Artist Information

Steven Lee Adams

Title of Painting: A LAST FAREWELL

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 40"x72"

Three years ago I lost my oldest son in an automobile accident. As I pondered the writings of the pioneers who endured the pain of such a loss, many losing more than one family member, I felt a deep connection to and a debt of gratitude for my ancestors, some of whom crossed with the handcart companies themselves.

This was by far the most difficult painting I have ever attempted solely on the grounds that I am not sure art can, nor should, try to convey anything as sacred as the loss of a loved one. The fear of trivializing something so important to myself and others who have known such loss was always with me. 

Rather than illustrate a moment of time in a pioneer life, I was looking to capture a feeling we will all share at some time or another. Hopefully, when that happens, we will be able soldier on like the amazing people who settled the land we call home.

Artist Biography: 

Steven Lee Adams spent three years at Brigham Young University. He has garnered many awards, including Best of State 2005 and Best of Show at the 66th Annual April Salon, Utah’s most prestigious art show. His studio work is tied most closely with the Tonalist artists who worked at the turn of the last century. His primary goal is to capture a sense of a landscape rather than the simple look of a place.

Robert T. Barrett

Title of Painting: WHEN DAYLIGHT CAME

Media Type: Oil on board

Dimensions of Painting: 28"x22"

Title of Painting: BRING THE PEOPLE OFF THE PLAINS

Media Type: Pen and ink on paper

Dimensions of Painting: 17"x14"

Title of Painting: WAIT UNTIL SPRING

Media Type: Pen and ink on paper

Dimensions of Painting: 14"x17"

I have had pioneer ancestors that came to Salt Lake City in the 1840's and 1850's. But not with the Willie and Martin Companies. My great-grandfather who immigrated from Denmark had quite the journey - it lasted six months to the day. When he arrived in Salt Lake, he was asked by Brigham Young to return to Winter Quarters and help others across the plains. I had a great, great, grandmother who walked across the plains from Nauvoo, the entire way, when she was 14 years old. Her father had "run-ins" with mobs while trying to leave Nauvoo. He participated in the miracle of the quails, and came down with rocky mountain fever. Had he not become sick, he would have come with the first company. So. . .the idea of being involved with the project - and these specific subjects - had interest for me because of my own pioneering ancestors who sacrificed much for the sake of their beliefs.

Artist Biography: 

Robert T. Barrett is an accomplished painter, muralist, illustrator, and professor in the Visual Arts Department at BYU. His work is nationally known through solo and collective exhibitions and featured magazine articles. He has received numerous awards for his creative work. He is a member of the Society of Illustrators, the Pastel Society of America, the Portrait Society of America, and the Salmagundi Club.

Stephen Mark Bartholomew

Title of Painting: SNOWBOUND A RET BUTTES

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 42"x54"

This painting depicts my then 15 year old great, great grand mother, Charlotte Elizabeth Mellor, and her 16 year old sister Louisa returning to their camp near Red Buttes after walking more than a mile from camp in the snow to gather firewood on October 21st, 1856. In researching for this project I was impressed and moved to learn that these two teenagers faithfully pulled one of their family’s two handcarts from Missouri until their rescue near Devil’s Gate. Many times the handcart not only contained their supplies it often held one of their twin three year old sisters, Emma or Clara.

Title of Painting: FINAL PREPARATIONS AT ROCKY RIDGE

Media Type: Pen and ink on paper

Dimensions of Painting: 52"x52"

Artist Biography: 

Stephen Mark Bartholomew is a descendent of Martin handcart pioneers James and Mary Ann Payne Mellor, as well as rescue party member Thomas Murphy Alexander. Stephen considers himself a realist/impressionist, and his theme is consistently the Utah landscape. A graduate of Brigham Young University, his paintings are included in many private and public collections.

Michael Bedard

Title of Painting: SOME MUST PUSH AND SOME MUST PULL

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 3’x6’

I wanted to express the great faith that the handcart pioneers held in their souls.

Title of Painting: ASCENDING ROCKY RIDGE

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 3’x6’

Ascending Rocky Ridge, I thought to share the determination of their great faith.

Artist Biography: 

Michael Bedard is a portrait painter and landscape artist. Through this genre, Michael collates a visual world of color and mood which resonates in a sensitive, yet powerful, interpretation of the human spirit. Michael has exhibited his work in various regional and national competitions. He received his BFA from Brigham Young University, and his MFA from Washington State University.

Lee Udall Bennnion

Title of Painting: SEARCHING

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x28"

I don’t have any family or ancestors who were in the Willie and Martin handcart companies, but I have grown up hearing stories of these groups and their rescue. The part that I have always related with most is those who went out to find the emigrants. How they left in a matter of hours after hearing of their situation, in adverse weather at risk to their own lives to search for the missing out in the wilderness. I have spent time out in the mountains searching for someone I love who is lost and I know what it feels like. I am calling this painting “Searching”. It’s pretty simple, but for me conveys the intense desire to find those who are lost.

Artist Biography: 

Layne Brady

Title of Painting: WILLIE CAMP

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 20"x24"

In "Willie Camp" this scene depicts the camp down in the willows where the saints camped to try and get out of the wind. This is possibly the evening before the rescuers arrived. The saints huddle around their campfires to warm themselves from the days labor. In the background we see the red willows no more that six or seven feet high that offered their only wind break and only source of firewood. Above the willows is a small rise in the land where the wind has created a substantial cornice. Once again I am not necessarily trying to evoke sadness in the viewer but show a realistic depiction of the extreme situations they faced on a daily basis

Title of Painting: FRESH COURAGE TAKE

Media Type: Oil on stretched on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x24"

Being near or possibly at the very spot that the Willie Company had their biggest trials, with the cold and snow made an enormous impression on me. Here I was in modern day clothing designed specifically for cold weather, and only for four or five hours at a time with no physical demands of me. No starvation, no exhaustion and I was cold. At one point I was shivering uncontrollably. My camera would yield only four or five pictures at a time before the batteries were too cold to function and would have to be warmed up. It was hard for me to imagine the actual physical suffering they went through. In "Fresh Courage Take" I am not trying to portray sadness, but just a glance at a single moment when the saints were near the evening’s resting spot. They have paused for a little rest to allow one of them to clear snow from their boot. They are having to negotiate the snow. Much of their extra clothing has been cast away to lighten their load and the carts they pull have also been stripped to the bare essentials.

Artist Biography: 

Layne Brady excelled at art at a very young age. He studied at BYU, Salt Lake Community College, and Utah State University. He continued his training by taking workshops from masters such as Richard Schmid, Zhang Wenzin, and portrait artist Daniel Green. Brady admits, “I paint and sculpt because I must.”

