Journal of Book of

Volume 10 Number 1 Article 8

1-31-2001

The Book of of : Painter of Scripture

Vern Swanson

Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jbms

BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Swanson, Vern (2001) "The Art of Arnold Friberg: Painter of Scripture," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies: Vol. 10 : No. 1 , Article 8. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jbms/vol10/iss1/8

This Feature Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies by an authorized editor of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Title The Book of Mormon Art of Arnold Friberg, “Painter of Scripture”

Author(s) Vern G. Swanson

Reference Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 10/1 (2001): 26–35, 79.

ISSN 1065-9366 (print), 2168-3158 (online)

Abstract Arnold Friberg is arguably the most influential artist on Latter-day Saint scriptural art. His depictions of the people and the landscape of the Book of Mormon are well known to Latter-day Saints. This article explains the genesis and completion of Friberg’s series of twelve Book of Mormon paintings and gives the author’s own observations on each painting. The of BOOK OF MORMON ART

of

“ PAINTER SCRIPTURE”

VERN SWANSON Preliminary sketch for Lehi and His People Arrive in the Promised Land. Courtesy Arnold Friberg. Arnold Friberg, arguably more than any other pects of commercial art, but his first fame came from artist, established for ­Latter-­day Saints what Book of calendar illustrations. In 1937, in Chi­cago, he pro- Mormon people, landscapes, and events might have duced his first Northwest Mounted Police calendar looked like. His vision of the and Laman­ for the Northwest Paper Company. Over the next 35 ites has become so imbedded in our mind’s eye that years he drew well over 200 more calendar illustra- many of us still tend to judge all representations of tions of the same genre, mastering there the ­broad-­ Nephites and against the standard he shouldered, muscular male figure that would charac­ gave us. terize all the rest of his work. In 1946, after lengthy Many of today’s active ­Latter-­day Saint artists infantry service in Europe and the Pacific during have been deeply influenced by Friberg. Not all, of World War II, the artist married Hedve Baxter of course, are pleased with the familiar images be- . queathed to us by the senior ­artist—­the w­ ide-­ In 1949 Friberg joined the faculty of the Univer­ shouldered Aryan men and the slender, vulnerable sity of Utah to teach commercial art. Located in Salt women they are regularly shown protecting. His Lake City, he hoped to paint on behalf of his church. conception of how Book of Mormon events and He completed his first piece of religious art in 1950. heroes should be represented has tended to sweep The scene showed Richard Ballantyne, founder of aside alternative artistic concepts in the same man- the LDS Sunday School movement, conducting the ner that Picasso, for instance, dominated for a time pioneer Sunday School. It immediately became very the secular art scene at the peak of his creative work. popular and brought him to the attention of a pa- The aim of this article is to tell how tron who shortly thereafter would commission his Friberg’s 12 definitive Book of Mormon paintings Book of Mormon series. came to be created and to shed added light on them by having the artist explain what he had in mind

when he conceived and executed them. In recent Ballantyne TeachingRichard the Pioneer Sunday School, months Friberg has been kind to spend time freely with the author to clarify these matters. Coinciden­ tally, this year has seen renewed public interest in these paintings. All 12 originals have been displayed in a special section of the new Conference Center of the Church of Christ of ­Latter-­day Saints in , and an interview with Friberg was televised in April to mark the release of a set of finely crafted reproductions of his Book of Mormon paintings. The Artist’s Background by Arnold Friberg. © Friberg was born in in 1913 to Scandina­ ­ vian immigrant parents. Later the family moved to Phoenix, , where they joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latt­ er-­day Saints and where Arnold grew up (he did not visit Utah until 1947). He recalled Inc. Intellectual Reserve, that his art career began when, as a youth, he painted signs and billboards, “making a man’s living at it since I was 13.”1 He did a correspondence course in art when he was 18, followed by a year at the Chicag­ o Academy of Fine Arts. Two years later he returned to the acad- emy for a second year. He aspired to be, and has always considered him­ Utah society at the time was not artistically so- self to be, an illustrator, not an artist. During the Great phisticated. The conventional view was that art’s pri- Depression he made an adequate living in several as- mary purpose was dida­ ctic—­to teach moral lessons.

