Background & Inspiration
From the age of 10, when Nya′ migrated from the country to go and live with his mother in the city, he soon began to manipulate discarded wires and shards of metal obtained from abandoned factories into toy cars and guns.
This was coupled with endless pilgrimages to garbage yards in search of different materials that included plastic containers, beer bottles, pieces of cloth, empty cigarette packets, broken parts of stereos and rusted wire.
This early introduction to found objects, scrap metal, electrical cords and disparate industrial textures left an indelible mark on the budding artist’s psyche as clearly evidenced in his oeuvre. His adroit use of wire, metal, salvaged materials and other found objects is incontestably overt in practically all his compositions from his “Divine Inspiration” series, one of them being this work entitled “Epistle of Breath.”
Intricately employing an irresistible blend of exquisite virtuosity and conceptual freedom, materials redolent of his childhood which include wire, sackcloth, rustic metal, charcoal, animal blood, beads, river sand and corrugated cardboard were masterfully ingrained into the composition with meritorious precision.
Furthermore, the aura of youthful exuberance and sublime embryonic aesthetics reminiscent of his juvenile toys emanate from the enrapturing masterpiece.
Constructed after four years of research and study of the word, “Blessing,” a revelatory journey which meditatively involved in-depth study of the Old and New Testament, “Epistle of Breath” portrays the dominating, subduing, replenishing, rejuvenating and restoring power of “THE BLESSING OF THE LORD,” which, upon decoding the precisely indented icons and numbers deliberately placed across the plane of the canvas, is translated by the artist as follows:
“The power, anointing and endowment on Man to excel to the highest level in the likeness of his heavenly Father.
In essence, THE BLESSING OF THE LORD was the first Word Man ever heard from His Creator and the last Word he heard from Him as He physically departed the earth and returned to Heaven.
It is the distinguishing, peculiar, unmatchable and meritorious crown that heralds Man as a pacesetter, trendsetter and marvelous wonder in the field of his calling and area of gifting in the world.
The first words mankind ever heard
Incorruptible, inexhaustible, immutable and irrevocable, THE BLESSING OF THE LORD is the power of God bestowed on Man by His creator to effectively rule, prudently manage, wisely steward and equitably administer the earth. It is the original ability and capacity deposited inside Man to become a perpetual dominator, continual subduer, unlimited multiplier and fruit producer on earth.
Essentially, as alluded to by the artist’ preparatory drawings for the painting, THE BLESSING OF THE LORD was the inherent crown of righteous rulership on the first Man on earth, Adam- before he declared independence from God. And it is what the second and last Adam, Jesus, came to earth to restore to Mankind (see fig 1).
While the orange and gold shades beaming across the picture field in the painting allude to the authority of the Blessing to create and maintain an ideal environment of peace, joy, prosperity and liberty wherever God’s Word is instituted as law; the crimson hue cascading from a horizontal bar to form an open bridge between the light and dark shades represent the precious blood of Jesus, the lamb that was slain to restore THE BLESSING OF THE LORD to humankind.
The tablets maintaining the structure of the composition stem from the ocean of crimson and the streaks of scarlet opening the bridge to pardon the light represent the precious blood of Jesus which was paid as ransom to redeem and restore Mankind’s access to the illimitable wealth of his original home, Heaven.
The scarlet hue imbedded within the debris The Word is implanted traces the eternal plan of the Creator to infiltrate the earth in order to salvage humanity from a life of bondage and the keenly coded Scriptural references and verses on the tablets represent the incorruptible law responsible for creating and upholding the culture of common-wealth created by The Blessing.
The divine plan to salvage humanity from bondage
By comprising the bridge permitting the light with text from the Old and New Covenant, “Epistle of Breath” succeeds in revealing three vital truths about THE BLESSING OF THE LORD.
Foremost, it makes it clear that The Word of God is the container in which every Blessing is transmitted.
Second, with the entire portfolio of THE BLESSING OF THE LORD irrevocably invested in Christ who is now in every Man who has acknowledged and confessed that He is Lord and his Savior, the transformation of the colony of earth to reflect the perfect nature and culture of Heaven through His children is now inevitable.
Third, with the illimitable stock of THE BLESSING invested in Christ who is now in every believer, Man is now a possessor of Heaven and earth since redemption granted him access to all that Heaven possesses and has made it possible for the colony of earth to come back under the jurisdiction of Heaven. In other words, Heaven’s will, purpose and intention can now be manifested on earth.
In addition, the carefully selected Old and New Covenant Scriptural references comprising the tablets and bridge granting light to the entire composition also represent how God’s plan of righteously dominating and replenishing the earth is in THE BLESSING, and the legal and only source of THE BLESSING is His Son and humanity's perfect sample of a true leader, Jesus.
Words are the bridge for the blessing
This therefore means that even though God has already made an irrevocable, immutable and imperishable choice to Bless the spirit specie of Man, without faith or each individual human choosing to believe, receive and confess that Jesus is Lord and his Savior, the proof and the reality and evidence of THE BLESSING OF THE LORD will remain a religious fantasy, a theological mystery and a charismatic doctrine.
However, when activated by faith, THE BLESSING OF THE LORD, as the sole power and authority who created every visible and invisible thing on earth, has the legal right to overturn, override, dislodge, annihilate, transform and change any curse replete environment to reflect the ideal culture of Heaven.
This is partially alluded to in the painting by the snow-white, burnt sienna and charcoal hues converging from the four corners of the canvas to mellifluously merge into a boundless ocean of rich, warm and utopian shades of gold at the nucleus of the composition.
It is also alluded to in two of the preparatory drawings that show God’s children traversing the earth and restoring the nations through the power of THE BLESSING (see fig 2).
Restoration of Zion X-Ray 61 | ©Nya’ 2004-2018. Seed Gallery, New York
Fig 2
The rich hues at the center of the painting also represent how wherever THE BLESSING OF THE LORD is, profit, inexplicable increase, boundless multiplication, supernatural growth and perpetual replenishment become the norm, the standard rule and common pattern.
The sackcloth covered with the rich hues are also a testimony to how THE BLESSING OF THE LORD retains the profile of every believer’s faith and the exact footprint of his obedience in order to secure the prosperity of his children and the preservation of his unborn generations.
As a material that religiously denotes shame and reproach, the sackcloth coated with resplendent hues that represent wealth and honor is also a testimony to how THE BLESSING OF THE LORD erases every stain of sorrow, regret, grief and despair mercilessly smeared on your garment of salvation and robe of righteousness by the curse prevalent in the world.
Last and not least, by subscribing words as the bridge to enlightenment, “Epistle of Breath” succeeds in asserting how the tongue is the command center of every Man’s spirit, soul and body.
In essence, a Man’s tongue determines what God does with and through him. It is the covenant-avenue or established course, path, channel and route to confess the Blessing and declare and confirm God’s promises in order to bring them to pass.
Words are the foundation for dominion
In conclusion “Epistle of Breath” also represents time as a mystery that can only be appreciated and hence maximized when THE BLESSING OF THE LORD is understood as God’s precept in creating Man and assigning him custodianship over the colony of earth.
As the viewer’s eyes travel from the right to the left side of the canvas, the coded numbers inscribed along the composition become a metaphor representing time as a numbered season granted to recreate the world of Heaven on the only planet the Creator gave humanity full rights to manifest His nature, character and culture, earth.
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