite a busy schedule. October didn't have the same option. I was able to deliver it to Patreon backers on the 30th, with an official release day after taking Halloween off to spend with my family.

Baraqiel himself is less conceptual than some of the other Watchers. The themes he embodies are ones that are so popular in our society (energy, connection, electricity) that I kept pushing the design back to being very human in appearance. He represents that feeling we get of being charged, almost electrically by the need to express ourselves. The feeling of being pent up and needing a release.