28 VOLUME 10, NUMBER 1, 2001 Friberg fit very well into the role of a 1950s artist. He with social, political, and ecclesiastical prominence. was a very able draftsman, and his narrative or realist That position carried with it a sense of obligation to manner sought to make each of his pieces an accurate benefit and lift her people and the “Deseret” cultural glimpse of life as it had once been, virtually a visual region. She had an active and creative mind that had aid for histori- been exposed to lit- cally minded erature and art by viewers. No other virtue of schooling Utah or LDS artist and travel far be- had the training or yond the norm. It experience to paint was not strange on in the manner that her part to think of he did. His natural Friberg fit very well into the role of a commissioning an talent and artisti- 1950s artist. He was a very able draftsman, artist. Further-­ cally straightfor- more, the fact that ward style were and his narrative or realist manner sought to her ancestry was aided by his tradi- promi ­nent in the tional method: make each of his pieces an accurate glimpse of church in the late from his sketches life as it had once been, virtually a visual aid 19th and early 20th and use of live centuries gave her models he made for historically minded viewers. No other Utah confidence to take photographs, a personal action drawings, and oil studiesor before LDS painting artist his had canvases. the trainingthat might or have experience made others hesitate. He never ­short-­circuited that painstakingto paint process.in the The manner Sincethat the he magazine’s did. budget was limited, her result was historically defining genre art that viewers first thought was to ask the church to underwrite could connect to their own ideas and feelings. this project. It would not be cheap. For an artist of Friberg’s stature the total cost would be significant The Project Conceived and Launched for that day (in fact, he was eventually paid $1,000 Adele Cannon Howells (1902–1951), president of per painting). When her request for a special appro- the church’s Primary Association, the auxiliary organi- priation was denied, she decided that if the project zation charged with religious education of LDS children, was going to be done, she would have to support it felt that this artist whose painting of Richard Ballantyne personally. Friberg relates: “Her last act in life [in had impressed her could teach Primary children in a 1951], the night she died, was to arrange for the sale unique way. She wanted him to receive a commission to of some property to pay for the project. She ­didn’t produce a dozen paintings based on the live even to see one of the paintings Book of M­ ormon—­one for each issue done.”2 of the monthly Children’s Friend, the The work began in late 1950. organization’s magazine for children. First came the process of selecting This art, she hoped, would inspire the topics. From a staggering number of young with heroic views of the great re- possibili t­ies, Sister Howells and the ligious leaders in the Nephite scripture. artist picked those that were thought Sister Howells was in a unique so- to capture moments of the greatest cial position to take such action. She doctrinal and historical importance. was educationally advantaged by Friberg, however, selected the final 12 virtue of her family background. As a based on their artistic possibilities. granddaughter of Angus Cannon, The artist did preliminary re- brother of George Q. Cannon of the search toward the accuracy of the church’s First Presidency, she be- portrayals he had in mind. Unlike longed to one of Utah’s elite families. Adele Cannon Howells, General biblical ­scenes—­for which the exact The Cannons combined comparative President of the Primary Association location of major events more or wealth (on the local economic scale) less defined landscape, architecture,

