The Season: Issues 2022-2023

theSEASON ISSUES 2022-2023

© 2023 Center for Latter-day Saint Arts This volume may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the public press), by any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. Center for Latter-day Saint Arts P.O. Box 230465 New York, NY 10023-008 centerforlatterdaysaintarts.org Logo design by Connor King. Graphic design by Megan Eckersley. Cover image: Illustration by Madeline Rupard, 2022.

theSEASON TABLE OF CONTENTS September issue

page 4

October issue

page 24

November issue

page 44

December issue

page 74

January issue

page 104

February issue

page 128

March issue

page 150

April issue

page 182

May issue

page 218

June issue

page 252

July issue

page 276

August issue

page 302

September (final) issue

page 322

Index

page 380

The Season is a one-year exploration of Latter-day Saint art and culture. It is a publication of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts, executive director: Mykal Urbina. Editorial board: Charlie Bird, Ted Bushman, Kathie Debenham, Gabriel González, Brian Kershisnik, Jeff Parkin, Ariel Rivera, Madeline Rupard, Joël René Scoville, Benjamin Taylor, Kwani Povi Winder, and Warren Winegar; publisher: Mykal Urbina, communications chair: Emily Larsen Doxford; and editor: Glen Nelson.

theSEASON SEPTEMBER2022

inMIND BRANDON FLOWERS’S PRESSURE MACHINE by GLEN NELSON To begin his 2016 autobiography, Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen describes the trinity of his early identity: the streets of Freehold, New Jersey, his home, and his church. Of his religion, he writes,“Over the years as a St. Rose student I had felt enough of Catholicism’s corporal and emotional strain. On my eighth-grade graduation day, I walked away from it all, finished, telling myself, ‘Never again.’ I was free, free, free at last…and I believed it…for quite a while. However, as I grew older, there were certain things about the way I thought, reacted, behaved. I came to ruefully and bemusedly understand that once you’re a Catholic, you’re always a Catholic. So I stopped kidding myself. I don’t often participate in my religion but I know somewhere…deep inside…I’m still on the team.” [Ellipses are Springsteen’s own.] Songs by the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, are sprinkled with Catholic references. No deep digging required. Occasionally, these are direct, such as the appearance of Jesus in “If I Was the Priest,” or the refrain of “Saint in the City.” More often, the imagery of heaven, baptism, or characters from the Bible rise from Springsteen’s broad lexicon of American life, which includes religion. They are more than convenient allusions, however. The -ism of belief enters the writing process itself although it is harder to quantify. Describing how these things are manifest in his songwriting, he notes, “This was the world were I found the beginnings of my song.

In Catholicism, there existed the poetry, danger and darkness that reflected my imagination and my inner self. I found a land of great and harsh beauty, of fantastic stories, of unimaginable punishment and infinite reward. It was a glorious and pathetic place I was either shaped for or fit right into. It has walked alongside me as a waking dream my whole life.” Finally, “I turned it into something I could grapple with, understand, something I could even find faith in. As funny as it sounds, I have a ‘personal’ relationship with Jesus….” Brandon Flowers, frontman of The Killers—the band has 109 Grammy nominations and 32 wins and is widely considered one of the most successful rock bands today—has acknowledged his indebtedness to Springsteen, someone with whom he has performed recently, singing duets of each others’ songs. One of those was a new version of “A Dustland Fairytale,” after The Boss texted Flowers to suggest the collaboration. The song had additional relevance to Flowers, as he told Rolling Stone in 2021, “‘Dustland’’s lineage leads straight to Bruce. When we finished it back in 2008, I sent him a copy and a note expressing my gratitude for his contribution to my life.” This kinship and artistic connection are even stronger in the band’s most recent album, Pressure Machine (2021, Island Records) but for new reasons.