Bruce Brainard

Title of Painting: STORM CLOUDS OVER NEBRASKA

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 36"x60"

I love to paint and feel that art can have great power. I believe as Picasso said, “The purpose of art is to express the great emotions.” I have found the greatest emotions not necessarily to be the loud, the sentimental or even the profane; but rather, the quiet, the authentic and the sacred. I use the landscape to try and express these emotions.
 “…a painter should paint not only what he sees before him, but also what he sees within himself.” Caspar David Friedrich

Artist Biography: 

Joseph F. Brickey

Title of Painting: EVER ONWARD

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 48"x60"

A panoramic view of the harsh winter landscape of Wyoming with a procession of pioneers trodding along with their handcarts. A large, windswept tree towering above them combines with the overcast evening sky to convey the brutal conditions in which they had to “press onward, ever onward.”

Artist Biography: 

James C. Christensen

Title of Painting: HARVEY CLUFF

Media Type: Acrylic on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x48"

Harvey Cluff planting a signboard indicating to anyone traveling where the rescue party had stopped for the night.

Artist Biography: 

Linda Curley Christensen

Title of Painting: THRILL OF HANDCART TRAVEL

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x20"

Knowing the stories of many handcart families, even without disaster to ruin ones thrill, there was quite a bit of overwhelming tediousness to squelch excitement. I came to imagine that the only real thrill was in the anticipation of the journey. And in the joy and innocence of the young. The truly amazing part is that the faith and dedication of our great ancestors allowed them to rejoice in the whole experience and hold with steadfastness to the thrill of God’s kingdom and travel to Zion in joy.

Title of Painting: REUNION

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 20"x16"

My third great grandfather, Dennis George Winn, was only 24 years old when he volunteered to head east with the rescue party President Brigham Young called for. However, he had more than a casual interest in this group. His family was among the numbers. He had not seen them for over three years, having been the first of the family to emigrate to Zion from Liverpool, England in 1853. He baptized his youngest sister Mary before he left, and it was the same little sister he met that winter of 1856 in the snows of Wyoming. His father & sister had passed away in England. His mother on the plains of Wyoming.

Artist Biography: 

Linda Curley Christensen has painted for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at their Conference Center, South Visitor’s Center, and over fifty LDS temples throughout the world. She has received the National Gertrude Folgeson Art Award, signature status in Oil Painter’s of America, and was recently named one of Utah’s top 100 Artists.

Shauna Cook Clinger

Title of Painting: EVENING PRAYER

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 54"x48"

“Evening Prayer” was inspired by my grandmothers, Elizabeth Crompton Haydock (b. 1800, Prestwich, Lancashire, England) and Mary Haydock Luke (born 1835, Prestwich, Lancashire, England), both members of the Martin Company. Mary’s oldest son, William Haydock Luke (b. 1858), wrote of his mother and grandmother: “Their whole prayer and thought was to find a home of peace in Zion located in the top if the Rocky Mountains, where they would be under the guidance and protection of the God of Heaven.” This painting portrays a pioneer woman standing in solitary prayer, drawing strength from her communion with the Father and the night heavens for the difficult journey ahead. Mary had a brush with death before the Martin Company was rescued. “On the Sweetwater. . . the snow came to her waist. A large pack of wolves followed the company and many of the dead would be eaten by them. [Mary] being tender of years at times became very discouraged. One morning she was so cold she dropped out of camp and buried herself in the snow. The Company moved on, the pack of wolves came near to her. Her mother [Elizabeth] missing her gave the alarm and stopped the company. When the wolves saw the men coming back they retreated and [Mary] was picked up and put in one of the wagons. Her feet were badly frozen and gave her grief all her life, especially in the wintertime.” Both grandmothers survived the journey although Elizabeth lost one of her eyes from exposure. Her daughter Mary later gave birth to ten children. I am one Mary’s many great, great, granddaughters and I used myself as the model for the pioneer woman. I stand in awe of my grandmother’s resilience. Their story is one of faith and also one of how we often need the faith of others when our own falters.

Artist Biography: 

Anthony Robert Cox

Title of Painting: DEVIL'S GATE

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 67"x55"

The name “Devil’s Gate” and the massive craggy rocks it describes, intrigued me. I chose to paint it because of its being a prominent landmark to the early travelers, especially to the Martin Company who eventually took refuge near the cliffs at Martin’s Cove. I traveled to the site to shoot photographs and eventually chose to paint the scene depicted simply because of the beautiful way in which the Sweetwater River flowed through the rock and curled half frozen through the shadows of the evening. As the painting progressed, the scene took on a deeper meaning for me. I debated removing the obscure evergreen tree that sat at the Gate in the middle of the painting. Resolving that odd shape was somewhat problematic, and I often considered painting it out. But I was attracted to it and began to think of it symbolically to represent those early saints. Like the tree sitting alone and strong in the Devil’s Gate, the saints of the Willie and Martin companies triumphed even as they were called to pass through hell.

Title of Painting: GIVEN TO GOD

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 36"x46"

“Given to God” depicts the moment following a young family’s burial of their baby. Some accounts describe lighting fires on the graves to burn away the scent from prowling wolves. I wanted the focus to be on the mother since I think she would have felt the pain of losing a baby most deeply. She stands like a pillar of strength, questioning though not doubting her faith and sacrifice. Surely many people, mothers in particular, must have felt that the burden of death and suffering was too heavy. I like the dualities found in the gospel of Jesus Christ, the “opposition in all things” such as mercy and justice, pleasure and pain, joy and sorrow. This painting depicts faith and works, the father and son having just built the protective fire while the mother faithfully and mournfully prays. The smoke of the fire represents her prayers, but also the spirit of the child and perhaps part of the mother’s ascending to Heaven.

Antony Robert Cox’s love of art and the Utah landscape is what moved him toward a degree in art from Brigham Young University in 2000. Antony returned to BYU in 2004 to pursue an MFA degree in painting and drawing.

Charles L. Dayton

Title of Painting: TRAIL OF SORROW

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 18"x22"

One of the most jarring aspects of the handcart company’s tragedy was the presence of wolves. Without the strength or equipment to bury their loved ones in the ground, the handcart company would bury their dead in the snow, under piles of rocks, or in trees. Sometimes, they would lay the bodies next to the trail without protection. In this painting, I had hoped to convey the desperation of their situation - the black wolf as a symbol of mortality. There seemed to be no respite for them, even in death. When the handcart scene was re-enacted, the artists placed themselves mid-hill as the handcart company struggled up the ridge, along the top and descended to our right. By that time, the sun was touching the horizon and the temperature had plummeted. As artists, we were busily collecting reference – focusing on color, movement and composition. To me, the moment was profound. The last handcart, a fatherless family struggled through the soft snow. Two children pushed from behind, while the mother grasped the cart with one hand and a three year old in the other. The child was screaming from the cold and clutching at the mother as she labored to move the cart forward. He tore at her shawl, trying to draw closer to her body. Losing the scant protection from the cold, she slipped and fell into the snow. She struggled to rise, to cover her shoulders, to lift her sobbing child and take another step west. My impulse was to run towards this family, take the child, steady the cart and share my warm, modern clothing. I turned from this scene and wept. I knew what it was like to be in Wyoming cold, unprepared and without shelter. I was filled with profound sense of empathy for their suffering and desperation. It was some time before I could continue.

