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A Torch Passed Through Unseen Hands
24" × 18"
Oil on Wood
2025
Private Collection
A young man emerges from a darkened space framed by weathered vertical forms, his gaze directed beyond the viewer toward something unseen. Suspended above him is a burning candle resting within a small metal holder, its flame casting a quiet presence over the composition. The contrast between the darkness and the fragile light creates an atmosphere of contemplation, suggesting a moment in which inherited knowledge, memory, or responsibility has become newly visible. The painting balances portraiture and symbolism, allowing the relationship between the figure and the flame to become the central focus.
Created as part of the Oracles series, the painting explores the ways identity is shaped by influences that often remain hidden from view. Throughout the collection, symbolic objects function as manifestations of cultural inheritance, memory, authority, and personal formation. Here, the candle serves as a symbol of knowledge, guidance, and continuity. Unlike a light generated independently, a candle flame is often passed from one source to another, making it a fitting metaphor for traditions, values, and lessons carried across generations.
A Torch Passed Through Unseen Hands reflects on the reality that much of who we become is shaped by people we may never fully know. Ideas, beliefs, customs, and forms of wisdom often travel through countless lives before reaching our own. The candle becomes a symbol of that inheritance, while the figure's thoughtful expression suggests an awareness of both its value and its responsibility. Through stillness and symbolism, the painting considers how every generation receives a light shaped by those who came before, and how each person ultimately decides what to preserve, transform, or pass onward.
A Torch Passed Through Unseen Hands
24" × 18"
Oil on Wood
2025
Private Collection
A young man emerges from a darkened space framed by weathered vertical forms, his gaze directed beyond the viewer toward something unseen. Suspended above him is a burning candle resting within a small metal holder, its flame casting a quiet presence over the composition. The contrast between the darkness and the fragile light creates an atmosphere of contemplation, suggesting a moment in which inherited knowledge, memory, or responsibility has become newly visible. The painting balances portraiture and symbolism, allowing the relationship between the figure and the flame to become the central focus.
Created as part of the Oracles series, the painting explores the ways identity is shaped by influences that often remain hidden from view. Throughout the collection, symbolic objects function as manifestations of cultural inheritance, memory, authority, and personal formation. Here, the candle serves as a symbol of knowledge, guidance, and continuity. Unlike a light generated independently, a candle flame is often passed from one source to another, making it a fitting metaphor for traditions, values, and lessons carried across generations.
A Torch Passed Through Unseen Hands reflects on the reality that much of who we become is shaped by people we may never fully know. Ideas, beliefs, customs, and forms of wisdom often travel through countless lives before reaching our own. The candle becomes a symbol of that inheritance, while the figure's thoughtful expression suggests an awareness of both its value and its responsibility. Through stillness and symbolism, the painting considers how every generation receives a light shaped by those who came before, and how each person ultimately decides what to preserve, transform, or pass onward.