Illustration: Madeline Rupard, 2022, commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

After Covid delayed plans for The Killers’ 2020 concert tour to promote their sixth studio album, Imploding the Mirage (2020, Island Records), Flowers embarked on a project and writing process new to him, and he created a concept album by writing the lyrics as poems first and then composed them as something of a rock and roll song cycle. This became Pressure Machine, the band’s seventh studio album, which tells the stories of people from a single small town, based on true events from Nephi, Utah, where Flowers lived from boyhood until his junior year of high school. “When I was writing these songs, I was thinking of things like Sherwood Anderson’s book Winesburg, Ohio or that book Pastures of Heaven [by John Steinbeck],” Flowers says, “where’s it’s all these short stories that take place in this one setting. For some reason, I had

the audacity to try it myself. Once I realized they were going to take place here and they were going to be true stories, everything just really fell in our laps.” For added authenticity, the band sent an NPR reporter to gather brief oral histories in Nephi, which are excerpted as introductions to the albums’ songs. This creative approach connects to Springsteen’s Nebraska (1982, Columbia Records), a litany of down-on-their-luck, blue collar, Midwestern American stories, and the issues-filled The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995, Columbia Records). Flowers notes, “I attribute my discovery and absorption of his music with helping me become a more authentic writer,” he continues. “He helped me to see the extraordinary in everyday people and their lives.

And in this case, it was my parents who were under the microscope. Their faith and doubts, their search for salvation in the desert. It sounds Biblical. It also sounds Springsteenian.” The title of The Killers’ album is taken from a lyric from the penultimate song on the recording. Here is a verse, “Hope’ll set your eyes agleam/Like four feet dangling in the stream/The kingdom of God, it’s a pressure machine/Every step, gotta keep it clean”. If Catholicism is an influence on Springsteen’s work, what about Flowers, who recorded a short video testimonial for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ “I’m a Mormon” media campaign in 2011? The word Mormon and the name of the Church are absent in the songs of Pressure Machine, and yet their existence is an omnipresent as oxygen. Anyone familiar with Latter-day Saint texts and teachings immediately will recognize them in these lyrics. The songs are populated by ordinary, small town characters, predominantly LDS, from a town settled by Mormon pioneers and named after its most recognized book of scripture. On the levels of both culture and language, the characters are steeped in Mormonism, which is not to say that they believe alike. The characters in these songs have inherited this religion and tradition and are trying to navigate their way in life with it, in spite of it, or parallel to it. In this instance, at least, Flowers is a contemporary Mormon troubadour. “I was born right here in Zion, God’s own son/“ begins the song, “West Hills.” “His Holy Ghost stories and bloodshed never scared me none/ While they bowed their heads on Sunday/I cut out through the hedges and fields/Where the light could place its hand on my head/In the west hills”. These voices reflect the real-life complexity of Mormonism today. Flowers’ characters are something like the Joad family in Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, if they got stuck halfway to California, converted, and just stayed put in the Utah desert. The final track on the album is “The Getting By.” Here is its second verse: “You know I believe in

the Son, I ain’t no backslider/But my people were told they’d prosper in this land/Still, I know some who’ve never seen the ocean/Or set one foot on a velvet bed of sand/But they’ve got their treasure laying way up high/Where there might be many mansions/But when I look up, all I see is sky”. Artists speak generously of influence in their work. Flowers has noted authors, songwriters, and others who were significant in the creation of Pressure Machine. Springsteen himself credited Flannery O’Connor, noir novels, Bob Dylan, and more in his work. Dylan drew from the Beat Poets, Arthur Rimbaud, and others, and for a period of three years (1979-1981) after converting to evangelical Christianity, his songs directly reflected his zeal for the Bible. Regarding the use of religious belief as an adjective for an artist, any broad label is inherently defective because there is no such thing as a single, representative, fits-all version of a believer. Calling Springsteen a Catholic rocker does not feel any more complete than calling Flowers a Mormon one, even if both have spoken directly about their faith publicly. Still, O’Connor once said, “I write the way I do because (not though) I am a Catholic.” The greatest artists defy labels. That is not to say they have no influences. Looking at the values of an artist, which might include religious belief, gives an audience yet another angle to explore meaning in an artist’s work. This is not to be feared. It should expand, not limit, how we view art. In mapping the genealogy of creative ideas, however, something additional is at work, and with Pressure Machine, it is on full display. Before inspiration strikes for artists of distinction, there is sometimes another element involved: permission. It is an awareness that your artistic hero has taken a bold step previously that gives you approval to travel new roads, as well—not to retrace their steps, but to venture into a foreboding terrain previously opened up to exploration and to be inspired by that. Pressure Machine, with its embrace

of religious texts, traditions, and the character of a specific people—all made contemporary by a rocker on the global stage—is the result of one such trip. The Killers’ Imploding the Mirage Tour continues with cities and dates in four countries, through December 19.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

