Read the story behind the art. Read below to learn the story behind this piece.
My favorite thing about Derius's artwork was the way he wove a verse from Ephesians through his piece. The motto he added was "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes." Learn about how we incorporated this verse and other ideas in the art.
Derius reached out to me in July with an intriguing idea for an artwork: create a piece that connects to his and his wife's southern African American ancestry and also expresses the couple's values of scholarship, tenacity, valor, faith, kindness and love. The couple got married last year, but they have been together for over a decade.
Derius is an engineer and won the Golden Torch Award from the National Society of Black Engineers. We included the trophy he received in his artwork. We included musical notes to represent his wife's musical interests and her creativity. We used colors from the Pan-African flag to reference their ancestry and other details to illustrate parts of their relationship and their values.
My favorite thing about Derius's artwork was the way he wove a verse from Ephesians through his piece. The motto he added was "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. (Ephesians 6:11). We went on to show the parts of the armor of God: the breastplate of righteousness on the tiger, the helmet of salvation at the top, the sword of the Spirit, and the belt of truth behind the shield. It was an inspiring way to illustrate the Word, and I loved the way it showed how we can weave the gospel into all the parts of our lives.
I added plenty of gold leaf to their artwork and painted it in watercolor and ink. I mailed the piece out in advance of their anniversary. Derius wrote, "The box arrived safely and I was blown away. It is priceless!"
I hope that the art we created continues to be a reminder of their love for each other and their shared experiences, principles, and faith.