Artist Biography: 

Emily Dyches

Title of Painting: RESCUE RIDERS

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 47"x82"

This painting represents the men who went out by horse in search of the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies. They were the first sign of rescue to the wearied travelers. The urgency of the situation is portrayed in the speed of the horses and expressions of the riders. Joseph A. Young is portrayed as the rider on the far left. I was prompted to paint this piece for many reasons. As an experienced horse rider I was drawn to their story. These men displayed charity as they left the comforts of home and earnestly sought their brothers and sisters somewhere in the snow. One can only imagine the emotions they experienced on their journey to assist in this rescue.

Artist Biography: 

Lauri Eskelson

Title of Painting: AT THE END OF A LONG DAY

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 23"x27"

“Before the Wyoming snowstorms, the exhausting struggle of Rocky Ridge, and the hunger and hardship that would follow, life on the trail began as a grand adventure for the children. Each day brought the excitement of traveling through new country, seeing sights that had never been experienced before. This young pioneer boy, tired from a long day of walking along the trail, is resting against the handcart wheel, waiting for camp to be set up for the evening. He still has the day’s adventures fresh in his mind…yet has a wistful look in his eye, not sure of what lies ahead.”

Title of Painting: THE RESCUE WAGONS

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 35"x41"

“I’ve heard the stories all my life of the hardships the pioneers endured, as the early season snowstorms blasted them while crossing the Wyoming plains…but never fully understood, until I experienced Rock Creek Hollow in a winter snowstorm. To be at that hallowed location near Rocky Ridge…and experience the bone-chilling cold, and the relentless wind and blowing snow… gave me a new understanding, and a renewed appreciation. It is an absolute miracle that any of them survived at all, given their weakened state. After risking their own lives to fight through the blinding snowstorms, I can only imagine what those in the rescue wagons were feeling, as they first caught sight of the stranded pioneers. The relief at finally locating them…the sadness of finding them in such dire circumstances…the loss of so many lives. For those who felt that they could go no further, to see those wagons coming with food and warm blankets and supplies, was a sight—I’m sure—that would be forever etched in their memories.”

Lauri Eskelson was raised with a love of art and a love of the land. Drawing and painting led her to complete a degree in art. “Plein air painting has been my passion most recently,” Eskelson says, “and I’m inspired by open space, and love the energy that comes from painting directly from nature.”

Doug Fryer

Title of Painting: GATHERING STORM (REQUIEM)

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x30"

My ancestors, the James Sherlock Cantwell family, drove a wagon across the plains with the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies. Their journals tell of the determination and faith they had during the terrible hardships of the journey. The sacrifice that they made for their beliefs, and for us their posterity, is beyond measure. This painting is a token of remembrance for what they did for me.

Artist Biography: 

Glen Hawkins

Title of Painting: LOUISA ROWLEY

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 16"x12"

Glen Hawkins is a descendant from some forty Utah Pioneers, including Anne Jewell Rowley who brought her seven children in the Willie Handcart Company. This painting is a tribute to her 19 year old daughter Louisa Rowley, Glen's great, great, great grandmother.

Title of Painting: EARLY SNOW

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x36"

"John being the oldest boy bore the brunt of the hard work I was grateful for my faith in God, for it was only through this faith that I was able to carry on at all." Ann Jewel Rowley-Willie handcart company- Artist’s great, great, great, great grandmother

Title of Painting: FIRESIDE

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 16"x20"

"There came a time when there seemed to be no food at all. I asked God's help and remembered two hard sea biscuits still in my trunk. It was not enough to feed eight people, but five loaves and two fishes were not enough for five thousand either. I put the biscuits in a Dutch oven, covered them with water, and put them on the coals. Later, when I removed the lid the pan was filled with food. I knelt with my family and thanked God for his goodness." Ann Jewel Rowley-Willie handcart company- Artist’s great, great, great, great grandmother Artist Biography: 

Jeffrey Hein

Title of Painting: FOR SOMETHING GREATER

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 52"x58"

Brother holding his dying sister, Caroline Reader, age 17.

Artist Biography: 

Brian Kershisnik

Title of Painting: MY ANCESTORS KISSED

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 32"x42"

"My Ancestors Kissed" is a variation on a theme which I have visited in several paintings. My own heritage, like most Americans, is from elsewhere, though largely not a part of the Mormon emigration. Nevertheless, having visited their countries of origin, I cannot help but think of the love and tenderness that they likely experienced in leaving their native lands, notwithstanding the excitement and danger of their new enterprise. In the case of my own family, it also often involved hopefully temporary separations. This kiss then could be lovers separated, or perhaps it suggests that solidifying of love that can result from sadness or extremity.

Artist Biography: 

David Koch

Title of Painting: THE HOUR IS NOT YET

Media Type: Oil on linen on board

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x36"

“The Hour is Not Yet” taken from D&C 58: 4 - “For after much tribulation come the blessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.”
Even though both of my parents migrated to the united states from Denmark and Germany, in later generations, I don't have a personal story with this painting. I wanted to show the scope of 500 or more people, animals, wagons, handcarts etc. moving across the plains of Eastern Nebraska before some of the greatest trials came.

Title of Painting: HOPE SHINING BRIGHTLY

Media Type: Oil on linen on board

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x40"

It portrays a young boy getting water from the frozen Sweetwater River. He is standing and looking West at the arrival of James Willie and Joseph Elder as they return with rescue wagons.

Title of Painting: FIRESIDE

Media Type: Oil on linen

Dimensions of Painting: 16"x20"

"There came a time when there seemed to be no food at all. I asked God's help and remembered two hard sea biscuits still in my trunk. It was not enough to feed eight people, but five loaves and two fishes were not enough for five thousand either. I put the biscuits in a Dutch oven, covered them with water, and put them on the coals. Later, when I removed the lid the pan was filled with food. I knelt with my family and thanked God for his goodness." Ann Jewel Rowley-Willie handcart company- Artist’s great, great, great, great grandmother Artist Biography: 

Lester B. Lee

Title of Painting: ROCK CREEK HOLLOW

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 32"x42"

I have a friend who is steeped in church history. Having studied the rescue of the Willie Handcart Company for personal and family reasons, this friend invited me to join him for a camp out at the rescue site at Rock Creek, Wyoming. We traveled to the site and camped on October 13th, the same month and day that the Willie Company was rescued. I can only imagine that the conditions that we camped in that night were similar to what the handcart company experienced; snowy, windy, dark, lonely and bitter cold. We could not cook our tinfoil dinners as we could not keep a fire lit. We went to bed hungry but in a warm, safe place. We only slept an hour or two. The worry that finally awakened us was being 15 miles from help and the fear that the cold may prevent our vehicle from starting. The truck did start and we headed for home about 3:00 a.m., but not before shooting some photo reference for this painting, and not before we had both experienced the sweet temple-like feeling that is present at Rock Creek Hollow. Nothing so snowy, windy, dark, lonely or bitter cold could overpower that beautiful feeling. Rock Creek Hollow is worth the visit even the worst conditions.