OUTandABOUT CHURCH HISTORY MUSEUM

THE WORLD OF MORMON PODCASTING

In the twelfth biennial art competition at the Church History Museum, 148 Latter-day Saint artists explore the artistic and theological possibilities of the theme “All Are Alike Unto God.” More than a third of the artists fix on “All” for their theme. Many depict the “All” as a sea of faces in varying dress, complexions, expressions. Nearly as common are Ingenious geometries of multiple circles, squares, triangles, blobs of many colors and shapes.Variety takes the form of books, shoes, hands, shells, butterflies, eggs, all pretty much the same in scale and importance. One apparent assemblage of variegated shells and sea creatures reveals itself, if one steps back a few paces, as the face of an Island maiden.

We are living in something of a golden age of podcasts, and the Latter-day Saint world is no exception. The Come, Follow Me curriculum led to an explosion of weekly scripture study podcasts with audiences ranging from the academic to the marginalized to the busy mom. Not a week of Sunday School goes by when I don’t hear someone reference podcasts like Unshaken or Don’t Miss This.

Approaching the theme from another angle, paintings of single figures address the theological question via a unique person. Each stands alone, yearning; will they be heard? Colby Sanford’s woman in the dusky woods outside of her dark house prays that her secret sorrows will be understood. A half-comic take-off by Megan Knobloch Geilman of the classic Pietà shows a Mary figure barely holding on to a large unshorn sheep on her lap, looking heavenward for aid. The image is arresting because it suggests the awkwardness that went with caring for the Savior’s dead body. Is the atonement itself sometimes a little ungainly? Abigail Palmer paints a little blond girl looking squarely at us from a large (5’x4’) canvas. The broad splashes of pink, blue, yellow, red, green suggest there is more inside this little girl than she herself understands. She pleads for help we don’t quite know how to give.—Richard Bushman (Church History Museum; through April.)

But the world of Mormon podcasting goes far beyond that. Many podcasts cover the ever-expanding field of Mormon Studies. If, like me, you’re unable to keep up with the recent proliferation of interesting books, podcasts like Faith Matters, the Maxwell Institute, and Faith and Imagination will give you the Cliff Notes version. Still other podcasts like Fireside with Blair Hodges introduce authors outside of the LDS orbit and ask what members can learn from them. Podcasts also bring close the experience of members of the Church who we may not otherwise encounter. The Mormon experience is being examined from all angles with podcasts devoted to the experiences of women (Q.More and At Last She Said It), LGTBQ (Sit Down with Sky & Preston), and BIPOC members (Beyond the Block and Tribe of Testimonies) as well as podcasts about mental health and disability (wHoly Human). International podcasts are also starting to pop up (LDS Downunder and De Kast van Mormon). In the past year, I’ve listened to an interview with one of the founding members of the Garrens comedy troupe (forerunner to Studio C) on Latter Day Lives, leadership wisdom from Leading Saints, a discussion with members living in Ukraine during

the ongoing Russian aggression on This Week in Mormons, fully-produced short stories from Dialogue Out Loud, and narrative history from the Joseph Smith Papers Project and Sunstone History. With the variety of LDS podcasts out there, there’s bound to be one that speaks to you. And if not, it must be time for you to start one.—Liz Busby