JOURNAL OF BOOK OF MORMON STUDIES 29 dress, armor, food, and ­utensils—­Book of Mor­mon (1 Nephi 16:10). Of course, the artist had no physical scenes could not be based on definitive geographical model of this divinely prepared “compass” to which to and cultural settings. Friberg calls himself a “painter refer in composing the scene. From a 1986 interview of scripture,” but in order to prepare a visual expres­ we learn how he viewed his predicament: sion of scenes from the text, he wanted expert guid­ How large was the Liahona? How did they see ance on such points. In 1951 he sought out Professor the pointers? Did he open the lid? Was it made M. Wells Jakeman in the Department of Archaeology of open work? What did they do with it when at for technical advice. they weren’t using it? Did they let it roll around John L. Sorenson, who was a graduate student in on the deck of the ship?6 the department at the time, recalls overhearing the The artist’s personality comes through clearly conversation in which Jakeman told Friberg that he in a comment that contrasts his artistic challenges could not help. The professor was reluctant to com­ (those of “Mr. Pictures”) with the advantage of a mit himself prematurely, as he saw it, to match an- writer (“Mr. Words”), who could avoid potential ecdotes from the Nephite record with specific data criticism by simply writing nothing about the ap- on cultural contexts that were still at that time un- pearance or dimensions of the Liahona: clear.3 The dilemma posed for the painter by this lack of authoritative guidance caused him to rely [But] now we come to Mr. Pictures. That’s me! I less on archaeological reconstruction than on com- can’t duck. There is no tube of paint that says, mon sense. “Don’t know.” I have to come to grips with it. Friberg came face to face with the need for prag- You have to decide if [the Liahona] is going to matism in representing context in the first painting, be this big. Now I don’t know any more than entitled The Sees the Finger of the [the next guy], but I have to paint something. I Lord. A key problem was similar to that before decided on a handy little size that they could Michel ­angelo when he chose to paint the finger of hold in their hand, and I made a little tripod God in the Sistine Chapel. Should the Lord’s finger stand for it to sit in. Someone will actually de- be shown actually touching the 16 transparent stones mand, . . . “Then how dare you paint it, if you that the brother of Jared asked to be made luminous? don’t know?” . . . All you can do is research the After all, the Lord does have a finger and a hand, as period as close as you can and picture something the account in Ether 3 makes clear. “The brother of that makes sense. You just come up with some- Jared,” says Friberg, “fully expected the stones to be thing that somehow fulfills your idea of what it 7 lighted. It was seeing the finger that astonished and looked like. terrified him.”4 Friberg met the artistic problem by With this painting it became obvious that Fri­ painting the scene from behind the praying man berg’s representation of the male physique would be with light emanating from the stones so blinding of splendid proportions and appearance. The prolif- that it rules out any representation of a finger. Ted eration of figures across the artist’s canvases created Schwarz, author of a book on Friberg’s art, recog- the sense of another race of people far different nized that “the painting thus succeeds in conveying from what any viewers had encountered before. This great visual power without creating theological strange­ness cut two ways. For some viewers the fig- controversy.” 5 ures elicited a special reverence, but for others they suggested a surreal, mythic civilization borne by The First Eight Paintings Completed heroic ­European-­style men in ancient America not The second work, Lehi in the Wilderness Discovers at all in keeping with usual notions about the ­pre- ­ the Liahona, was figuratively much more complex Columbian peoples. than the brother of Jared painting. The scene to be The dramatic power and spiritual forcefulness depicted was this: “As my father arose in the morning, of the paintings concerned some church leaders who and went forth to the tent door, to his great astonish- were accustomed to the rather passive Book of ment he beheld upon the ground a round ball of cu- Mormon art of the time. But Friberg, who had al- rious workmanship; and it was of fine brass. And ways admired great historical figures, envisioned the within the ball were two spindles; and the one pointed Nephites as heroic and “larger than life”8 and desired the way whither we should go into the wilderness” to convey that vitality in his art. He was not just in-

30 VOLUME 10, NUMBER 1, 2001 venting the rules of engagement for a set of new crea­ tive paintings; he was, as it were, creating a wonder- ful new race of God’s children. Sometime following Adele Cannon Howells’s Springville (Utah) Museum of Art Courtesy death, the artist began meeting with senior General Authorities about technical and theological issues in- volved in further paintings. They were concerned about appropriateness and taste as well as possible mistakes in the light of doctrine and archaeological findings. The artist’s mode of working with them was to take account of their views and then to resolve matters according to his own artistic judgment, hop- ing to receive as much forgiveness as permission. President David O. McKay, Stephen L Richards (left), and Charlton “It is important to remember that these paintings Heston join the artist and his wife in examining the paintings. were done first of all for children,” said Friberg, who believed this could be achieved without painting “in frustration at the scrutiny by others of “every detail some lightweight ‘kiddy style.’”9 Each completed in every picture.”10 The work he would now do on canvas appeared in the Children’s Friend. Friberg’s the movie would actually further his ability to finish young audience apparently reacted positively to the off the scripture paintings when he resumed that paintings, and adults found them appealing as well. Millions of reproductions subsequently appeared as project. Friberg had always been inspired by Gustave lithographs, special editions, and, most important, Doré, the French historical and biblical artist, and illustrations in the missionary versions of the Book DeMille now added another source of influence by of Mormon itself. This wide distribution of his art demanding that all his staff study the work of the made Friberg the “Father” of Book of Mormon sub- English artist Lawrence ­Alma-­Tadema (d. 1912), ject painters and, along with , one who had painted ancient Greek and Roman scenes of the church’s two foremost painters of scripture. with uncanny realism and authenticity.11 The kind of realism modeled for Friberg by Hiatus these sources and demanded by cinema work were After eight of the dozen paintings were com- welcomed by him. He had always scorned modern pleted, with the others in sketch form, a ­life-­changing art, saying in 1954, event happened. The artist was visited by a publisher I have plenty of enemies . . . among artists who from Sweden, Herman Stolpe, to whom Friberg pre- resent my earning a living. They think I should sented a set of the eight Book of Mormon prints go off and starve while painting something “sig- then available. (The prints had won top national nificant.” I am doing what I want to d­ o—paint­ ing honors in a competition held by the National Litho­ pictures people want and understand. I have no graphic Society.) Subsequently Stolpe visited Cecil burning ambition to create the kind of “art” B. DeMille, the famous Hollywood film director. which the confused critics praise for its “plastic DeMille asked if Stolpe knew of any European artists significance,” “fluid lines,” and “inner awareness,” of religious subjects who could work on his coming or (heaven forbid) “must be understood on three megafilm, The Ten Commandments. Stolpe recom- levels.”12 mended only one artist, Friberg, and passed the set of prints on to DeMille. That recommendation was He completed 15 major paintings for the film, echoed by the Metropolitan Museum of Art when and Paramount showcased them in an exhibit that Paramount Pictures inquired there about American toured the world. The exhibit included Friberg’s 12 artists of religious subjects. The result was that in portraits of the movie’s stars and many sketches in 1954 the filmmaker contracted Friberg as chief ar­ tist- pencil, watercolor, and oil. In a recent interview ­designer for the motion picture. Friberg emphasized that these were not paintings Friberg gladly dropped the Book of Mormon art made from the motion ­picture—­rather, the motion project for the time being, not least because of his picture took its artistic direction from the paintings.

