SKYCHILD’S FALL (2006) by Michael Whelan

A trip to Australia in 1992 inspired several of Michael’s paintings. Specifically the orange textured stone of Ayers rock shows prominently in WING (1992) and WAYFARER & THE EVENING STAR (1997).

But here we have Michael diving deeper into that setting with his inclusion of the aboriginal people of Australia and a beautiful representation of their art rendered on that same orange stone.

I always thought this was a personal work, but Michael explained that it was actually a commissioned piece. A Japanese company had different illustrators depict native legends for a calendar.