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In The Light is part of my series, "Issues of Our Time." It is based on the architecture of the Mosque of the Sokollu Mehmet Pasha in Istanbul, and is a statement about inter-faith peace.

I was in Istanbul with friends on September 11, 2001. We were due to see this little gem by the architect Sinan the next day. Still devastated, we asked to climb upstairs in the empty mosque, and each of us meditated or prayed in his/her own way.

As it happened, the three were Jewish, Christian, and Muslim; the experience was nourishing, and I began to think about the way this made a statement about what is possible in the world.

The Christian Church of Hagia Sophia, built by Justinian when the city was Constantinople, was the model for the mosques that were built after the Ottoman conquest. Under the Ottomans, Jews were welcome and flourished, taking their architectural style for Synagogues from the local practice.

So the little mosque in the painting could have housed any of the three religions, except that the location of the Mihrab would differ a few degrees from that of a sanctuary.

In the painting, light streams in through the windows, and in the lower interior the symbols of the three faiths are united in the light.

This is acrylic on stretched canvas. The framed dimensions are 32 (h) x 27 (w) inches. The shadow frame cuts off none of the painting, as other frames do.

The painting is signed and dated on the back. I send a letter of provenance which increases the value of the work. All my artwork is copyrighted by Eleanor Gilpatrick. Copyright is nontransferable through the purchase of artwork. Free shipping in the United States.