JOURNAL OF BOOK OF MORMON STUDIES 31 Daniel, engraving by Gustave Doré The Finding of Moses, by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema. Courtesy Vern Swanson.

Back to the Studio kneeled before the burning bush. I ­didn’t copy it ex- After four years in Hollywood, Friberg returned actly, but DeMille wanted the same feeling in the to Salt Lake City to face up to the uncompleted Book burning bush scene that he had witnessed here with of Mormon project. He had promised Sister Howells the brother of Jared.” on her deathbed that he would complete the series, come what may. Lehi in the Wilderness Discovers the Liahona (1 Ne­ The major obstacle, in the artist’s view, was re- phi 16). “Lehi was a wealthy man, and he ­wouldn’t be sistance by church leaders to LDS artists’ painting or dressed like some poor Bedouin. He’d have rich cloth­ sculpting representations of the Savior. The source ing on. This is the way you tell the story in pictures. of this practice of the church is obscure and proba- By the selection of the clothing you try to show the bly complex, but at least at this time and for some character of the person. Working on this picture, I time afterward the practice was followed. Oddly, the rose early to observe the cool pearly light of early work of ­non-­LDS artists (such as Harry Anderson) dawn, so different from warmer sunset light.” was not held to the same rule,13 and their representa- tions of the Master were commonly used in church before (Mosiah 11–13). “I instructional materials. For Friberg’s Book of Mor­ composed it the opposite of the w­ ell-­known principle mon series the greatest difficulty was with the scene in art, the ‘principle of the Jewel.’ . . . It is like a jewel Christ Appearing to the Nephites. His original proposal ­setting—­the central figure is the most interesting for a painting was not approved. He substituted an- part. You use the strongest color and the strongest other concept entirely that showed the Savior at a and most vibrant contrast around the center of in- distance descending from the sky. terest, and then it goes into surrounding neutrals. I reversed it here for the purposes of this picture. The Artist’s Observations on His Paintings Against the simplicity of Abinadi in his grey prison Our comprehension of what is before our eyes garb was the opulence of the court. The richness of in the 12 Book of Mormon paintings is enhanced by the colors set off this simple, humble man. the artist’s comments14 about his intentions and “And the ­jaguars—­I spent days studying them at methods. His remarks appear in quotation marks. the zoo. There were several reasons for putting them The Brother of Jared Sees the Finger of the Lord in. One thing, it gives a royal touch to have the ani- (Ether 3). “Cecil B. DeMille liked this painting so mals chained to the throne. They are not leopards; much that it became the basis for Moses’ costume they are jaguars, which are more compact animals [in the movie The Ten Commandments] when he than leopards. Jaguars are found only in Central and

32 VOLUME 10, NUMBER 1, 2001 The artist was at the height of his enthusiasm for the project when he was at work on the fourth painting, Abinadi before King Noah. Photo courtesy Vern Swanson. Jaguar image courtesy Allen J. Christenson.

