Art & soul: Springville's religious-art show is open through Christmas Eve

SPRINGVILLE — "The 19th Annual Spiritual and Religious Art of Utah" show — at the Springville Museum of Art through Dec. 24 — maintains the long-standing objective of museum director Vern Swanson: egalitarianism.

"Unlike regular exhibitions," said Swanson, "where artists mainly address aesthetic issues, this show deals mainly with the artist's own heart and soul."

The exhibition, which includes works by such artists as Robert Barrett, Wulf Barsch, Pilar Pobil, Gary Ernest Smith and others, occupies four galleries, one foyer and an exhibition hallway. Of the record 266 pieces submitted to the museum, 142 works were juried into the show by Swanson, Ruth Allred, Jessica Weiss and Amanda Toler.

Arnold Friberg received the Director's Award this year for his large oil painting, "Nativity Scene." Typical of the artist's style, the painting allows viewers to gaze upon Joseph, Mary and the Christ Child through a flooded haze of warm tones and texture.

The first-place award went to J. Kirk Richards for his haunting "Grey Day Golgotha," which depicts the Crucifixion. In one of the best pieces in the show, Richards gives viewers a taste of modern without diminishing the subject's poignancy.

"Kiva of Snakes" (stained glass) by Andrew John Kosorok, received the second-place award, and the third-place award went to Gary Ernest Smith for his oil painting "Baptism of Jesus." In the piece, Smith depicts the Holy Ghost as a man holding a dove — an interesting perspective.

"Most artists hesitate to put their deepest spiritual selves on the line in a work of art," said Swanson. "So it is gratifying to see so many of Utah's best working in this area."

Swanson finds it refreshing that the artists in the exhibition have abandoned artistic restraints to allow content and message to transcend formal concerns. "At least for one show," he said.

While Swanson's Jeffersonian spirit is noble and his goal generous, such reasoning allows for art that isn't as skillfully realized as it should be to become part of the exhibition. And such is the case with this year's "Spiritual and Religious Art of Utah" show; many works on display are amateurish — regardless of the artists' commendable intent to demonstrate their faith and increase the conviction of viewers.

Also, it's obvious that most of the artists are LDS, and the lack of artistic voices from other religions is painfully obvious; this may be distracting to some viewers.

Yet, despite all this, there are still enough good pieces in the show to make the journey to Springville worthwhile.

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