Initially this title was inspired by our new life, our baby daughter had arrived and we were looking for a house to buy. We found a place in Whanganui.

Once we started moving into our new suburban home the purpose of the third bedroom was becoming increasingly unclear. The potential of this modest room seemed limitless.

I took the title from some prose by William Blake…. ‘In the third chamber was an Eagle with wings and feathers of air, he caused the inside of the cave to be infinite.’ This painting came to encapsulate my state of mind on the cusp of entering this new phase of life, (although I’ve worked on it, on an off for years) with memories of Prague and Mangawhai, the pride and responsibility my wife and I share and the joy and optimism that being a parent brought.

Often in painting I include whatever is in flower during the painting of the piece, in this case Bird of Paradise, in our garden in Whanganui, doing this helps me to keep the mood of a painting stable and in season. The angels are taken from sketches made in the Prague Museum.