Best of 2017

It all started to come together for me in 2017. I began the year by discovering a new voice with abstract landscapes. I also had many challenging commissions and plein air adventures. Here are my top paintings and self-awards for 2017:

From the top left:

Most Groundbreaking Painting: Winter Wandering - Too cold to paint plein air, I took a walk and came back to the studio to paint an impression of a frosty January day. This painting began my journey in a new direction in abstract painting. This was my first painting of 2017.

Most Compliments Yet Not Sold: Silent Sentinels - This new landscape abstract received the most "I love this one" while no one has yet decided to actually make a purchase. It is available here: https://www.mikemoyersfineart.com/product-page/silent-sentinels

Painting Of The Year: Psalm 23 - My personal favorite creation of 2017.

Most Famous Buyer: Evenfall - This little plein air from Radnor Lake was purchased at a show by a well know local news anchor. 

Best Commission: Come to the Table: I'm most proud of this commission for First Presbyterian Church, Franklin. It is a conceptual piece depicting themes of hospitality, community and grace. It hangs in the church lobby near the front door.

Most Challenging Plein Air Painting: Beacons or Resilience - I'm so pleased with how well this one turned out. It was painted on the Michigan coast in March. The temp was 30f with blistering 15mph gusts of wind. My brother-in-law kept my easel from blowing away as I painted.

Most Experimental: Daily Prayer 3- I was pleased how nicely my daily prayer acrylics on paper turned out. It was a great exercise. I hope to do more of these in the future.

Most Put Together: Wait for the Lord - This painting combines the best of organic abstraction with theological conceptualism.

Most Recent and Most Fun to Paint: For Unto Us A Child Is Born - The last posted painting of 2017. I had a lot of fun painting abstract expressions of the music of Handel's Messiah this past month. This one was my favorite of the bunch.


A BIG THANK YOU to all of you who have supported me this past year. I thank you for your patronage, your encouragement and your wisdom. I look forward to creating more great things for you to enjoy in the year to come.

I invite you to take a look back over my posts from this past year. 
Which ones are your favorites?

For Unto Us A Child Is Born

12"x12"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

SOLD

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
For Unto Us  A Child Is Born

For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government
Shall be upon His shoulder; and his name shall be called Wonderful,
Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
(Isaiah 9:6)

The People That Walked In Darkness Have seen A Great Light

8"x10"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

Click Here To Purchase

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
The People That Walked In Darkness Have seen A Great Light

The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light, and they that
Dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
(Isaiah 9:2)

O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings To Zion

8"x10"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

Click Here To Purchase

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings To Zion

O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion,
get thee up into the high mountain:
O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem,
lift up thy voice with strength;
lift it up, be not afraid;
say unto the cities of Judah,
Behold you God!
Arise, shine, for thy light is come,
and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

And He Shall Purify

8"x10"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

SOLD

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
And He Shall Purify

And He shall purify the sons of Levi, 
That they may offer unto the Lord an
Offering in righteousness.
(Malachi 3:3)

But Who May Abide

5"x7"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

Click Here To Purchase

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
But Who May Abide

But who may abide the day of His coming, 
and who shall stand when He appeareth? 
For He is like a refiner's fire. 
(Malachi 3:2)

I Will Shake All Nations

5"x7"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

SOLD

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
Thus Saith The Lord

Thus saith the Lord of Hosts:
-Yet once a little while and I will shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land;
And I will shake all nations;
And the desire of all nations shall come.
The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple,
Even the messenger of the covenant,
Whom ye delight in:
Behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of Hosts.

And The Glory Of The Lord

12"x12"
Oil on Canvas

with Palette Knife

Click Here To Purchase

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
And The Glory Of The Lord

And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it
Together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
(Isaiah 40:5)

Every Valley Shall Be Exalted

5"x7"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

Click Here To Purchase

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
Every Valley Shall Be Exalted

Every valley shall be exalted,
And every mountain and hill made low,
The crooked straight and the rough places plain. 
(Isaiah 40:4)

Comfort Ye, My People

6"x6"
Oil on Panel

with Palette Knife

Click Here To Purchase

An Abstract Expression from Handel's Messiah
Comfort Ye, My People

Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith your God. 
Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, 
That her warfare is accomplished, 
That her Iniquity is pardoned. 
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness
Prepare ye the way of the Lord. 
Make straight in the desert a highway 
For our God. 
(Isaiah 40:1-3)

Wait for the Lord

One of the greatest gifts the season of Advent gives to the church is the gift of waiting. As our attention spans shrink and our cravings for instant gratification grow, the more we need waiting space in our lives. Waiting is a gift that fills us with blessings. Waiting blesses us with hope, wonder, patience and self-control.

This year’s Advent art is an abstract depiction of a dawning morning. It is that moment when the sky glows in soft, low light, but the sun has not yet revealed itself over the horizon. That’s how if feel about waiting for God to act in my life. I feel like I’m never alone, but rather surrounded by God’s presence like dimmed, soft, pre-dawn light. I wait for a fully revealed sunrise over the horizon. The metaphor is also quite true for Christian Advent waiting. We live in the pre-dawn light of Emmanuel while we wait for the full light of Christ’s return.

Accept the gift of waiting this season. Let us slow our rhythms for a fuller experience of time and discernment. Let us enjoy the gifts of wonder, hope and patience. Let us walk towards the horizon in the soft, dim light. God is faithful and will answer our prayers. And sooner or later, the day will come.