I was lucky enough to meet local abstract painter Cedric Michael Cox at one of his exhibitions in early June of 2019 and discuss the potential of using elements from some of his paintings in stained glass windows.  I had noticed Cedric's work and taken a real interest after seeing it at Caza Sikes art gallery in October of 2018, but never really had the idea until several months after.  The vibrancy and positivity that exudes from his work drew me in and I had to be a part of it.  He was kind enough to meet me individually and gave me the permission I hoped for.

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For the first piece I chose just an element.  One of the flowers from "Spring Into Action" jumped out as a good place to start.  Advancing from an element to a whole section of a painting, I chose the dancing horses from his painting "Obatala With Crazy Horse" for the second piece.  What I liked most about this painting is the merging of abstract with real entities, with the horses in the forefront and watery formations and streaks in the background.​

 

We were both pleased with the outcome of the first two pieces.  As my collaborative efforts with Cedric increased, so did my curiosity.  For the third piece I decided to use the owl from "Soar With Knowledge".  Originally, the plan was to use the entire painting in the re-creation.  After finalizing the sketch, certain elements in the background proved difficult to represent in stained glass pieces.  Using this as an opportunity, I decided to create my own background using similar colors apparent in the original painting, while remaining true to the form and color profile of the owl.

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Since then, Cedric has made two original designs for me in "Light's Limerick" and "Rhythms on the Green", which have both been in art shows and exhibits.  Also, I decided to remove the owl from "Soar" and make it part of a whole new window.