St. Nicholas of Myra has always been one of my favorite saints--I find every story of him to be absolutely enthralling. Somehow, St. Nicholas is a patron of almost anything: brewers, picklers, coopers, children, orphans, peaches, just to name a few. The original St. Nicholas was a 4th century saint who died shortly after the council of Nicaea in the 330s. He was known for his humility and generosity: legend goes that he was an orphan himself, and when his parents left him a rather large fortune, he generously distributed it to the poor and needy. Another legend states that he publicly punched the heretic Arius at the council of Nicaea, which is why I decided to give him bruised knuckles in this picture. St. Nicholas was more than a jolly, laughing saint who stuffed himself on cake and loved children. He was a brutally pious man who fasted even from his infancy, who calmed storms by his prayers, who resurrected three children from a pickle barrel, and who publicly and physically retaliated against the dangers of heresy. This piece is an original fountain pen drawing from my portfolio. I used five different inks to create this piece, and over 20 hours were spent on the final product. My favorite detail is the use of Jacques Herbin's "Emerald of Chivor" as the bluish-green ink: in certain places, and even in St. Nick's eyes, the green ink will shimmer with red when held in the light. The image itself is 8x10 inches, and the whole paper is 8x10. There is a smudge on the top border of the margin that will be easily covered by a matte; otherwise I am happy to cut off the margins.
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