theartofmichaelwhelan:

THE GLOAMING (1994) by Michael Whelan

Oils on canvas - 48” x 36”

I actually saw these clouds from my backyard late one summer evening, and they inspired me to come right inside and paint the scene. They didn’t look entirely real when I saw them, and the mysterious quality of the light made me want to document them in a larger project. As an experiment, I used a homemade medium that included plenty of poppyseed oil, for its non-yellowing properties. It’s also an extremely slow drier—it must have taken four weeks for the painting to dry to the touch.

theartofmichaelwhelan:

ORBIS SCIENTIARUM (1997) by Michael Whelan

Acrylic on Panel - 24” x 36”

It is frequently assumed that if we try hard enough, there are no limits to our understanding of the universe. As wonderful a thing as the human brain is, there is a finite number of neurons and synapses available to store information and inform decisions, just as we have a certain set of perceptual tools at our disposal (sight, hearing, taste, etc.).

For example, we have no foundation in which to understand the electromagnetic sense perceptions of certain aquatic animals, because we have no analogous organs of our own. So there are limits to everything human, and that includes intelligence and the ability to understand. We may be as incapable of a deep understanding of the universe as dogs are of algebra, but we’ll undoubtedly keep trying.