Angels-LAKEY, ANDY

Artist and humanitarian Andy Lakey became a painter of angels following
a miraculous near-death experience in 1986. Divinely inspired,
Lakey, who had no prior knowledge of artwork or painting, believed
he was given the insight into his purpose on earth. Subsequently he
vowed to create 2,000 original angel paintings between the years 1990
and 2000.
Lakey’s unique style involves a complex painting process that produces
high levels of thickness on wood, which creates raised lines that
are then washed with shimmering colors to create a highly luminous,
intricately woven surface. This innovative style is called “Sensualism.”
Beyond the apparent visual quality, Lakey’s work is especially designed
to be tactily enjoyed, especially by those who are visually impaired.
All of Lakey’s pieces, which are numbered, share a universal, spiritual
quality. His angelic beings embody rounded, soft shapes that exist
in fields of circular energy. Some have interpreted the orbs of light as
suns, however the artist is loathe to specifically attribute a particular
meaning. They could be suns or planets, says Lakey. Whatever the
definitive interpretation it is clear that the message invoked is one of
love, peace, and hope. This divine sense is summed up by Lakey who
explains, “When I began painting, I could feel that the inspiration
came from deep within my heart and soul, from the angels themselves.
It’s still the same today—I feel a power come out of me. It’s as though I
am tapping into the universe.”
Along with the healing powers that his paintings offer to the
world, Lakey also gives of himself through charitable contributions.
Some of the charities he has benefitted are those that help the visually
impaired, children, and battered women. Often those who acquire
Lakey’s paintings donate them to favorite charities. Among the more
well-known of his clients have been Peter Jennings, Ed Asner,
Princess Margaret, and former president Jimmy Carter. Lakey’s paintings
may be seen on the walls of many hospitals, clinics, and centers
for the blind. His paintings also hang in the Vatican, the Riverside
Art Museum, in the homes of Stevie Wonder, Gloria Estefan, and the
late Ray Charles, Dudley Moore, and Prince Albert of Monaco, and in
more than nineteen galleries throughout the United States.
Eileen Freeman, author of Touched by Angels, says of Andy
Lakey’s work, “His art enables me to feel the inherent power and energy
of the angels, their single-mindedness and devotion, without mixing
up irrelevant concepts like sex, race, age, culture, and all those
other human characteristics we must get past in order to appreciate
other representations of angels.”