South America, so they sort of help define the geo- Lehi and His People Arrive in the Promised Land graphical setting. Animals are very sensitive to super- (1 Nephi 18). “Yes, this shows the ship that Nephi natural power. . . . The jaguars are snarling because built. Nobody knows what his ship looked like. All they sense the awesome power that is surrounding we are told is that it was not built after the manner Abinadi. of men. . . . I don’t think God would instruct Nephi “Then there are the priests of King Noah. I had to build some very weird thing never seen in heaven somewhat in mind the man back here at the right or earth just to prove that it had divine help. It would might be young Alma. He was mightily impressed be some perfectly sensible principle of shipbuilding by the courageous testimony of Abinadi, so much so that was perhaps in advance of what was known to that he became a prophet.” shipbuilders at that time. This is the artist’s favorite painting of the entire set. “This moment is when, with great relief, they fi- The figure of Abinadi held special meaning for Arnold nally sighted land, so for the moment the fighting Friberg. When his family was converted in 1921 in Ari­ between them is forgotten in the excitement of see- zona through the missionary efforts of a Brother Altop, ing land. Arnold was seven years old. He was baptized the next “The birds are not seagulls, but rather ­swallow- ­ year and remembers fondly the missionary teaching his tailed roseate terns, which are found in the tropical family received from Brother Altop. As Friberg was at waters around Central America. Such details helped work painting this picture, Brother Altop visited him in define the geographic location for this painting. Lehi Salt Lake City. Lean and muscular from years of work- is looking heavenward in thanks, while the other ing as a carpenter, the revered friend was immediately guys are pretty much like in a pirate picture, shout- put to work posing as Abinadi. ing ‘Land Ho!’ The huge ropes were from the movie The Ten Commandments, and they were brought Nephi Subdues His Rebellious Brethren (1 Ne­ from Egypt. The Bedouins there weave these im- phi 17). “I tried to show a fine, strong young man. mense ropes by hand.” Nephi himself records that he was large of stature. And, of course, this shows his forge. It [was] a big Jesus Christ Appears unto the Nephites (3 Ne­- enough job to undertake to build a ship, but he had phi 8–11). “The reason I made him [the Savior] that to start before that. He ­didn’t even have any tools. small and so high up was so that no one could nail He had to melt the ore out of the mountain and me—‘How do you know how he looked?’ So I put this then fashion a crude forge, even to make the tools. little figure up in the sky and made it so small that no Talk about starting from scratch!” one could quibble over details like facial features.”

JOURNAL OF BOOK OF MORMON STUDIES 33 Two Thousand Stripling Warriors (Alma 53, 56). came to the knowledge of their Redeemer’! This is “They call them st­ riplings—­some say, ‘the Boy Scout the verse that I was really illustrating. . . . I put the army.’ No! No! They were young men. They were like waterfall in just to make it more beautiful. The fore- David. They talk about David going out and taking ground guards are alert, aware of the danger from on Goliath. They said, ‘He is a man of war and you King Noah’s soldiers.” are just a youth.’ That ­doesn’t mean that he was a little ­eight-­year-­old. In his statue of David, Michel­ on the Wall ( angelo captures a splendid young man, athletic, 13–16). “I have shown a great wind coming up, a maybe not as mature as men of war, but still a boy great storm. It ­doesn’t say there was a storm, but I compared to them. That is the way I figure these think the wind would have set up a storm at the youths were. same ­time—­everything conspired to knock Samuel “I put Helaman on a horse. . . . Of course the down off the wall and to confuse the aim of the Book [of Mormon] does not say that Helaman rode archers and slingers. . . . Somehow they were not a horse, but in [certain] other places it mentions able to hit him, and he was able to escape over the them. Ammon was out taking care of the king’s city wall. I have tried to reconstruct the buildings horses [at one point].” of ancient America that have been uncovered.”

Captain Moroni Raises the Title of Liberty Ammon Defends the Flock of King Lamoni (Alma (Alma 46). “We are reading the thought itself that 17). “As they came at him [Ammon], he cut off their expressed on his banner. Now I am arms, and the servants carried the arms and showed supposed to picture how he wrote it. He ­didn’t write them to the king. I ­didn’t dare show the arms being it in English. English was not yet invented. He wrote cut off. It would make a great ­present-­day horror it in Hebrew. Mormon said he was engraving the movie, ­wouldn’t it? But I guess that’s the way they plates in because it takes less did missionary work in those days! I showed the space. But if Moroni could write it in Hebrew it moment just before the onslaught, to show that he would be a lot clearer. . . . So I went to the Rabbi is ready to take them on.” here [in Salt Lake City] and asked him to write the message in what would have been the common char­ Mormon Bids Farewell to a Once Great Nation acters Lehi brought with him. It ­didn’t look anything (Mormon 6–7). After noting that this was the last like ­present-­day Jewish script [second line of the canvas painted in the commissioned series15 and Hebrew text below]. That squarish letter we now that it was also the last scene chronologically in the know as Jewish came in closer to the time of Christ. Book of Mormon sequence, Friberg described his [The first line of the Hebrew text below is more an- ideas of the piece in his authoritative, booming voice: cient and more correct], so I put it on the flag even “Now we are talking about the last picture. This is though there were those who insisted that I letter it after the last battle. This is downright Wag­ner­ian, in English.” ­isn’t it? Of course, I love Wagner. I love the great hero tales of Siegfried. The story of Moroni is the Hebrew writing reads from right to left story of Siegfried. Every hero’s story is the story of Siegfried. This represents the solemn scene . . . [with] heaps of bodies [lying about]. . . . So I had to picture the carnage and death, but I tried to do it tastefully. Not a lot of blood and wounded bodies. I tried to capture the götterdämmerung feeling such as Wagner could have captured in music! This is the end of a nation and an entire race. Mormon was . . . wounded Alma Baptizes at the Waters of Mormon (Mos­ in the fight, and so they have laid him down there iah 18:8–10, 30). “The eloquent words of Mosiah on the hilltop. Things like this one last leaf on the are what I was painting: ‘How beautiful’ were the tree had their own little symbolism. You see the waters. . . . Who knew what it looked like? ‘How buzzards circling, because there is death all around. beautiful’ those waters looked to those ‘who there Blood on the sun! This is really Wagnerian tragedy.

34 VOLUME 10, NUMBER 1, 2001 The Risen Christ, by Arnold Friberg

“Also you notice this flag [behind Moroni on the lationship with those who had supervised his work. pole] is the same flag raised long ago by Captain What further religious art he undertook would be of Mor ­oni when he rallied the Nephites to fight for his own volition and without sponsorship, and he did freedom. I think they would have preserved . . . that continue to paint small religious works based on both flag of Captain Moroni’s, the old Title of Liberty. the Bible and the Book of Mormon. In 1963 Friberg And I think at the end they would have said, ‘We completed a painting on his own, outside the com- weren’t worthy to live under Moroni’s flag. Let us at mission, that showed the Lord among the Nephites least die like men under the flag.’ If I had been mak- in a more intimate setting, similar to what he had ing a motion picture, I would have them get out the initially wanted to do. It was advertised for sale in the old flag of Captain Moroni’s and say, ‘At least let us April 1965 Improvement Era as part of their ­Gospel- ­ fight and die under it if we are men at all.’” in- ­Art print series and entitled The Risen Lord, but it apparently was soon removed from the series.16 Aftermath Friberg’s most recent canvas is a large nativity The series of 12 paintings set art on Book of Mor­ scene called The Night That Christ Was Born.17 mon subjects on a new trajectory. Friberg was now a In the end analysis, Arnold Friberg’s Book of “painter of scripture.” The paintings were exhibited Mormon series produced the most influential images for years in the church’s visitors’ center and museum, of art applied to LDS scripture. His paintings stand, then called the Information Bureau, on the south side even today, as the boldest record showing what can of Temple Square. After that facility was removed, the happen when dedicated artist and willing sponsor Friberg art was kept in storage for years. Finally, in work in collaboration. The success of the series is the year 2000, the pieces were brought out and dis- measured by its continuing popularity among Latt­ er- ­ played in the new Conference Center adjacent to day Saints and its value as a missionary tool. The Temple Square. crucible of their creative origin is a reminder that By the end of his work on the commissioned “great art is never easy.” Friberg forged them with dozen paintings, Friberg was dissatisfied with his re- the greatest of emotion and the deepest of talent. !

