Relief Society 170th Anniversery Artwork

 We were given a challenge by our Stake Relief Society leaders to create a work of art to commemorate the 170th anniversary or the Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. So I chose to quill a project. It was inspired by the Relief Society medallion with a few choice embellishments. I am very proud of this and I hope that people will enjoy it for years to come. Wherever it ends up. (Our Stake Relief Society President wouldn't give it back and said she was going to send it to Salt Lake to enter it in a Church wide art contest. Wow!)

 The forget-me-not flowers are based on a talk given by one of the general leaders of our Church, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, which was beautiful and inspiring. He wanted all women to remember that we are all daughters of a loving Heavenly Father and we are here with a purpose. Here is the talk link if you would like to read it.

Forget Me Not, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency

The picture of the temple symbolizes how important families are and thus how important the role of women is in the family. Families can be together forever. We, as women, are the glue and mortar for our families here on earth. We have a great responsibility and to raise God's special spirits and teach them of their divine heritage.

The bee and beehive represent how women working together can bring about a marvelous work among the children of man. Together we can inspire, teach, create and nourish our families and our communities. What an honor it is to be a woman in the world at this time.

The needle and thread represent service. We serve one another. We love one another. This type of service bring us closer together and most importantly bring us closer to God.

This is based on the actual center of the Relief Society medallion. You can guess what the "R" and "S" stand for. The Relief Society was created to organize the sisters of the early Church in their service and other pursuits. It is the longest running women's organization in the world. Whose motto is "Charity Never Faileth."  I am proud to be a member of such a wonderful and uplifting organization.

There is more symbolism in this piece than I have recorded and I bet you all are sick of reading about it so I'll stop here. I have a lot of passion for my faith and for this organization and all of the beautiful women I have come to know through it. So thank you for your patience.

I started work on this project in June and completed work on it on September 29, 2012. It was a joy to work on because I wanted to express my love and appreciation for the Relief Society in my life.

 
Not all of the work was easy. I had to remake the "RS" and the temple a few times because my almost two year old ripped them to pieces trying to "help" me. This picture is not complete. I made a torch that is at the center of the sun after I took these pictures. The beveled frame is made with the pattern from Inna's website. Thank you Inna for all of your posts and tutorials.

The final piece was 12" X 12" and with the frame ended up a little over 13" X 13".

Thank you all for looking and I hope you were inspired and create your own works of art.