Artist Biography: 

David Edward Linn

Title of Painting: THE SACRED INCLINE

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 32"x42"

The subject, Rocky Ridge, provided a springboard for expressing a number of concepts, as well as affording me a visual stage that has some relevance to much of my work. First and foremost was a desire to create a tribute to those who placed everything on the altar of faith and pressed forward through unspeakable hardship with an unquenchable yearning to reach Zion. For many, the Zion achieved was an internal one of purification and sanctification, since they never lived to see the physical destination. This painting is also dedicated to my own ancestors, who passed through all the trials and hardships of early church history from its very inception as well as those who struggle up the sacred incline of mortality and never lose their vision or faith- regardless of the dispensation in which they live. Inasmuch as “The Sacred Incline” shows a single family advancing toward the light, it also provides a metaphor for the importance in our day of strengthening our families in the gospel, uniting in the cause of following the Savior, and keeping our eyes fixed on the goal of eternal life. Given the darkness of the world that presses in on every side, our struggle up the slope of life is more spiritually perilous now than at any time in history. These conditions will not improve until the Savior reigns. But just as those who felt the angels pulling the load when all seemed hopeless, we have the same promise and the same help in these latter days.

Artist Biography: 

Frank Magleby

Title of Painting: ASH HOLLOW CROSSING, NEBRASKA

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x40"

Title of Painting: LAST CROSSING OF THE NORTH PLATTE, FORT CASPER

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 36"x48"

My major interest in painting is landscapes and especially with water so I chose to do the river crossings. I photographed the scenes in October as we were returning to Utah from our home in Vermont. While working on the paintings I discovered my Great Grandfather, Hans Ulrich Bryner, was traveling with the oxcart company that was traveling with the Willis/Martin Handcart Company. Finding out about my family connection stirred up even more interest in the project..

Artist Biography: 

Downy Doxey-Marshall

Title of Painting: WORLD’S WITHOUT END

Media Type: medium pigmented ink on linen with silk or wool embroidery threads

Dimensions of Painting: 40"x54"

This work is pigmented ink on linen with silk embroidery thread and Austrian crystals. This piece began as a portrayal of the young women and girls gathering sagebrush for fire. As I worked on this piece I noticed a timelessness, a sense of Handcarts on the horizon, horses and riders all allow the viewer to interpret this moment in time very personally. Some may see the sagebrush gathered as a bouquet for placing on a shallow grave, others may see the women as gathering the brush for firewood. This hardship is just a moment in time, an experience that earned many of these pioneers eternal salvation. Having my own daughter as the young girl in the foreground brought this work full circle for me. I see a direct connection to my ancestors portrayed through having her in this work.

Title of Painting: THE SHAWL

Media Type: medium pigmented ink on linen with silk or wool embroidery threads

Dimensions of Painting: 40"x46"

This work is an image of three women huddling from the cold, preparing to cross the river. They are wrapped in the shawl to keep warm. The shawl represents the Lord's embrace, comforting each of them as they prepare to cross the river. There are no individual faces seen, showing how the group reaches out and strengthens each other.

Artist Biography: 

Robert L. Marshall

Title of Painting: TENNENT FARM, ENGLAND

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 40"x54"

Tennent Farm is a nostalgic remembrance of the farm. I felt that as those enduring the hardships of the handcart experience remembered the comfort and beauty of where they had left, they would romanticize it even more. Hence, late afternoon light, smoke from a warm fire, sheep grazing. An idealic memory. A place that put into question the decision to come to Utah, and yet, they kept enduring the elements and moving forward.

Title of Painting: ENDURANCE

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 36"x42"

Endurance depicts women and children pulling the carts when men were unavailable. A storm on the horizon foretells impending troubles. Men on horseback are a distance away providing some protection but not immediate assistance. The landscape implies the expanse of the prairie and the seeming endless journey.

Artist Biography: 

David Meikle

Title of Painting: GREEN HILLS OF GREAT BRITAIN

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x42"

I was really excited to get this particular assignment, the landscape of Wales, since I served as a missionary in the England Manchester Mission. I was able to experience, first hand, many of the notable sites in the early history of the church. I was also able to observe the beautiful landscape of Northern England and Wales. The image I always think back on is the British countryside with rolling hills, with an endless maze of stone walls, and sheep grazing in the fields. I am sure the pioneer converts from Britain, as they walked across the hot and dusty prairie, often thought back to the lush green land that they had left behind.

Title of Painting: HEADING WEST FROM COUNCIL BLUFFS

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x42"

In this image, I wanted to emphasize the vastness of the prairie that the handcart pioneers were crossing. Although the weather is not a hindrance to the group yet, I hope to create a sense of vulnerability by portraying the group in a small scale compared to the vastness of the landscape around them. In putting a scene together such as this, I frequently look for opportunities to use clouds to create a sense of scale and distance. I love the work of the well-known painter Maynard Dixon, and his 1925 painting “Cloud World” has made a deep impression on me and was the inspiration behind this painting

Title of Painting: STOPPED AT RED BUTTES

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x36"

In this painting, I wanted the colors of the sky and the landscape to tell the story. It is cold and stormy. The pioneers have been stopped by snow after crossing the icy Platte river and scores have already died from the cold and exposure, and the worst is yet to come. I wanted to show a group of pioneers talking at the riverside and perhaps discussing their plight.

Artist Biography: 

Joseph Ostraff

Name of Video Installation: Jerusalem: Homage to Pioneers

Description of Video Installation:

This video installation is a partnership between a photographer, a visual artist and a cinematographer. The project pays homage to the aspirations of pioneers and the succession of lands they abandon, traverse and reclaim. While focusing on a specific people, time and location – nineteenth-century Mormon pioneers emigrating from Britain to the Great Basin of the American West -- this work celebrates pioneer attributes in diverse global peoples, past and present. The stark contrast between Henry Hoare’s Elysium at Stourhead, Wiltshire and the rocky straits of South Pass, Wyoming generates a discourse of emblematic and literal travel; of journeys undertaken in extended space and time which also function allegorically or ritualistically. This installation speculates that people of faith– pioneers –seem willing to sacrifice all that is familiar, measured and known for a speculative chance to inhabit a place that offers boundless opportunities to one willing to pay a supremely high price. Many pioneers do not live to see the fruits of their faith-filled efforts, as these fruits are more fully realized, but not necessarily appreciated, by the generations that follow.Stourhead, Wilshire, England “A Charming Gaspar Picture:”Henry Hoare’s description of this view at the pleasure gardens of Stourhead, Wilshire.The allegorical landscape at Stourhead was created by Henry Hoare II between 1741 and 1780 to valorize mythic heroes and to memorialize the untimely deaths of so many of his family. The notion of Aeneas establishing a home for his posterity by founding Rome is represented at Stourhead through inscriptions, statuary and garden pavilions, and this theme parallels Henry Hoare’s desire for Stourhead to constitute the beginning of an enduring family dynasty within his fertile and watered lands. South Pass, Wyoming, USA South Pass, 7,550 feet high, with a gradual incline on each side, is a low-lying passage over the Continental Divide through the Rocky Mountains. Emigrant trails to Oregon, California, and Utah went through Wyoming using this pass. Between 1846 and 1869, over 70,000 Mormons traversed South Pass as they traveled along the Mormon Pioneer Trail.