JOURNAL OF BOOK OF MORMON STUDIES 35 nished a product similar in appearance Passion of a Modern Master (Flagstaff, Rare Books), and others who choose to 8. Jesus also taught more in Jerusalem (see Lechtman, ­“Pre-­Columbian Sur­ Ariz.: North­land, 1985), 54. Schwarz remain anonymous. than is recorded in the . face Me­tallurgy”;­ and Dorothy Hosler has a background in general commerical As John wrote his gospel, he declared, and Guy ­Stresser-­Pean, “The Huastec studio photography and magazine and Other Ancient American Records Yet to “And there are also many other things Region: A Second Locus for the Pro­ book illustration. Come Forth which Jesus did, the which, if they duction of Bronze Alloys in Ancient 6. Margot J. Butler, Special Education Co­ Monte S. Nyman should be written every one, I suppose ,” Science 257, 28 August ordinator, Church Education System, that even the world itself could not 1992, 1215). More­over, Nephi’s original Salt Lake Valley North Area, transcript 1. In A Guide to Publications on the Book contain the books that should be writ- plates might have been of different of an interview with Friberg (3 June of Mormon: A Selected Annotated ten. Amen” (John 21:25). composition than Mor­mon’s plates. 1986). This and other quotes from the Bibliography­ (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 9. Moroni told that the ful- transcript were modified by Friberg 1996), there is no mention of books or ness of the gospel was found in the The Book of Mormon Plates himself upon reviewing this article in articles about future records to come Book of Mormon plates (Joseph Janne M. Sjodahl manuscript form in February 2001. forth as promised in the Book of ­Smith— ­History 1:34). The Doctrine 7. Ibid. Mormon. Some time ago I published a and Cove­nants repeatedly states that Like the article itself, the following notes are 8. Friberg interview with author, 1981. book with a chapter on the subject the Book of Mormon contained the as they appeared in the original article 9. Arnold Friberg notes (February 2001), (chapter 5 of Two Sticks One in Thine fulness of the gospel (see D&C 1:22–23; from the April 1923 Improvement Era, SMA Library. Hand [Salt Lake City: ­Gen-D­ ex Press, 14:10; 20:9; 27:5; 35:12, 17; 39:11; with the exception that publication 10. Ibid. 1973], 139–50). Although this publica- 42:12; 45:28; 66:2). For a definition of data has been added in brackets. 11. Friberg interview with author, 1981. tion was included in the FARMS bibli- the fulness of the gos­pel given within 1. This is quoted from [Gregg Thomas,] 12. Quoted in Grady Johnson, “Moses and ography, the subject of the above chap- the Book of Mormon, see 3 Nephi The Prophet of Palmyra [New York: J. B. the Mormon Artist,” Instructor, Sept­em­ ter was not annotated. Perhaps this 27:13–21. Alden, 1890] and may or may not be ber 1954. The final nine words in the subject has been treated elsewhere, but 10. Some consider 2 Nephi 27 to be partly authentic. quotation were added by Friberg in an not to my knowledge, although ex- from the text of Isaiah 29 with Nephi’s 2. An excellent little book by George interview with the author in February cerpts from an unpublished manu- comments interspersed. Because Isaiah Reynolds [Salt Lake City: Juvenile 2001. script that briefly outlined some of 29 in the Joseph Smith Translation Instructor Office, 1883]. 13. Arnold Friberg notes (February 2001), these records were printed in the RLDS contains almost the exact wording of 3. The American edition, published at SMA Library. publication The Witness (winter 1992). 2 Ne­phi 27, I accept the whole chapter 3 7 Nauvoo, 1842, has 566 pages, 5 ⁄4 by 3 ⁄8 14. All the comments are from Butler’s 2. See Henry J. Cadbury, “The New Testa­ of 2 Nephi­ 27 as the original text of inches, including the margins. 1986 interview, modified by Friberg in ment and Early Christian Literature,” Isaiah except for the introductory verse 4. See History of the Prophet Joseph, by his February 2001. The Interpreter’s Bible, ed. George and a slight paraphrasing of verses 2 mother, Lucy Smith, pp. 85 and 105. 15. Friberg statement to Vern Swanson, Arthur Buttrick et al. Although I do and 3. 2 Nephi 28 also implies that The account related must have been December 2000. not agree with the conclusions of the Nephi had concluded his quoting of given by the Prophet himself to his 16. See Noel A. Carmack, “Images of Christ article cited here, it represents the Isaiah and was now adding his com- mother. [The pages cited correspond to in ­Latter-­day Saint Visual Culture, thinking of many Bible scholars re- mentary. the 1902 edition of this book, revised 1900– 1999,” BYU Studies 39/3 (2000): garding the dating of 2 Peter and why 11. See Sidney B. Sperry, Doctrine and by George A. Smith and Elias Smith 40–41, 73. scholars reject the authorship of Peter’s Covenants­ Compendium (Salt Lake City: and published by the Improvement Era.] 17. It was exhibited in December 2000 at epistle. The claim that the epistles of Book­craft, 1960), 305–6. Isaiah speaks 5. , Vol. 3, p. 347. Williams Fine Art in Salt Lake City on John were written after his gospel is of how “in that day shall the Lord of the occasion of a show of Friberg’s work. much more widely accepted and is hosts be for a crown of glory, and a for Epigraphic Considerations on Janne probably correct. The dating of John’s diadem of beauty, unto the residue of Sjodahl’s Experiment with Nephite