The Making of Insight #3

I was asked how the fractal-based image "Insight #3" was made so I will reconstruct that the best I can here.  I created it in Dec 2005 but I think I can still see where it came from.

There are several fractals involved which were placed on layers in PaintShopPro:

This is one fractal I had named the Crown of Glory.

Behind this I placed one I called Epiphany2:

These I blended together about 50-50 using transparency in Paint Shop Pro.  I am not sure about the fractal programs I was using but thing they may have been Vchira or Tierazon or both.   Then I had constructed a 3D model of a knife with a particular shape I wanted for use in another painting.  Below is the end result of that effort:

There is a lot I could say about the design of this knife but I will try to restrain myself.  The intertwined snakes were created using Spiralizer at least for their body.  I designed the heads in a modeling program and I forget which one.  The snakes relate to the same thing referenced by the snakes of Hermes on the caduceus and can relate to a variety of mystical and esoteric things.  I had some particular things in mind. 

The guard above the handle that protrudes forward was designed to be in the form of the Hebrew letter Kaph which is tied to the 10th major arcana of the Tarot (the Wheel of Fortune) and has the the letter has the meaning in Hebrew to grasp with the hand and is considered by some to represent a cupped hand extended to receive something.  This guard was created probably in Hamapatch.  The forms were placed together in Blender where the blade and the sphere at the bottom were created and attached and all received their textures.  This was rendered and became the top layer of the print.   It was made transparent around the object so that it overlay the fractals.  Of course I did some stretching and editing etc.  All the programs referenced are freeware except for PaintShopPro.

For reference, here is the end result: