Oculus

22 in x 22 in

12/2022

I got the idea for Oculus on a plane ride while thinking of new directions for my art. I wanted to explore circular shapes, and as I was thinking about possibilities, I kept thinking of the roof of the Pantheon in Rome. I have visited that ancient building twice in my life, and I’ve never failed to be impressed by the geometry in the ceiling. My version is much less elaborate, and I painted “Oculus” without looking at a picture of the Pantheon ceiling beforehad. I ended up with concentric circles of increasing size using neutral colors with a "hole" in the middle opening up to the sky on a pitch-black night. It originally had a bright blue sky in the hole but it somehow didn’t look right so I changed it to pitch black.