There are four major Archangels in Western angel lore. Raphael is one of them and he is known as the Angel of Healing, hence my associating him with Biotechnology. He is holding a model of the DNA molecule. The ornamentation of his coat, and the elaborate border, is filled with designs based on cells, genes, micro-organisms, and proteins. I overloaded these angel portraits with symbolism, some of it from the "standardized" 20th-century archangel protocols. Raphael is associated with the element of Air, hence the wings and the clouds. He is also connected with the primary color yellow, and the morning. I gave Raphael a "European" look, just as I made Michael Chinese, because I want my angels to be global.
Raphael is acrylic on hardboard, 11" x 14", summer 1996.
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