This painting is based on a mausoleum sculpture in the Tikhvin Cemetery in St. Petersburg, Russia (the same cemetery where Tchaikovsky is buried). In spite of the dark background and feel of the picture, there is hope, represented by the shaft of light falling softly from above. I tried to evoke a feeling of dark warmth and peace and used a new technique involving craft glue and texture paste. I mixed ultramarine blue and burnt umber to get the blacks, with slightly more burnt umber to give the piece a warmer feel.