Writing The Journey of an 1830 Book of Mormon epistles is also confirmed in the article his people” (Isaiah 28:5). The context Gerald E. Jones cited above. of that chapter is Ephraim, or northern 3. The brother of Jared was one of those Israel, in the day of its wickedness 1. Robert Deutsch, Messages from the Past: 1. Journal of Samuel Smith, Historical who had written his vision of the end prior to being taken into captivity by Hebrew Bullae from the Time of Isaiah Department­ Archives, Church of Jesus of the world. The vision was recorded Assyria in 721 b.c. Ty­pical of Old Through the Destruction of the First Christ of ­Latter-­day Saints, Salt Lake in the sealed portion of the plates given Testa ­ment prophecy, a message of Temple, Shlomo Moussaieff Collection City. to Jo­seph Smith. These will be dis- doom (captivity) is followed by a mes- and an Up-to-Date Corpus (Tel Aviv: 2. I have obtained three other 1830 books cussed later. sage of hope referring to the restora- Archaeological Center Publications, that closely match my 1830 Book of 4. Brigham Young, in Journal of Dis­ tion of the latter days as “in that day.” 1999). Mormon and Bible not only in the courses, 19:38. The incident is quoted The residue is probably the remnant of 2. “A New Weight from Hamath and type of binding but also in the size and as evidence of the existence of plates the tribes of the north that would Trade Relations with the South in the placement of the lines of type on the and not as a discussion of Book of someday return (see Isaiah 6:13; 7:3 [the Ninth– Eighth Centuries bce,” in The spines. I have not seen a study of book Mormon geography. Whether the cave name ­Shear-­jashub means “a remnant World of the Aramaeans II, ed. P. M. binding (process, materials, suppliers) was in New York or was a vision given shall return”]; 10:20–22). Michèle Daviau, John W. Wevers, and in America in that era. That study still to Joseph and Oliver is irrelevant to the The “crown of glory” suggests the tem- Michael Weigl [Sheffield: Sheffield awaits the work of a serious student. discussion here. ple endowment and sealings in other Academic Press, 2001], 133–35. 3. Journal of Orson Hyde, Historical De­ 5. The preceding references are to quota- scriptural passages. Enoch was com- partment Archives, Church of Jesus tions that were obviously taken from manded to ascend Mount Simeon, The Book of Mormon Art of Arnold Friberg, Christ of ­Latter-­day Saints. the plates of brass and included in the where he was “clothed upon with “Painter of Scripture” 4. The only other notations in the book writings of Nephi or in Mormon’s glory” (see Moses 7:2–3). President Vern Swanson are by Melvin Wilbur. On the top of abridgment. Joseph Fielding Smith believed that the first blank page is his very legible 6. See Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Peter, James, and John received their 1. Vern Swanson, “A Master’s Hand: signature and beneath it, in two lines, Smith, comp. Joseph Fielding Smith endowments on the Mount of Arnold Friberg, Illustrator,” Southwest the words “Providence, R.I.” The other (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1976), Transfiguration (see Matthew 17:1–9) Art 11 (December 1981): 75. notation is found at the top of page 327. when they were given the keys of the 2. Arnold Friberg notes (February 2001), 574 (the title page for the book of 7. The subheadings of the Book of Mor­ king ­dom (see his Doctrines of Salvation, Springville Museum of Art (SMA) Moroni), where he wrote, again in two mon books were part of the text writ­ comp. Bruce R. McConkie [Salt Lake Library. lines, “Melvin Wilburs Book.” ten by Mormon and translated by City: Book­craft, 1999], 2:165). The 3. John L. Sorenson correspondence with Joseph Smith, while the synopses of Lord has often used the mountain for the author (21 May 1999), in the au- The Book of Mormon as a Collectible chapters were written by various his holy place when there were no tem- thor’s possession. Two generations Matthew R. Sorenson and John L. Sorenson ­modern- ­day apostles as new editions ples available (as he did with Moses in later, Sorenson­ would issue a book, were printed. For examples of the sub- Exodus 24:12–31:18 and with Elijah in Images of Ancient America: Visualizing 1. This article was prepared using obser- headings written by Mormon, see the 1 Kings 19). While we have no direct Book of Mormon Life (Provo, Utah: vations by Curt Bench (Benchmark major subheading under the titles of scriptural statement that the “rich Research Press/FARMS, 1998), that pro- Books), Madelyn Garrett (University of Alma, Helaman, 3 Nephi, and 4 Nephi; treasures” mentioned in D&C 13 are vided some of the information Friberg Utah Marriott Library Special Collec­ and for examples of subheadings genealogical rec­ords, the above scrip- had hoped for in 1951. tions), Richard Horsley (Pioneer Books), within various books, see the italicized tures suggest that such records will 4. Arnold Friberg notes (February 2001), Joan Nay (Sam Weller’s Bookstore), comments preceding Mosiah 9, 23; constitute at least a part of that legacy. SMA Library. Ken Sanders (Ken Sanders Rare Books), Alma 5, 9, 17, 21, 36, 38, 39, 45; One of the most significant purposes 5. Ted Schwarz, Arnold Friberg: The Kent Walgren (Scallywag’s Used and Helaman 7, 13; and 3 Nephi 11. of the ­latter-da­ y res­toration is the

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