Brian Wilcox: Native of Utah, Married to Wendy Wilcox, Four children (Josh, Erin, Colman, Alexi) Currently the cinematographer for LDS Motion Picture StudioJulie Magleby: Native of Utah, Married to mark Magleby, Four children ( Hal, Rob, Berkley, Andy) Freelance photographerJoseph Ostraff: Native of California, Married to Melinda Ostraff, Six children(Josh, Jenny, Zac, Kaleb, Ethen, Hannah) Professor of Art at Brigham Young University

Editing: Joseph Ostraff, Jenny Ostraff
Special effects: Bryan Rowland, Mark Loerstcher, Kelly Peterson
Film Transfer: David Nauta
Best Boy: Ethan Ostraff
Best Girl: Alexi Wilcox
Poem: Jerusalem; William Blake

Del Parson

Title of Painting: JAMES KIRKWOOD CARRIES HIS BROTHER,
JOSEPH, OVER ROCKY RIDGE

Media Type: Pastel on paper

Dimensions of Painting: 43"x37"

In August, 2004 I had the opportunity of serving as the trek master for our ward’s youth trip to Martin’s Cove. While there, we heard the stories and felt the spirit of that sacred place. Two stories stood out in my mind: Sarah Ann Franks and her beloved George Padley and the story of James Kirkwood carrying his brother, Joseph up Rocky Ridge. I was given the Kirkwood assignment. As I painted the song, “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s my Brother” played over in my mind, and I thought of the love he had for his brother, which ultimately cost him his life.

Artist Biography: 

Leon Parson

Title of Painting: PRAIRIE ANGELS

Media Type: Oil on stretched linen

Dimensions of Painting: 424"x30"

When looking at "Prarie Angels" we feel a tugging in our hearts as the thought comes to mind: "Who are these little girls?" Followed by a flood of questions: "Where are they from? Where are their parents? What are their names? How old are they? How far have they traveled? What trials have they endured ...? There is an unmistakable feeling of adversity etched within their countenances. One surmises correctly that they have experienced life, with too many pre-mature hardships, in a way that none of us have, nor may ever have to. And yet there is also a quality of hope that seems to radiate through and above their present circumstances. The older sister takes on a motherly posture as she cradles the doll in her arms. She is still a little girl, yet she possesses a maturity, wisdom and inner strength beyond her years. The younger sister is tired from the long journey and the physical demands that she has endured. She is facing life with a bold determination, nevertheless a delicate innocence reflects in her eyes. The title "Prairie Angels" is intended to suggest that there exists a >> sweet purity and a heavenly characteristic in these two little girls. And that perhaps, even before their journey's end, their lives will be cut short and become numbered among the angels. I believe that there were ministering angels that accompanied the people in the handcart companies and I also believe that there are still angels present at Martin's Cove today. Having participated twice with LDS youth group activities at Martin's Cove, once with my wife as surrogate "Ma's and Pa's" for a 'family' of teenagers, the second time as the Trek Master for our Stake's Youth Conference; I have gained a deeper understanding of the spirit that exists there, as well as a great appreciation for our pioneer heritage. I have become well acquainted with the endless accounts and experiences that the pioneers had which led up to the "first rescue". My own great-great grandfather Johann Pierre Stalle, a member of the first handcart company of 1856, died and was buried somewhere betwen the Platte and Sweetwater rivers. His youngest daughter, Margarite age 5, became my great grandmother. I hope that as people view "Prairie Angels" they feel something of the reality of eternity and the need for endurance until the end. Then in appreciation for those who have gone on before and succeeded, resolve to be valiant in their own 'eternal journey'. The following is a comment from Ryan Nielsen who has seen "Prairie Angels" in my studio and his experience with it: "The first time that I saw "Prairie Angels" I was disturbed by the realities that it portrays--two pioneer girls, having had everything taken away from them by the asdversities of life, even their own parents. The sadness in their eyes prompted a sorrow in my own heart, and I chose to look away, avoiding dealing with the tragedy so apparent on the canvas. When I later found within me the courage to confront the image again, I received that same initial impression of sadness etched in their eyes, But as I held the gaze of those afflicted little girls, I saw in their eyes an indomitable spriit -- a concoction of faith and hope that had nutured within them the kind of commitment that, having already confronted death, now transcended it. In these two 'angels' burned the fire of testimony from which sprang the true decision to endure to the end, for no matter what life placed before them, they would carry on." Ryan Nielsen

Artist Biography: 

Howard Post

Title of Painting:LAST CROSSING OF THE PLATTE AT RED BUTTES

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x48"

Since my wife had ancestors in the Willie Company, Mortensen, there was some special interest in doing this project. As we traveled to the sight in Wyoming a cold storm with snow joined us, which brought conditions similar to what the pioneers experienced. As I got out of our warm car to photograph potential scenes it was about 20 degrees below zero. That gave me some appreciation of what these people experienced and why many of them could only lay down and die after crossing the icy river.

Title of Painting: HEADING WEST FROM COUNCIL BLUFFS

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x42"

In this image, I wanted to emphasize the vastness of the prairie that the handcart pioneers were crossing. Although the weather is not a hindrance to the group yet, I hope to create a sense of vulnerability by portraying the group in a small scale compared to the vastness of the landscape around them. In putting a scene together such as this, I frequently look for opportunities to use clouds to create a sense of scale and distance. I love the work of the well-known painter Maynard Dixon, and his 1925 painting “Cloud World” has made a deep impression on me and was the inspiration behind this painting

Title of Painting: STORMY HILLS

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 36"x44"

As we traveled through the area the pioneers crossed I was struck with the vastness and often bleak surroundings of their painful trek. In places hardly a tree or bush was to be seen. I would imagine all they could try to do was keep following each other in what seemed an endless march.

Artist Biography: 

Clark Kelley Price

Title of Painting: EPHRIAM K. HANKS – ANGEL OF MERCY

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x40"

This painting depicts the arrival of Ephriam K. Hanks at the Martin Handcart camp on the Sweetwater River near Split Rock, Wyoming in the fall of 1856. He is cutting pieces of buffalo meat for the starving people and at the same time he is pointing west and telling them to be of good cheer because there is more help coming. They later said they looked upon him as an Angel of Mercy.

Sandra B. Rast

Title of Painting: SILENT PRAYER

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x40"

As a young family humbly seeks Zion, they pause momentarily as they battle the overwhelming adversities of the elements. They offer a heart-felt silent prayer, as each pleads and begs the Lord to sustain them. A mother begs to preserve her and the new born babe she carries. A young boy near death, steals a moment of heavy-laden sleep in the back of their handcart. A father comforts a child beyond tears without uttering a word, and prays in his heart for the needs of each member of his small family. The burning belief in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints radiates the only comfort available. As they stand and kneel in silent prayer, they are warmed only by their hope and faith. Prayer sustains and uplifts them in their journey, as their hearts are drawn out to the Savior in silent prayer. Mosiah 24:12 – He did know the thoughts of their hearts . . Alma 24:7 – And when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually, and also for the welfare of those that are around you.

