Art From the Mormon Festival of Arts

Each spring Brigham Young University conducts the Mormon Festival of Arts to display works that reflect Latter-day Saint ideals. This month-long festival includes music, drama, poetry, photography, paintings, and sculpture. Some of the paintings exhibited at the 1973 festival are shown here with comments by the artists about their work. Planning already is underway for the 1974 festival. Those wishing to enter works may obtain an application from F303 Harris Fine Arts Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84602.

LIGHT OF CHRIST—Roger Bushman is an art student at Brigham Young University. “I have attempted to show through this design that all things are centered in Christ. The Light of Christ comes from the presence of God and fills the immensity of space. There are really two designs in one: the crosses representing Christ and the rays representing the Light of Christ.”

SIXTH WARD—Ira Gagon, a Brigham Young University art student, has studied in Phoenix, Boston, and Florence, Italy. He and his wife and child now live in Provo. In his painting of this meetinghouse that is now torn down, he says he “wanted to show that a church building represents only a temporary facility where we can learn eternal truths and participate in important gospel ordinances. The building is important, but what is learned there is more important.”

THE AGGIE-SHOOTERS—An avid marbles player in his youth, sculptor Jack Morford reflected the many happy hours he spent pursuing this pastime in this life-sized sculpture cast in fiberglass and resin. Born in Saginaw, Michigan, Brother Morford now lives in Rexburg, Idaho, where he teaches sculpture at Ricks College and is second counselor in a college branch presidency. He and his wife have three children. “At the time I created this, I was living in California and working toward my master’s degree in fine arts. One of my neighbors had an eight-year-old boy, and I asked him to play marbles with a couple of his friends. As they played, I look photographs; then I selected the best poses. I cast these pieces in fiberglass and resin because it is very durable, yet each figure is light enough to be moved around to any number of poses.”

JOSEPH—Artist James I. Young, art instructor at the College of Eastern Utah, Price, Utah, was born and reared in Price, where he presently lives with his wife and two children. He is a member of the Price Fifth Ward, Carbon Stake. Of his painting he says: “The simplicity of the Joseph Smith story is compelling. It lends itself to clear and striking graphic presentation. However, I did not attempt to portray through realism the way I think Joseph looked or the way the Father and the Son looked. I merely suggested the essence of the situation as I believe it occurred. The color choices were selected to portray the contrasting forces of good and evil that were present. The black forms and split canvas were selected to help describe Satan’s attempted influence on this truth-seeking lad as he sought to know his Father in heaven and the Savior, who appeared to him as two distinct personages.”

BLESSING—Trevor Southey, professional artist and teacher, is elders quorum instructor in the Alpine (Utah) Second Ward. He and his wife have two children. “I am a convert to the Church and have always been very moved when witnessing the blessing of babies. In this painting I wanted to symbolize that for an instant this circle of men brings the power of the priesthood in focus on this little child, who has so recently left the presence of his Father in heaven. These three priesthood bearers in a very real way form a protective circle around the infant and provide him with the protection of the priesthood.”