Gnome Door

This project was inspired by the way my mom nurtured my imagination as a child. I painted pictures on a door that she placed along the baseboards under the stairway, where she told me there were gnomes hiding behind it. I always tried to open the door to see the gnomes. This door is a direct reflection of my childhood, and I consider it more of an old toy than a decoration.

My first step in this project was to clean the door and sand it lightly. I used oil paint to stain parts of the wood. After that, I applied acrylic paint to the window panes and the door itself, choosing a color other than green. I painted the face using acrylic, and I used gold paint to cover the hardware, hinges, and some sections of the wood. I created my designs with acrylic and paint markers, finishing with some gold leaf for a final touch.

While rummaging through my attic for inspiration, I came across dust from my little gnome door collection. I drew inspiration from biblical art and liked the shape of the door as my canvas; it reminds me of a portrait of Mary Magdalene that I have in my bedroom. The face in this work represents creativity and curiosity, while also alluding to the divine feminine and various biblical art references.