Title of Painting: GREATER LOVE

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x40"

A heroic young man unselfishly lifts, with no thought of himself, an orphaned child with frost bitten feet. He feels the bite of the frozen Sweetwater River in his determination to sustain and preserve a life. The gift of love he gave for the lives of the 1856 handcart pioneers is comparable only to the example set by this small group and this tiny heroic girl he carried to safety. Their love of the Savior and the safety of living the gospel helped sustain them, as they focused only on eternal goals. John 15:13 – Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

Title of Painting: SWEETWATER CROSSING 1856

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 48"x60"

As the shades of evening begin to creep in the Mormon Handcart Pioneers once again face the bone chilling cold. Their pursuit of Zion and their desire to worship as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints started them on this arduous journey. Their faith in the Savior and love for one another has helped to carry both the weak and the stout of heart along the way. There is so much we can learn from these valiant men, women and children. As they struggled through miserable and even life threatening conditions their testimonies and love of the Savior matured and they grew closer to the Savior. Through their lives we know that there is some knowledge that can only come through the Spirit as we go through our trials. Many of them sacrificed all that they had, including watching loved ones die. Along the way they realized that through their hardships they had found strength beyond their own. A merciful and loving Father will help us and make our burdens light if we valiantly follow his path. These heroic pioneers chose daily to walk the path that the Savior had laid before them. They followed with faith and obedience and were blessed with a closer relationship with their Savior and also the strength and courage to endure to the end. We too must choose daily to walk the path that is laid before us and focus on the Savior. The last obstacle that laid between these brave people and their Zion was also the most difficult. The Sweet Water River was the coldest and the toughest forging that they faced. The physical rescue of each pioneer who endured the freezing elements of the Sweet Water River is like the rescue that we can experience spiritually if we keep our faith in the Savior and endure to the end.

Sandra B. Rast majored in art at the University of Utah and BYU. Each painting portrays a deep intimacy of her beliefs and emotions, which she captures through color and composition. Rast says of her art, “My paintings represent acts and things of goodness.” Her art is sold nationally.

J. Kirk Richards

Title of Painting: THE CARRIERS

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 89"x41"

A depiction of four men who carried women and children across the icy Sweetwater River, as described in the following story: On 28 July 1856 a handcart company under the leadership of Edward Martin left Iowa City, Iowa, and started across the plains to the Salt Lake Valley. By October, cold weather and snow caught them in the mountains in central Wyoming. Short on food and other supplies, members of the company experienced exposure to cold, hunger, and exhaustion, and some began to die. They would suffer more losses than any other pioneer handcart company. Earlier in October, when Brigham Young learned that there were still many Saints out on the trail, he sent a rescue party with supplies to help bring the people to Salt Lake. The Martin Company met up with rescue party members in late October and early November and received welcome but limited amounts of food and supplies. With the rescuers’ help, they struggled on toward Salt Lake. On 4 November they came to the Sweetwater River, near Devil’s Gate. The river was about 100 feet wide and almost waist deep in places. To make it worse, big chunks of ice were floating in the water. For the weakened members of the Martin Company, the crossing appeared almost impossible. One of the handcart pioneers later remembered that some of the pioneers were able to ford the river, but others could not. At that point, several members of the rescue party—one account names C. Allen Huntington, Stephen W. Taylor, and teenagers David P. Kimball and George W. Grant—stepped forward to help. These courageous men “waded the river, helping the handcarts through and carrying the women and children and some of the weaker of the men over” (John Jaques, “Some Reminiscences,” Salt Lake Daily Herald, 15 Dec. 1878, 1; see also 19 Jan. 1879, 1). One of the women who was carried over the river later recalled: “Those poor brethren [were] in the water nearly all day. We wanted to thank them, but they would not listen to [us]. My dear mother felt in her heart to bless them for their kindness. She said, ‘God bless you for taking me over this water and in such an awful, rough way.’ [They said], ‘Oh, … I don’t want any of that. You are welcome. We have come to help you.’ ” This sister also reported that one of the rescuers “stayed so long in the water that he had to be taken out and packed to camp, and he was a long time before he recovered, as he was chilled through. And in after life he was always afflicted with rheumatism” (Patience Loader Rozsa Archer, reminiscence, in Women’s Voices: An Untold History of the Latter-day Saints, 1830–1900, ed. Kenneth W. Godfrey, Audrey M. Godfrey, and Jill Mulvay Derr [1982], 236; spelling and punctuation standardized). These rescuers and what they had done were brought to President Young’s attention. “When President Brigham Young heard of this heroic act,” one writer stated, “he wept like a child, and declared that this act alone would immortalize them” (Solomon F. Kimball, “Our Pioneer Boys,” Improvement Era, July 1908, 679).

J. Kirk Richards has become increasingly known for his accomplishments as a painter of Judeo-Christian themes. While not all of his paintings are overtly religious, the majority of his themes stem from spiritual ideas and narratives. Most of his paintings exhibit a love for the human figure, general use of symbolism and metaphor, and an emphasis on lyric composition.

Ron Richmond

Title of Painting: HALLOWED GROUND

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 60"x48"

Title of Painting: SACRIFICE

Media Type: Oil on canvas

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x18"

Ron Richmond received MFA and BFA degrees from Brigham Young University. His paintings explore the relationship of opposites: light and darkness, the living and the decaying, order and chaos, sin and redemption, the ethereal and the concrete. Richmond has exhibited his paintings in galleries and museums in major cities throughout the United States.

Julie Rogers

Title of Painting: “ORPHANS”

Media Type: Pastel on wallace paper

I wanted to capture the distress of the orphans that led them to rely on each other as well as taught them to be tender hearted toward others for the remainder of their lives. We can learn from them to trust in God as He says, "I am thy God and will still give thee aid. I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand." (Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Hymn 85 "How Firm a Foundation") We can still achieve Zion as we "pick ourselves up and go on again" and live our lives pointing "Zionward." (Louisa Jones, Hodgett Company)

Title of Painting: UNSUNG

Media Type: Pastel on wallace paper

Dimensions of Painting: 23"x27"

In our day and age we generally do not need to protect our friends and family members and especially our youth from freezing streams and physical starvation. Ole Madsen of the Willie Handcart Company sacrificed his life in offering this protection. I hope that in viewing this painting, one would ask in his or her heart: "What sacrifices am I willing to make to sustain my loved ones and protect their integrity and virtue?" On Rocky Ridge and at Rock Creek "the rocks yielded founts of courage" from Ole and others. (Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Hymn 35 "For the Strength of the Hills")

Title of Painting: DETERMINATION

Media Type: Pastel on wallace paper

Dimensions of Painting: 35"x46"

Inspired by the determination of all members of the Kirkwood family to achieve their goals in gathering to Zion, I felt to capture on canvas that determination as it culminated in the ultimate sacrifice of James Kirkwood. I hoped to portray in the face of James Kirkwood, his desire to "fight his way through" and "finish the work he was given to do" in saving the life of his younger brother. (See Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Hymn 217 "Come, Let Us Anew")

Title of Painting: REVERENCE AT ROCK CREEK

Media Type: Pastel on wallace paper

Four young children from the Willie Handcart Company are buried in a common grave at Rock Creek with nine adults. They were children of faith and courage who served those around them. This painting is in honor of all the children who suffered so much in 1856. It is of particular honor to Rhoda Rebecca Oakey, age 10, who was the last member of the Willie Company to die. Her sister, Sarah, wrote that Rhoda "had a sweet soprano voice and many evenings after the camp had been set up and supper eaten she would sing the hymn 'Come, Come, Ye Saints' which helped lift the weary travelers in camp. . . . Though the family suffered many hardships we always held our family prayer."

