Wings of Protection

For more than a century, the Guardian Angel, painted by H. Zabateri (c.1918), offered comfort to millions of Christians around the world. The original image was produced as a postcard in color by Lindberg Press. Hundreds of artists throughout the years have created their own versions of the guardian angel, but its story has been silent for decades. It’s too dear to lose, so I decided to paint my own version.
The angel, I imagined, would be in motion, actively protecting the children before they are aware they need her. I envisioned placing the angel under the bridge, but what could balance an empty sky?
A dove. The Spirit. The glow from the spirit could shine over the entire painting.
As I sketched different options, I realized that if I added a fourth element (to the spirit, children, and angel), I could create a circle; a powerful shape that has no end. A rugged cross, shaped from a fence post, was perfect.
The angel in my design raises a bouquet of white heather (the flower of protection) to the children. Her other hand directs us to the cross while filling the gap in the bridge. Her wings protect both sides of the bridge and the waters beneath the angel are calm.
This was the first painting I completed in my new studio on a mountaintop in the Appalachian Mountains. In researching this original painting from 1918, I was amazed to discover that the rushing waters and forest of the Appalachians was the inspiration for this German painter.
Today, more than a century later, the image of the guardian angel demonstrating God’s perfect love and timing, is alive again.

Reproduced from the artists original artwork of pastel on paper.

Kathryn Fincher creates meaningful artwork that moves the soul. She is renowned for her paintings of children in the style of Norman Rockwell. Classically trained, her attention to detail and lighting are the source for many international awards and collections. Kathy’s paintings of children were deemed a national treasure when she received a Grammy Award for the Visual Arts by the Save the Arts Foundation.  Her painting, The Dream Keepers, was introduced in the Oval Office and later inducted into the permanent collection of the Presidential Library of G.W. Bush. Based on the painting, Fincher designed The Dream Keepers 911 Memorial, the largest children’s memorial featuring seven children restoring the American Dream by shaping the flag with their handprints.

Her most notable work to date is an 8’ bronze monument of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr; I’ve Been to the Mountaintop. Commissioned for Peace Park in Atlanta, Georgia by the National Monuments Foundation.  The grand scale work was unveiled in 2023 as the only monument of MLK talking to God.

Fincher’s hope is that the stories in her artwork will turn the viewer to their own children and realize they are gifts from above. Havenlight is proud to release from the personal archives of Kathryn Andrews Fincher, the spirit of childhood through one of America’s favorite children’s painters.

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