Tabernacles
click to expand
2011
Oil on linen and wood
65" x 65"
Symbolism
In the background is an image of Rock Canyon in Provo, Utah - one of the mountain canyons that surrounded my childhood home. I drew a picture of this canyon whilst sitting on the bleachers of my high school when I was 16. I knew then that I would one day paint it. I finally did twenty-nine years later.
In the middle is a ghost image of the Provo Tabernacle, after it burned down in 2010. In my love of ancient architecture, I have always found deep meaning in ruins of historical buildings that have succumbed to nature. They are majestic in their quietness.
This still life includes a rock from the canyon, which symbolizes the strength and solidity of nature's presence.
A Sego Lily - Utah's state flower - is growing from a clear stream of life giving water. It symbolizes the rebirth of the tabernacle into a temple after the LDS church announced they would rebuild the ruin.
The circle that encases the painting symbolizes unending rotation and the always repeating history of man in nature. I built and sculpted the frame to be a part of this circle, symbolizing that all things are inseparable.
About
This painting is part of the Simulacrum series.
Tabernacles was created using a combination of the Flemish and Venetian techniques of oil painting. It was a finalist in the landscape category at the 2013 International Art Renewal Center Competition. It hung in the Springville Museum of Art in 2015. The following year, by invitation, it was a part of a classical realism show.
Available for Purchase
Price available upon request. Contact the artist for more information.