Title of Painting: SPIRIT-WRAPPED

Media Type: Pastel on wallace paper

I wanted this painting to portray the difficulty the people had in crossing the rivers so many times, particularly when the weather became so cold. Charlotte Mellor (14) of the Martin Handcart Company wrote: "On entering the water, our first impulse was to turn back and not wade across. The water was so cold that it sent pains right to the bone and the muscles cramped. We steadied ourselves as we held on to the cart and pushed. Father pulled. By the time we got across, our limbs were so numb that we could hardly keep from falling as we trudged along. The north wind cut like a sharp knife." They relied on their faith and courage to see them through. Susannah Stone (25) of the Willie Handcart Company recorded: "We waded through the cold streams many times, but we murmured not, for our faith in God and our testimony of His work were supreme. " They trusted God's words in Isaiah 43:2 "When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee."

Title of Painting: “WOLVES”

Media Type: Pastel on wallace paper

The majority of the records of the pioneers record the difficulty of the wolves following their camps, hungry for the dying cattle and ever ready to exhume the shallow graves of their people. Even so, out of reverence and respect for the dead, shawls, sheets, and other coveted items were donated for burial coverings. Newlywed Sarah Ann Bitton of the Martin Handcart Company even tore up her wedding dress and donated it for this purpose. Jane Ann Stewart of the Willie Handcart Company took a wrong turn one day and became lost. She spent the night "sleeping in the company of wolves." However, she stared one down that came too close "with a steady gaze" and shook her hand to frighten it away.

Painting and drawing have been so much a part of my life that I could not be without them. Art has been my refuge, my solace from the storms of life. I love to paint light as it dances around a subject, especially the human figure. I love the figure. It is a challenge for me to paint, not just the physical being but the personality and the sensations of the inner soul. I love to record the simple things people do each day through my art and capture the emotion of the moment in representing the joy of life. The child is one of my favorite subjects because of the spiritual innocence and purity and the honest inquisitiveness of childhood. I love the natural high that comes when you paint something you love—simply to paint it because it is there. I only pray as an artist, that I may stir the heart of the viewer to a heightened sense of peace and joy.

Julie Rogers has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brigham Young University and is currently painting professionally, as well as teaching part-time for Dixie State College. She has received numerous art awards, including ASCA International Art Show first place and Best of Show & People’s Choice Award in 2005 for the American Women Artists Juried Competition Exhibition in Dallas, Texas.

Al Rounds

Title of Painting: TRIAL OF HOPE

Media Type: Watercolor on paper

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x36"

The piece depicts Captain Willie and Joseph Elder cresting the hill after battling overwhelming odds to find the rescue party. Despite the feelings of relief that must have come to them, they now were faced with another huge task of getting the rescue party back to the handcart company before they all perished from hunger and cold. Their courage, determination, and faith in Christ sustained them through this extraordinary “Trial of Hope.”.

Title of Painting: TRIAL OF HOPE – LAST HILL

Media Type: Watercolor on paper

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x36"

This image depicts a 14-year-old girl who was part of the Willie Handcart Company that journeyed to Utah in 1856. In her face you see the blend of fortitude, conviction, and determination while you feel the biting cold, physical fatigue, and loneliness that she must have known so well. You sense a maturity of spirit and willingness to move forward despite overwhelming obstacles. As she came up over the hill, looking for the last hill, she yet saw more hills and more snowy miles to go. With her foundation of faith, she valiantly defied the odds of survival as she endured this trial of hope.

Al Rounds received a BA from the University of Utah. His painting technique was influenced by Alvin Gittins and George Dibble. He has always been drawn to architectural landscape, and his transparent watercolors register a beautiful familiarity with the world we all love.

Marcus Alan Vincent

Title of Painting: EMIGRANT VISION

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 48"x54"

It is a bit of an unusual representation of a family group contemplating the gravity of the relocation across the ocean. The central figure is a father who is flanked by his wife and children. It represents the simultaneous instance of several time periods. The main time is the family in the hold of the ship leaving England where the father becomes conscious of the great upheaval to which he subjecting his family. Having just moved my family across the country twice in the past 5 years, I can relate to the feelings of doubt and concern over that decision. The top of the canvas has some figurative suggestions that may be construed as landscape and sky in different situations yet to present themselves to the emigrants. They stand as sort of a premonition or vision of things yet to come for the family. Hopefully, this will help explain why I have taken so non-traditional an approach to the subject at hand. For me, the spiritual and psychological implications are the most important thing here.

Title of Painting: CROSSING OVER

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 30"x24"

The subject of this painting relates to the Scandinavian immigrants that joined the main group in Liverpool which later became the handcart companies. It represents the archetypal journey from the known world into the unknown that every mother faces when uprooting her family from their familiar surroundings. Enveloped in a supporting ethereal glow, she holds the child in close embrace contemplating what they believe will be a glorious new existence in the foreign land - and the building of Zion. For the time being, the trials and sacrifices of that future road are not even suspected, and all are surrounded in the glowing aura of light and warm love that binds them together and to God.

Artist Biography: 

Marcus Alan Vincent studied at both the University of Utah and Brigham Young University, receiving both BFA and MFA degrees from BYU. He studied under Alvin Gittins, Franz Johansen, and Trevor Southey. He is an associate professor of Art at UVSC, and director of the Woodbury Art Museum. His art has appeared in publications and in several prominent collections.

Clay Wagstaff

Title of Painting: FORESHADOWED

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 84"x60"

"No visible clouds in the sky or on the horizon--everything appears to be clear and bright. The group is in a deep shadow and they don't realize their real circumstances. The shadow is symbolic of the tragedy of the story – of course the story is not tragic in the eternal scheme of things. My assignment was "clear weather in Iowa". The prospects seem bright, no clouds on the horizon, they are headed towards Zion – they are gathering with the Saints. There is a short horizon, they can't see very far. The immediate task is at hand but they can't see very far into the future. The group is dwarfed by the large task. This is represented by the scale of the piece and the monumental sky. The shadow is symbolic of future darkness and gloom they must pass through. The figures are obscured and there are rolling hills – it is not a straight smooth path. The individual hills represent individual challenges – some great some small. The tracks lead somewhere out of sight over the horizon – this represents leading to Zion, leading to God, leading home. They are leaving a home and going towards a home. The figures are spread across the composition in different groups – these represent some that made the journey alive, others perished, and all were challenged. Color scheme wise, the further back in the composition the yellower the grass – deader – which is symbolic of the journey. The further they traveled the more difficult the journey became."