THE OSMONDS: A NEW MUSICAL Nostalgia is the mischievous, slippery cousin of history. For LDS people of a certain age, thinking of The Osmonds triggers such modes of gauzy recall. Here is a pop musical group that sold over 100 million records. The name is a brand, like Disney, with its own, built-in content ratings expectations. In various filial combinations and subsequent reinventions, they appeared so often on American television throughout the 1960s and ‘70s, and on concert stages since, that many audience members felt and still feel like part of the Utah-based clan, if not exactly family, at least like their distant cousins. While it is extraordinary to take in their 64-year tenure as a performing dynasty, their work as creative artists is much less acknowledged. In a single family, here also were songwriters, choreographers, arrangers, and producers—jobs in addition to their perpetual, voluntary role as Mormon ambassadors. Now, to that list of credits, add writers for the theater. Jay Osmond, the group’s drummer and the youngest of the original Osmond Brothers until little Donny famously crashed the party, has a newly-written musical theater work touring in the United Kingdom, The Osmonds: A New Musical, with a cast of over two dozen singing actors. Osmond, who now lives in Chester, England, a short distance south of Liverpool, wrote the story for the soul-bearing, jukebox musical with Shaun Kerrison and Julian Bigg. Reviewing the production, The Daily Mail reported, “Jay is honest enough to

disclose the tensions behind the toothy smiles.We see Merrill’s heartache, Wayne’s depression, their father George’s overbearing strictness, and the whole family’s near-bankruptcy. And yet the show is still a blast.” One tool to view the past is an uncritical filter of fondness; another is a sort of biographical autopsy, a valuable though painful exercise for anybody, even for a famously happy family.—Glen Nelson (U.K. production tour continues through December 3.)

LUBYA PRUSAK There is always a sadness when an artist passes away, a remorse for what might have been had their life continued on. Who takes care of the art and the artist’s reputation after that? If the artist had a career with gallery and museum exhibitions, with scholarly assessments and critical praise, and with works in private and public collections, the job is relatively easy. Typically, heirs of the artist keep the memory of the artist alive by encouraging exhibitions and reappraisals. Many artist’s estates have more works in them than a family can display, more opportunities for surprising viewers with works new to them than can typically be managed. Full credit, then, to Bronia Nibley, the daughter of the artist Lubya Prusak, for inviting the public into her home to see the works of her mother, who died in 2010. For Utah viewers, many of these works will be new to them. [An earlier version of this article erred in retelling the story of Prusak, whose dramatic story during WWII is heartbreaking and yet powerful. A fuller, richer description of her story can be found on the artist’s website. It is easy to become swept up in drama when the facts of a life are beautiful, hopeful, and full of creative milestones, as was this artist. Lyuba Prusak’s work is largely based on the figure and is primarily sculpture. Of her work, she wrote, “…Those motifs, transformed through the

individual spiritual visions concerning new aspects of the world, and blended together with echoes of poetic imagery have created an instant, direct impact on the human soul and contributed considerably to the widely enlarged picture of the present.”]

MANY ETERNAL ROUNDSTHE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER In the foreword to the second edition of The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien confessed to the “desire of a tale-teller to try his hand at a really long story that would hold the attention of readers, amuse them, delight them, and at times maybe excite them or deeply move them.” Latest of those attempting to do the same using the famous Oxford professor’s material is J.D. Payne, one half of Amazon’s Rings of Power show-running team and a member of the Church. Due to complicated rights arrangements attached to Tolkien’s work, Payne and his long-time writing partner, Patrick McKay, pitched the media giant a 50-hour epic set in Middle-Earth’s Second Age, thousands of years before the events of The Lord of the Rings and drawing on the novel’s dense appendices. The pressure on Payne and McKay—faced with creating a five-season series with an estimated cost of well over $1 billion for the first season alone, an adaptation of one of the best-selling books of all time, all the while under the sharpeyed gaze of millions of fans—must be intense. But the first two episodes’ lush score, intricate costumes, luminous sets, color-blind casting, compelling story lines, and painstaking attention to detail seem to promise that all that glitters here will indeed turn out to be gold—Luisa Perkins (now streaming on Amazon Prime with new episodes airing each Friday.)

