Imagination, by Sheila

"WOLVES IN THE DREAMCATCHER" is about the Indian legend that the dreamcatcher is hung inside the tipi to catch any bad dreams coming in to harass the sleeping people. This is a fantasy of an Indian warrior standing on the rim of a dreamcatcher to stop a dream of a pack of giant wolves . 

"THE DRAGON OF GROSS VANITY"   24"x36" oil on canvasboard.

   The vanity dragon is a very great dragon indeed.  Some believe that fame and expensive things are what make them important.   But only God can save the soul and give eternal life. People sense value and strength when they feel the love that God has for them.  You never need to feel like a nothing and a nobody when you know what Jesus does for you.  Warriors, like those shown above, face the dragon of vanity. With swords of truth they pierce the illusion that fame and possessions are the measure of self worth.

"Baby Dragon Eating Cherries" 

"THE WHALE CHASE"  24"x 36" oil on canvasboard. Fantasy art in the Pacific Coast Indian style.

"PRIMAL MOTHER"  18 x 24 oil on canvasboard.

  THE MEANING OF DRAGONS IN ART,  from Art by Ashlin

    The Bible is full of symbolism, allegory, and parable, as you know, and it says that Jesus spoke to the people mainly through parable.  This is because  human minds need pictures to form a bridge between their own experience and spiritual experience.  When Jesus describes the sower casting seed in the field, everyone can see in the mind's eye a picture of a farmer with a bag of seed, throwing handfuls around on the ground.  In Bible times actual artworks were not easy to print and distribute; and so, word pictures were the only way of illustration.  As printing became better, more art was used for illustration of the Bible themes.     The Bible uses the  dragon,  or serpent, as an illustration to tell of the danger and poison of  a sinful life.  The dragon is mentioned over six times in the scriptures to represent Satan; and so, artists have endeavored to present what such a creature could look like.  In the interum, much of the spiritual meaning has been lost and people enjoy looking at dragon pictures  just as fabulous creative art. Sheila Tibb's goal is to bring back the original purpose of illustrating the dragon, and the warrior-men and warrior-women who challenge him through the power of God.      Job 40:15 describes a monster called Behemoth.       Job 41 is a whole chapter describing Leviathan, which is often thought to be a sea monster, but is more descriptive of a fire-breathing dragon with impenetrable scales, that strikes fear in the greatest of warriors..          Ephesians 6 describes our need to put on the whole armour of God, take up the sword of truth, and do battle with the powers of darkness.       Sister White describes the serpent as one of the most beautiful and intelligent of God's creatures in the Garden.  She mentions it had wings which flashed golden as it flew among the trees. It was probably more gorgeous than a peacock. A very deceptive creature it became when Satan took on its form to craft his evil plans. . The eyes were most charming and hypnotic with cunning.   He was both fascinating and terrible to look upon after God cursed him.       Down through history, story tellers have expanded on the attributes of the dragon and how the various parts have meaning in a spiritual sense.       The wings have come to  represent how a word of gossip or superstition can take to the air and fly over all the villages in the area.       The eyes symbolize how the dragon can hypnotize you into believing his lies, like a lover does to his girlfriend.  

     The tail with the stinger represents how you can deny that which you are most afraid,  or guilty, while it comes up behind you to inject you with its poison.

    The flames of its breath represent how the dragon knocks you over with panic or rage when you first hear some bad news about yourself. As a  warrior on your horse, you get burned and knocked over by the heat. The horse, or any animal you ride into battle, represents your energetic spirit to face evils that come. But the first thing  the dragon tries to do is hit you both with an overwhelming  blast of fire. You're paralyzed with shock .
     But you can get up and feed your horse a piece of orange, which is a symbol of the bright, orange sun which casts light into darkness. Your horse  will revive (which means that you enlighten yourself about your problem by reading or counciling  to renew your fighting spirit.