I can't believe that it's finally here, but this Friday is the Opening Reception for my BFA Photography Exhibit,
Pearls of Widsom : LDS Women of Faith.
It's this Friday, April 10th, 6-8pm in Gallery 303 in the Harris Fine Art Center on the BYU Campus in Provo.
There are other wonderful artists that showing in the same space so it will be a lot of fun and a lot of wonderful pieces to see. Plus there will be food. :)
This is a very special project for me and I'd love to share it with others, It would me some much to have you come out and experience these images with me on friday. I hope you'll be able to come.
I have been working on this project from aobut a year, but it's an idea that has been on my mind since I returned from my mission in 2006. It's wonderful to see it come to fruition.
Here is the artist statement to entice you to come and see the show:
In our current culture there has been a shift in core values and they way we view maternal caregivers. There is a greater emphasis and value placed on those who have achieved great academic and professional success, than on those who have focused all their energies on raising a family. But this is a false idea.
So often we fail to see these women for what they truly are because they get lost and overshadowed in the context of their families, hidden behind laundry and dishes. But the spiritual strength and great wisdom these LDS women have gained through their roles as mothers and caregivers, while living the principles of the restored gospel, rivals and surpasses any knowledge gained through secular learning. They are like the stealth soldiers of light, working in vitals ways to build their families and the kingdom of heaven on earth.
Pearls are the only gemstones that are created within a living organism. When a foreign substance enters the shell it irritates the flesh of the oyster, so it begins to build up layers of nacre around it, thus forming a pearl. Much like oysters, these women have been handed obstacles and tribulations in their lives, but through faith, sacrifice, selfless service , and charity, they have coated them with love and transformed their difficulties and themselves into precious things of great worth and beauty.
Their wise words have the power to heal the heart and lift a soul, in a way that could never be equaled or even approached by any scientific formula or dissertation. Their wisdom did not come from scholarly books or scientific training, but rather by living a life, with all the ups and downs, founded on faith, hope, love, sacrifice, and a testimony of the Atonement Jesus Christ and his restored gospel. It is this wisdom that is shared from mother to child, sister to friend, and from one daughter of God to another.
In the eyes of these women, shines the light of divinity we are all reaching for.
A special thanks to all the amazing women who participated in this project, to my wonderful parents, my professor Paul Adams, the staff at Gallery 303, and my sweet sweet husband Skyler.
Here are some driving directions:
-from I-15 take exit 269 University Parkway head east into Provo
-Turn right onto 450 East by BYU and continue on 1230 north
-at first traffic light turn left onto Campus Drive
-Park in Museum of Art parking lot.
-the Harris fine art center building is the one just south of the museum.
-Gallery 303 is on the main floor in the southeast corner.
HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL THERE!!
** A special thanks to my lighting crew- sky and kenzee you guys are the best- and also the helpful Gallery 303 staff.
