Art published in the Boys’ and Girls’ Guides to Heavenly Mother will be on display in an exhibit at Writ and Vision (274 West, Center Street, Provo).
The public is welcome to attend an opening reception on May 7 from 6-9 p.m.
The gallery will showcase dozens of portrayals of Heavenly Mother and Heavenly Parents, from artists such as J. Kirk Richards, Howard Lyon, Heather Ruttan, Rose Datoc Dall, and other artists from around the world displayed here for the first time.
The art revisits the timeless questions of how a brush on a canvas can give form to the infinite, or provide a window in which to see God?
Christian artists struggled with this, but over centuries developed religious symbols to identify Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
“The Latter-day Saint faith uniquely believes that God is a joining of a Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother,” explains LDS scholar, Martin Pulido. “In this case, the divine feminine lacks the rich artistic cultural heritage enjoyed by the divine masculine, fueling LDS Christian artists to creatively explore how to ‘solve’ displaying a Divine Mother.”
Artists portraying Heavenly Mother now grapple with questions of age, culture, race, and how to point to the transcendent with the rituals and of a fallen world. Guests will see how this conflict has caused artists to consider not only how they envision Heavenly Mother, but Heavenly Father as well.
