“There is a place, Our God creates – A wondrous Garden of Prayer.

And there He’ll wait, Beside the gate, For those who’ll meet Him there.”

I feel like this painting has been with me all my life. I am drawn to it. For some reason, it was now that I was called to put it on canvas. The seven pools were not calculated, they just happened. Perhaps in a garden we are closer to our creator. We certainly are closer to His creation.

My prayer is that this painted garden will be a meeting place for many that would speak to their God in the silence of morning. Or the silence of evening if you prefer. Or anytime in between. In our imagination we might picture His presence at our side. Or is it just imagination? Do we see in the distance a gentle visitor approaching the gate?

All of us, I believe, carry a memory of Eden. Life began in that garden, and for me, many of the good things in life are still to be found in gardens. I would even say that, much as I love a manor house, I am best pleased by the extensive gardens that wreathe these stately homes in natural splendor. When I came upon the blooming Spring Gate, I accepted its invitation to explore – partly to satisfy a secret longing for the splendid gardens I expected to discover within. And, since this is a locale of the imagination, I haven’t been disappointed. The Gardens Beyond Spring Gate are as sumptuous and satisfying as I can make them.

Gardens Beyond Spring Gate is the third in my Spring Gate Collection that illustrates my belief that gardens are truly the loveliest imaginable settings for a civilized life. The manor house, as grand and imposing as it is, serves as a gateway to this marvelous garden. Imagine taking tea at the gem-bright reflecting pool, while the perfume of blossoms washes over you and the rustling breeze in the dogwood trees mingle with the twinkling of falling water in the fountain. Now that is my idea of a visit to Eden.

Though the glowing windows and smoking chimneys of the house create an inviting setting, the overwhelming beauty of the gardens draws you in to explore every nook. Once you have entered, the gentle fragrant breezes and the calming trickle of water will keep you wandering endlessly. What could possibly be closer to paradise? By the way, as a tribute to my recently celebrated 40th birthday, I’ve hidden forty N’s within this painting. Perhaps you can enjoy a cup of tea in this imaginary garden as you search for them!

“A crumbling bridge, this Bridge of Faith, and often without strength.

But look below, and then you’ll know, the Rock that lies beneath” ~ Thomas Kinkade

For me, the world is enriched by images of faith. In the Garden of Promise Collection, I look deep into myself for those moments of revelation, of joyous acceptance, that comprise our common spiritual experience. Then I look out into the world to find visual images that reflect the truths of my walk with God. Bridge of Faith speaks to those moments of tribulation, when we reach the end of our rope and know that our personal resources won’t see us through the crisis. At such times, I rely on my faith and find that God truly is my shield and salvation.

As the Painter of Light, is has been my personal goal that each of my paintings become a tool to communicate a message that represents hope, joy, peace, and tranquility. The Bridge of Faith is old and worn, but it is built of stone and it rests on a massive, unshakable rock. It crosses a stream fragrant with flowers; on our side the world is shrouded in shadow, but in the distance there shines a heavenly light. Here I hope to convey the sense of how marvelous nature can be, when the radiant light of God casts its warm glow – His “Heavenly Light” –  how crossing one worn stone bridge can transport us from darkness to God’s radiant light that lies ahead.

I believe that the cross of Jesus was made from dogwood, and so I symbolize God’s love for us in the pink dogwood tree and symbolize God’s hope and promise of Heaven in the white dogwood tree found in Bridge of Faith. The bridge leads us across a stream of living water and from darkness to light with a shaky handrail to guide, but you will find it is a very sturdy bridge if you keep your eyes on “God’s Heavenly Light,” as it will lead you around the bend and all the way back Home.

No one ever forgets their first visit to Yankee Stadium – I certainly remember mine. The color, the noise, and the nearness of history… the spectacle takes your breath away.

And now, in 2008, the greatest cathedral to the game of baseball, is about to close its doors forever. I could not let such a historic moment pass without honoring it in my way. And so, Yankee Stadium. This is the original Yankee Stadium – the house that Ruth built – with its cavernous center field and its statues to the immortal Bronx Bombers. A colorful crowd packs the stands, and the Yankees of yore take the field.

