A British artist has been commissioned by an American film director to recreate a historic painting for her latest film.
Claire Eastgate from Shropshire was asked by Katherine Brooks to recreate Archangel Michael by Guido Reni in 1633 for the film
Confidential, which starts filming shortly.
“I didn't know Katherine,” explains Claire, who had to complete the painting in under three weeks. “I was forwarded a tweet from her on New Year’s day. She was looking for an artist to paint a depiction of Archangel Michael. It's a painting I really like so I thought it might be worth a shot and wrote to her directly at her company, Big Easy Pictures based in New Orleans. I described my work and my latest project which has a theme on angels and mythology. She replied very quickly saying that she loved my work and would be honoured if I would do it.”
Katherine sent Claire the script, which provided more information about the character in the film to whom the painting meant so much. “It’s always important when creating a piece of work to know who it is for and why. The painting will hang in the main character 'Evan's' house. There is no direct reference in the script, although it was a rough draft at the time, but I think the character sees it as a focus of strength at a difficult time in her life. It's also interesting that Katherine has the same image tattooed on her arm, which gives an idea of the importance of this to her.”
Claire adds: “We know the painting is of Archangel Michael killing Satan. Archangel Michael is one of the main Archangel's alongside Archangel Gabriel. Whereas Gabriel is the messenger, Michael is the protector. The original painting by Guido Reni is a guiding light for some people looking for strength, faith and protection. It is one of Reni's greatest works and a beautiful painting. The original is in Rome.
“They're due to start filming in the next week or so in New Orleans and Thailand. I believe Erin Kelly (best known for her role as Annabelle Tillman in Katherine Brooks' 2006 film Loving Annabelle) is taking the lead.
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