https://bookofmormoncentral.org/events/art-contest-2020
It’s awesome that Book of Mormon Central is sponsoring art contests. This is the type of activity that makes me wish I could support them. And I would, wholeheartedly, if they weren’t continually promoting M2C while censoring and suppressing alternative faithful interpretations of the Book of Mormon and the teachings of the prophets.
I had two favorite paintings.
One is Gary Kapp’s beautiful painting titled He Healed Them All, Every One, which won Second Place.
https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/he-healed-them-all-every-one
It’s refreshing to see a portrayal of Christ with the Nephites without a Mayan temple in the background. This nod toward neutrality would be even more welcome if it didn’t mask the ongoing editorial M2C policies of Book of Mormon Central.
My other favorite is The Lord Will Carry Us Forth by Kristen Openshaw. The colors and design are delightful.
https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/lord-will-carry-us-forth
I encourage everyone to enjoy these and other paintings in the competition.
______
You’ll notice lots of M2C themes, of course. Chichen Itza features prominently in several paintings.
This is an example of the influence of such artwork as the following once ubiquitous painting, which fortunately was recently banned from chapel foyers.
BTW, although the painting by John Scott has been named as “Jesus Christ Visits the Americas,” look at the URL to see how this painting is really known:
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/media/image/christ-teaching-nephites-11c829d?lang=eng
It would be one thing if the painting represented one of Christ’s many visits throughout the world. It’s quite another to declare that this painting depicts Christ visiting the Nephites, with Chichen Itza in the background.
But the painting has indelibly imprinted M2C on the minds of millions of Latter-day Saints, as some of the artwork in the contest demonstrate.
It’s on the cover of the unbelievably M2C-promoting Book of Mormon for Young Readers:
Commentators have used the painting to attack the credibility of the Book of Mormon. E.g.,
https://ancientamericasappropriated.net/john-walter-scott-jesus-christ-visits-the-americas-1969/
At least we have the slightly less blatantly M2C depiction here:
People have asked about John Scott. Here are two bio pages:
Source: About Central America
One thought on “2020 Art Contest”
The artwork for the BofMC art contest is interesting. There seems to be a lot of artists from Central and South America all influenced by their culture and what they were taught.
I’m confused about the John Scott artwork of Christ in America. I thought that was Arnold Frieberg. He had many pieces of art in the 1970s Missionary edition of the Book of Mormon. I didn’t know he painted 300 RCMP paintings. https://www.thechurchnews.com/archives/2010-07-17/remembering-arnold-friberg-63314
Sadly, the BYU student who painted “I Even Remain Alone” depicts a very young dark-skinned Moroni standing in front of Chichen Itza which wasn’t built until 400 to 800 years AFTER Moroni died. These artists really need to do their homework BEFORE they create a painting. https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/i-even-remain-alone
https://deseretbook.com/p/book-mormon-stories-beginning-reader-lds-distribution-center-7489?variant_id=102982-paperback sells the book for $3.45 (LDS Distribution Center). Amazon sells the same book for $19.74.
Here is a Customer Review (Amazon)
Deborah L. Gilson
4.0 out of 5 stars Good intro to Mormon scriptures.
Reviewed in the United States on May 8, 2020
Verified Purchase
“I am not a Mormon nor interested in becoming one. However, for language learning purposes I’ve bought some of their scripture materials. This purchase is part of that. The book is well illustrated and a good intro to these materials. Each picture has the verse in the Book of Mormon connected with it noted. It does include the troubling to me verses in the Book of Mormon (2 Nephi 5:14, 21) about God darkening the skins of the Lamanites as a curse, but at least in the illustrations they are not made to look like monsters (I still don’t like this passage, none-the-less). Outside of this issue, this is a good place to start to learn the Book of Mormon.”
Obviously, this reviewer wasn’t aware of the Jan 2020 change to page 24 of the Come Follow Me manual as driven by Elder Stevenson. I’m sure many church members are totally oblivious to the change also.
https://deseretbook.com/p/book-of-mormon-for-young-readers?variant_id=171580-hardcover
https://deseretbook.com/p/book-of-mormon-for-young-readers-journal?ref=recommend-product&variant_id=131559-spiral-bound
https://deseretbook.com/p/book-mormon-stories-young-latter-day-saints-emma-petersen-3213?variant_id=107765-paperback
I really like Emma Marr Peterson’s artwork on the cover of her book (tower is about the right height). I’m not sure that King Benjamin built the tower inside the temple walls. It could have been inside or outside. At least Chichen Itza is not in the background like page 62 and many other pages of the Come Follow Me Book of Mormon 2020 manual.
John Scott’s painting, “Jesus Christ Visits the Americas” was featured on pages 4 and 5 of the Jan 1997 Ensign, President Hinckley’s First Presidency Message. I’m sure Church Staff workers provide the artwork for the talks just like General Conference talks. I’m sure the artwork will leave a longer impression than the words because most people don’t read the words. It’s easier to just look at the pictures, just like people who get the news by watching a 30-second sound/video bite. Therefore, some of the artwork is confirming in the minds of the viewer events that happened in a place that is wrong place and time. The bogus artwork is also grooming the next generation of artists who will perpetuate the bogus Mesoamerican setting for the Book of Mormon by creating new bogus artwork–perpetual cycle.
How refreshing to see BofMC feature neutral artwork for 1st, and 2nd place (must be a heartlander). I wonder what their track record is over the last 12 years of the competition? There was plenty of Mesoamerican artwork entered in the contest that didn’t win including 3rd place.
I’m quite puzzled about the painting of Lachoneus (3 Nephi 3:13-14) on a 150-foot tower by this very young artist at
https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/lanconeo-gu%C3%ADa-su-pueblo
He is obviously mixing up King Benjamin’s tower with Lachoneus who wanted everyone to move to the CENTER of the land to defend against the Gadianton robbers—no tower mentioned.
At the April 2019 General Conference, Elder Rasband gave a wonderful talk called, “Build a Fortress of Spirituality and Protection”
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2019/04/56rasband?lang=eng
During the talk a picture of Fort Clatsop was displayed on the big screens in the Conference Center. I don’t know how many people knew the picture was Fort Clatsop and not Fort Heber. The only reason that I immediately spotted it is because I visited Fort Clatsop in Oregon about 3 days before the conference talk. Fort Clatsop near Astoria Oregon was used as the 1805-1806 winter encampment of Lewis and Clark. Although there is a crude drawing of the inside of Fort Heber, there is no known photo of the fort that I can find.
Obviously, some church staffer went to the Internet and searched for “fort” and found Fort Clatsop and used this fort to illustrate the talk. I share this because I think some staffers and scholars and book writers and illustrators just use what they were taught and they are clueless because they haven’t done the deep dive into church history. However, there are some scholars who have an agenda to promote Mesoamerica—clearly illustrated in Saints Vol I.
When the May 2019 Ensign came out, it didn’t include the fort photo. I sent an e-mail to the church on 30 July 2019 and asked them to fix the photo in the online conference talk. After about a month, they eventually did fix it (sort of) and now it reads as follows.
Fort Heber (like Fort Clatsop pictured here) was a place of refuge for early pioneers.
I do admire great artwork. I have a hard time drawing a stick man. I shouldn’t be so critical, but I’m a stickler for accuracy!
Comments are closed.