Many of you will have seen the beautiful paintings available for sale through CynthiaWeber.com
by my uncle, artist Peter Etril Snyder.
I have been very blessed to have had his work around me all my life. It has nurtured and inspired me.
Today I am going to share a story with you about a very special painting of his and how it has affected my life.
Isn’t it lovely?
It is titled On Our Wedding Day.
Pete was commissioned by the church in the background to create a painting to celebrate their centennial in 1992. Limited edition prints were to be made and the original would be available for sale.
He asked Kent and I to pose as the couple getting married… having just gotten married two years earlier I was thrilled!
The costume department at the university of Waterloo was very helpful in slightly changing my wedding dress to better reflect the time we were representing. ( don’t panic… all the modifications were temporary!) Kent got all kitted out as well with top hat and tie… which was especially amusing to me as he refused to wear a tie to our own wedding!
We enjoyed the experience very much. This photo is taken from Petes’ autobiography Picture Maker. You can see my aunt Marilyn helping with my veil and Pete giving us instructions on how he would like us to imagine being in a buggy driving away from the church excited to start our lives together.
When the painting was done I remember wondering who would buy it, I fantasized about walking into a dining room as an old lady and seeing myself and Kent perched above the sideboard looking young and happy.
How fun it would be to say… ” did you know that couple is us?”
Well, I would have loved to buy it ourselves but as newlyweds this was not an option.
Imagine my delight when I found out that my parents had purchased it! I was thrilled!
It seemed a part of the family. It made me content to know it was safe and loved.
So on the story goes…
Another wonderful aspect to my uncle Petes’ character is his intense creative drive.
Always thinking about new ideas to stretch his skills as an artist and expand his market.
An example of this showed through a few years later when he was working on developing a line of furniture with his paintings incorporated into the designs.
One of the paintings he used was On Our Wedding Day.
A sample chest of this design was made by the company Pete was working with.
It must have been an amazing feeling to see it for the first time!
In the end the line was not produced but Pete and Marilyn received the mock ups this piece being one of them. I couldn’t believe it when they gave it to us. How fantastic to have such a unique piece… It became part of our story as a couple and I treasure it.
This year at the holidays my parents announced that they thought it was time for the painting to find a new home with us…
I don’t think I can really find a way of expressing how that made me feel.
Grateful, excited, giddy… the list goes on and on. It had been in their home for the last 20 years. Now it was going to be part of our home…what an amazing gift!
So, this is the next stop in the story of this wonderful painting… I am so happy to walk by it every day and grateful to have played a small part in how it came to be!
I picture an adorable little girl some day far into the future… I think she may have braids and a cookie in her hands. She will twist her finger in the braid and munch on that cookie and ask…” granny, is that really you and gramps?”
That will be a good day.
Kent and I love art and have enjoyed collecting pieces over the years. They range greatly in style and medium but they have one common denominator…
They all have meaning and memories attached to them adding greatly to the texture of our home.
Now I have another piece layered with meaning and memories to enjoy and someday pass down to another generation.
Do you have a piece of art that you love? I hope you do and I hope it brings you joy!
