For the 'Epiphany!' challenge, and yes---this is the first thing that came to mind when I thought of the word... I have quite the interesting thought procress, don't I?

I consider the rose to be the epiphany, and skull is the barrier that it's growing out of.

Uh yeah, symbolism, FTW?

Multiple picture references for the skull were used, including images from some old medical books that were laying around. I hope you enjoy this, and I wish everyone else who's participating in the contest all the luck in the world. C:

Program used: Gimp 2.6

Title sorta fits the image, and is also the title of the song I was listening to while I working on this... (Set me Free by Jam & Spoon)

I love the color red so much. <33