Artist Biography: 

Clay Wagstaff received an MA and MFA from California State University, and a BFA from Brigham Young University. Of his art, Wagstaff says, “I see the world in terms of a balance between cosmos and chaos. Painting for me is the process of continually seeking, and attempting to work out, that balance. Sometimes I intend for the trees in my paintings, and other elements, to be metaphoric representations.”

Rebecca Wetzel Wagstaff

Title of Painting: SOME MUST PUSH AND SOME MUST PULL

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 60"x36"

"Inheritance is a symbolic painting of my daughter Hannah. While we have no ancestors who crossed the plains in handcart companies, Hannah is descended from over two dozen ancestors who crossed the plains on foot and in wagons. I felt Hannah was a fitting model to represent the descendants--especially women--of the handcart pioneers with the Willie & Martin Cos. She is holding a U.S. one cent coin dated "1856", and resting her other hand on an original copy of the Book of Mormon. The shawl is typical of the paisley shawls that were worn by many English women converts as they crossed the plains. (The Church Museum has one of these paisley shawls on exhibit.) With the help of the three objects, this daughter is contemplating the history of the Handcart Pioneers. This painting is meant to remind the viewer of the great inheritance church members have received from these pioneers and their example of powerful faith and sacrifice. This inheritance is to all, whether they are literal descendants or not."

Artist Biography: 

Rebecca Wetzel Wagstaff studied painting at Brigham Young University. Of her work, she says, “My paintings are kind of self-portraits in still life. Though my paintings are often formal in composition, and imply geometry, I don’t calculate my compositions, but paint intuitively. The elements in each painting are symbolic for me—basically, I paint my life.”

E. Kimbal Warren

Title of Painting: ECHO CANYON OVERLOOK

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 40"x30"

This depicts the first group of Rescuers moving through Echo Canyon with the ominous sky ahead. The weather was good at the time they left, but they could see the foreboding weather on the horizon, and could only imagine what they would find at the end of their trail.

Title of Painting: RESCUERS HEADING TO SOUTH PASS

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x36"

The approach to South Pass is an area where the wind does not let up. The snow drifts so bad here that you can’t see the road. I cannot imagine what it was like for these families. (I stayed in my camper here in January to get the feel of the wind and the cold)

Title of Painting: THE ENCAMPMENT OF THE WILLIE COMPANY– Meeting the Rescuers at the Green River

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 24"x36"

The Green River is one of the largest western rivers that the companies crossed. They tried to find low banks and a gravely place to cross. This river swept people, wagons and animals downstream. Drownings were not uncommon. The rescuers approaching the Green River was a welcome site. (Ice was forming on the river when I was there) There were many rescuers that came during that time, and although he was not in the first group, my great-great grandfather, Franklin D. Wooley, was one of the rescuers of the destitute hand-cart companies.

Artist Biography: 

E. Kimbal Warren received a BFA degree from Brigham Young University. He has received several awards, including Best of Show, Rocky Mountain Western Artists Association; Best of Show, Texas Cowboy Artists Association; and various awards from the National Salon, Springville Museum of Art. His work is owned by museums, corporate and private collectors, and is regularly featured in Art of the West, Focus: Santa Fe, and The Santa Fean.

Simon Winegar

Title of Painting: LAST LIGHT

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 59"x47"

My first approach to this painting was to introduce the pioneers to the viewer on a personal level. It was important to me that the viewer felt akin to those individuals portrayed. My second purpose was to bring a feeling of motion to the painting. I wanted the forerunner of the group to truly look like he was nearing the viewer with force and resistance. Thirdly I was interested in depicting a wide range of ages. To grasp this story, as with most pioneer histories, one must understand that hardship was shared by all. Every individual who traveled west, the young and old, the strong and weak, the simple and educated, went through difficulties and overwhelming trials for something they believed with fervent conviction.

Title of Painting: SAILING TO ZION, THE THORNTON

Media Type: Oil on panel

Dimensions of Painting: 40"x40"

I have always felt that there is something romantic and stirring about maritime images. I feel drawn to the sea with no real knowledge or experience of ship or sail. This painting depicts the quintessence of my yearning for the sea. It also tells a story of Mormon pioneers and their struggles across the waters. While creating it I was impressed to depict the dawn of a new day and the feeling of promise that accompanies it. The ship “The Thornton” was useful in the transport of many saints to the United States, including the Willie handcart company. I feel a certain attachment to seafaring pioneers due to my ancestor’s flight from England, leaving Liverpool and venturing to Utah. This painting is dedicated to his memory and all those who shared the same Journey.

Artist Biography: 

Simon Winegar is featured in close to half a dozen galleries and has been published in various magazines throughout the country. He has spent time abroad studying art in the Pais Vasco and Catalunya regions of Spain. The popularity of his work and its high gallery demand are testaments to the fact that Simon has realized his dream as a successful artist.

Chris Young

Title of Painting: LAST LIGHT

Dimensions of Painting: 16"x36"

The painting “Last Light” was inspired by the beauty and harshness of the land that was both sustaining and dangerous for the handcart companies. As the last warmth of the sun recedes, the exhausted saints grow anxious for the long, cold night that emboldens the wolves and other predators that shadow their trail.

Title of Painting: LEAVING THE HANDCARTS

Dimensions of Painting: 16"x36"

The Painting “Leaving the Handcarts” was inspired by the poignant moment when the Saints bid a bittersweet farewell to their handcarts and head down through South Pass on their way to the Salt Lake Valley. Memories of heartache and loss were not as easily discarded as the Saints tried to look forward to a new beginning in a new land, and forget the tribulations that had suddenly stormed their lives. I added the winter birds as a symbol of their faith and hope that would elevate their spirits above the recent tragedy of Martin’s Cove.

Artist Biography: 

Christopher Young was born in 1963 and raised in Utah where he developed an early love for drawing in the outdoors. He completed a BFA from Brigham Young University in 1986. He currently works in his Orem, Utah studio and is supported by his wife and four children. His paintings and prints are highly sought after and he shows in galleries and museums across the nation. Young’s fascination with seemingly ordinary objects – their configuration, function, and design – has prompted his sensitive, highly detailed paintings. A trip to his studio might reveal bird’s nests, exotic insects, dried flowers, or other natural objects, which he arranges for drawings, watercolors, etchings and oil paintings. By concentrating on the subtle, he invites the viewer to reflect on the simplicity and natural order of the world. Concerning his own artwork, the artist explains; “I don’t believe an artist necessarily creates beauty, but finds it and presents it to others. The best of these efforts are affirming and connecting. In my own work, I attempt to capture the slivers of transcendence in the world around me – that moment of truth and beauty when all seems to be made clearer in a wordless revelation.”