Church Museum Announces Winners in Churchwide Art Competition

Winners in a Churchwide fine arts competition sponsored by the Museum of Church History and Art were announced November 6.

That same day, an exhibit of paintings and sculptures by Latter-day Saint artists from thirteen nations was opened to the public.

The awards were presented by Elder Dean L. Larsen, a member of the Presidency of the First Quorum of the Seventy and Executive Director of the Church Historical Department.

Cash Prizes and Purchase Awards

Cash prizes were awarded for eight paintings and one piece of sculpture. Six of the prizewinning pieces and two other entries were given purchase awards. The award money was provided by an anonymous donor.

First prize of $3,000 went to Steven L. Neal, Pendleton, Oregon, for an oil painting, Lehi’s Dream.

Second prize of $2,000 was awarded to Pino Drago, Frankfurt, Federal Republic of Germany. His work was titled Monday, 24 June 1844, 4:15 A.M.: Beyond the Events (a study of Joseph Smith).

Shauna Clinger, Salt Lake City, Utah, received the $1,000 third prize for That They Which See Not Might See.

Merit awards of $500 each were presented to Frank Magleby, Provo, Utah, for Benbow Farm Pond; Laura Lee Stay, Provo, Utah, for her sculpture titled Reverence; Antonio Madrid Hendricks, Panama City, Panama, for The Battle of Gog and Magog; David Hoeft, Beaverton, Oregon, for The Price of Potter’s Field; Walter Rane, Newtown, Connecticut, for Mother and Child; and Al Rounds, Salt Lake City, Utah, for Herefordshire Beacon.

Purchased for the museum collection were the oil paintings by Drago, Hendricks, Hoeft, and Magleby; the watercolor by Rounds; and the bronze sculpture by Stay. Two other entries, Great Are the Promises unto the Isles of the Sea, by Laurie Schnoebelen, Alta Loma, California; and Looking at Sarah, by Lee Udall Bennion, Spring City, Utah, also received purchase awards.

Other entries purchased by the museum are paintings by Wilson Ong, Hayward, California; Del Parson, Rexburg, Idaho; Clark Kelley Price, Thayne, Wyoming; and Kimbal Warren, Pleasant Grove, Utah; and a graphite drawing by Judith Campion, Seattle, Washington.

Winners will be featured in the February and March 1988 issues of the Ensign.

Artworks to Be Displayed through February 15

More than 170 works of art, including the award-winning paintings and sculpture, will be exhibited at the museum through February 15. The pieces displayed were selected from 1,031 entries.

Included in the exhibition are works by artists from seventeen states in the United States, two provinces of Canada, and from Australia, Brazil, Chile, England, Italy, Mexico, Panama, Peru, the Philippines, Venezuela, and West Germany.

The exhibit includes abstract as well as representational art created by both amateur and professional artists. On display are twenty pieces of sculpture; mixed media art; paintings in oil, acrylic, and watercolor; and works in pencil, ink, and charcoal.

The ministry of the Savior is one of the dominant themes of the exhibit, while the most popular subject from Church history is of the westward trek and settlement of the Saints. Family scenes are another popular subject.

“Theme was an essential part of the competition,” Brother Leonard said. “The jury was looking for art with religious or historical messages that mean something to Latter-day Saints.”

The museum is located at 45 North West Temple Street in Salt Lake City. Admission is free. Hours are 9:00 A.M. to 9:00 P.M. Monday through Friday, and 10:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M. on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.

Winning art from a recent Churchwide competition is now on display in the Museum of Church History and Art.