A while back, I felt inspired to recreate a photo captured by Deepsky Balve took. It took me some courage to start and for a while I stopped because I was afraid that I would’t be able to paint the galaxy proper. But I made it and I’m really proud of how it turned out! Despite initial hesitations, I found the courage to start painting. At times, I doubted my ability to depict the galaxy accurately which took some time (and another test on an empty canvas). In the end I’m thrilled with the final result.

This celestial piece features the Holm 124 galaxy group nestled in the Great Bear constellation. Noteworthy members include NGC2805 (prominent in the lower corner), NGC2814 (a smaller one next to the bright star at the top left), and NGC2820 (elongated and positioned at the top left) with its companion dwarf galaxy IC2458 at the bottom that completes the ensemble. Discovered by Herschel in 1791, these cosmic wonders reside at a distance of 72 – 81 million light years from Earth.