Renee Forrestall's Icon of St Peter goes on display

The Icon of Saint Peter for St. Peter's Church
My sister, Renee Forrestall was commissioned by St. Peter's church in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia to create an icon of St. Peter's, and after months of meetings, and sketches and research the finished Icon of St. Peter was unveiled at St.Peter's Church at the morning mass on October 25th, 2009. My sister Renee, has been creating icons for many years for herself, for exhibitions and some other commissions. (She even gave me an small Icon one year as a birthday present).  She became intrigued by iconography after seeing so many extraordinary examples on our family's month long trip to Rome for Holy Year in 1975. Many years later, she studied the process and techniques of Iconography with Brother Roman, a monk in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Wanting to get more technical information, she purchased a set of how-to-videos from the Prosopone School of Iconography in Whitney Point, NY and used these to hone the technical side. The materials Renee used are egg tempera paint and gold leaf on gessoed wooden panels. Not satisfied with colors that exist, Renee went the extra step to create her own brilliant, more metallic blue and green pigments for this Icon by crushing Izrite and Malachite stones.  The church board who hired Renee to create this Icon have been familiar with her work for many years, as my sister makes St. Peter's a regular destination for worship. Their thoughts on why they commissioned this Icon:

"When we enter St. Peter’s Church we are able to see many artistic signs and symbols that help us to pray by directing our hearts and our minds attention toward Christ. Holy images draw our attention toward our Savior, reminding us that we are not alone, and that we are part of a Church that spans both Heaven and Earth.  That is the purpose of our new icon of St. Peter, patron of our parish community." Renee further points out ," Prayer and contemplation envelop each phase of the icon writing process and the process is very much a spiritual journey between God and the iconographer." Some of the symbols seen in the icon are a fishing net, referring to St. Peter's daily work as a fisherman and a set of keys, referencing the keys of the kingdom. For years to come Renee's Icon of St. Peter, will be proudly on display in the church, and will hopefully inspire the parishioners and visitors. 

Additionally professionally produced signed reproductions, mounted on wood blocks in three sizes (small: $35, medium: $60 and Large: $85) will be available as a gift for a donation to the church soon. (http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/religion/StPeters/)