Because this is a distant view, you can people the field with Yankee heroes of your choosing. Could that be Lou Gehrig on first base? Babe Ruth in right field? Joe DiMaggio patrolling center? Or maybe it’s Mickey Mantle in center and Roger Maris in right. It could even be contemporaries – Derek Jeter at short and A-Rod at third. For eighty-five years, some of the greatest players in the game have called Yankee Stadium home. Now you can bring this Field of Dreams into your home.

San Francisco has been a favorite of mine for a very long time. When I was small boy, the City by the Bay was the city for me – my visits here taught me what big city life was all about. I was captivated by its color, its energy, the bustle of its crowed streets, its breathtaking vistas. I still am. So I return time and again to enjoy old haunts and explore new ones.

There are so many intriguing nooks and crannies in this exotic town; there are also stunning spectacles that simply take my breath away. San Francisco, Lombard Street celebrates one of the latter – a sweeping panorama that takes in city, bridges, and bay. Proclaimed “the crookedest street in the world,” Lombard Street plunges through a profusion of flowers and romantic old homes down to the bay. Treasure Island, built as the largest manmade island in the world for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition, extends across the distant bay, and the sweeping spans of the Bay Bridge whose completion was the inspiration for the fair, lies just beyond.

This is a golden evening; the warm glow of sunset banishes the mist and paints the busy street with its cheerful light. The exuberance of city life is everywhere evident. On Lombard Street, on an evening such as this, life is a gala celebration of the endless possibilities of city life. I invite you to celebrate with me.

“On that day of days, Heaven and Earth reflect His glory…”

You many not imagine that Earth can ever take on the radiant hues of sunset, but I have often seen the snow upon the land radiating the rosy glow of evening. Therein lay the inspiration for Village Christmas, the eight painting in my decade long Christmas Cottage Collection.

Christmas is my favorite time of year. The artist side of me is drawn to the lights and visual elements of the season. In Village Christmas I have tried to capture a Christmas of a simpler time – where street lamps glow with the warm light of a natural flame and the townsfolk use a leisurely stroll to church as the opportunity to stop and chat about this joyous season.

How appropriate that on the eve of Christmas, the sky, ground, trees, rooftops, all are touched with luminous light. This is a village from yesteryear, where horse-drawn carriages share the street with Model A Fords – the kind of quaint Christmas village of which I’m sure everyone dreams. But even in our peaceful yesterdays, holiday time was filled with a bustling energy of activities and family traditions.

We can wonder whether the villagers – hurrying off to the distant church or shops along main street – take time to savor the wondrous light show God has provided. We hope that the family living in the Christmas cottage near at hand will look through the window to see the regal snowman bathed in a light divine.

Spring, with its perfumed breezes and lavish bouquets of new flowers, is the season of romance. In spring, the song of new life fills the air and thrills our hearts. Every blooming gate promises to lead us into a paradise where love and peace prevail.

In Beyond Spring Gate, the second in my Spring Gate Collection, I tried to fulfill that promise by leading my collectors to a vernal paradise. Here is an opulent display of flowers and pristine stream that reminds me of Eden. An ancient Gothic stone bridge urges us on the regal, yet warm and welcoming manor house. In romantic Old England, when walking tours were all the vogue, the poet Wordsworth often stopped to accent the hospitality of country house. At such a retreat as this, refreshed and inspired, he may have penned the immortal lines of Tintern Abbey.

Certainly, the poet in all of us takes comfort in a delightful haven of rest like the cozy gazebo here. As I pause to let the spirit of the season wash over me, I’m seized by an impulse to explore the fabulous gardens that lie beyond the great house. That’s just what we’ll do in the third Spring Gate Collection image, which is coming to reward the romantic in all of us.

The Autumn Gate has become one of my most enduringly popular paintings. You may remember that I’ve imaginatively traveled through that gate to discover a splendid house and garden beyond. But even that artistic journey has not exhausted my fascination with the inviting mystery of gates.

I’m returning to the subject – in a new season – with Spring Gate. This heroically-sized painting launches a new series that promises to follow our familiar path to reveal the glories of the season of rebirth.

I have portrayed a massive wrought iron gate framed by overgrown, weathered, crumbling stone pillars that suggest the rich human history of the grounds beyond. It’s spring, and nature rejoices at its rejuvenation of springtime flora with a lavish abundance of flowers. The rainbow of spring colors is made up of delphinium, hollyhocks and climbing roses. What a lovely and fragrant spring bouquet.