HARRIS FINE ARTS CENTER BYU’s Harris Fine Arts Center has been training grounds for generations of LDS visual artists, designers, actors, filmmakers, animators, and musicians. Normally teeming with new students this time of year, the spacious, mid-century atrium of the brutalist building is now a ghost town. Former tenants have departed to temporary digs while awaiting construction of a new building, on the same site, to house the visual and theatrical arts. Only the School of Music remains, for one last semester. Once music has relocated to a new building on the eastern edge of campus, the HFAC will go permanently quiet. Current arts majors at the university outnumber the entire BYU student body of 1964, when the HFAC opened. Engineering challenges abounded in the beloved building, but the acoustical problems for musicians were deemed the most dire, so planning for a new music building proceeded first.As associate dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communications, I’ve been part of the conversations. During one meeting, my boss, Dean Ed Adams, excitedly asked, “Have you ever heard of ‘vineyard’ style halls?” I had. The architectural and acoustical wonder by Frank Gehry in Los Angeles, Disney Concert Hall, is the most famous American example. (Coincidentally, Gehry was a former pupil of the HFAC’s architect, William Pereira.) This concert hall design is called vineyard style because the seating surrounds the stage in sloping terraces, like a hillside vineyard. I had purchased a ticket to the LA Philharmonic a couple of years after the hall’s 2003 opening with two goals in mind: to see Gehry’s building and to indulge in a favorite pastime of lapsed percussionists such as myself: silently deriding actual working drummers. I assumed, despite the building’s starchitect status, that my cheap seat in a rear corner terrace would catch nothing but the tubby sounds of the drums and low brass just over the railing. That would be the cost, I supposed, of placing the performers

in the middle rather than enclosing them within the glowing rectangle at one end of a traditional “shoebox” hall. I just hoped ear’s loss would be eye’s gain, putting me close enough to discern, and silently ridicule, timpanist’s mallet selections. At downbeat I set to my sniping: those heavy #5 sticks? He clearly should have chosen the nimbler #3s! But I soon abandoned this petty pastime because even though I was closer to the drums than the conductor was, the orchestra sounded fantastic. I heard everything, in clear, brilliant balance. The hall sculpted sound into a lively, lucid whole, no matter how cheap the seat. And with the players right there, my eyes helped my ears extract subtle aural details. That was my experience with vineyard halls. Still, there were no precedents for vineyard style university venues of the size and function we needed. But the more we considered it, the more it made sense to pursue this nontraditional route. The new building will open in January 2023, and my hard hat and I can report that the feel of the yet-unfinished thousand-seat concert hall is already apparent. It’s spacious, but somehow nothing in it seems distant. The farthest seat is less than 30 feet from the stage. Concerts there will have a visceral, sweaty, strikingly human immediacy. This will transform the audience experience—particularly valuable for an educational institution. I can picture it: a busload of fieldtripping schoolkids surrounds the stage with such breathy proximity that they can see the buttons on the trumpets, just like the ones on their rented horns in Beginning Band. I imagine a performance with a grandpa listening to Bach’s B Minor Mass, transported not only by the music, but by his oboist granddaughter’s beaming face after she plays the gorgeous double reed trio. Personally, I can’t wait to watch Itzhak Perlman perform in February 2023--and more specifically, to watch my students watch Perlman. Musicologist Christopher Small famously insisted that music is not just something we make but

something we do, and that when we experience musicking we hear the complex contours of the human experience itself woven out of air. In our new hall, we’ll do, and see, and hear musicking up close.—Jeremy Grimshaw

I AM: THE JOURNEY On Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 2021, I received an email from the Center of Latter-day Saint Arts calling for submissions for a new grant for artists who identified both as Latter-day Saint and as black, indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC). The project was called “I AM” and the ask was “to submit artwork to reflect the difficult to articulate complexities you possess.” As a Puerto Rican convert to the church this was a call I was excited to answer. 20 artists from all over the world were chosen in March of 2021 to create art from their chosen discipline including paintings, videos, photography, music, and poetry. Plans to display the artwork online soon turned into a live exhibition in Utah at the Conference Center and Deseret Book Flagship in June and July of 2022. The exhibition can still be viewed virtually on the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts website. In addition to the exhibition, an ambitious live event aptly named “I AM: THE JOURNEY” was presented at the Conference Center Theater, which seats 850 people, on June 18, 2022, filled to capacity. I, alongside many of the grant recipients, and other notable LDS artists, shared our art with the enthusiastic audience. KSL-TV will be airing a documentary about this unique gathering and presentation on Saturday, October 1st between sessions of the LDS General Conference. It will be an exciting opportunity to get an inside look on these artists, their lives and their art. As a BIPOC artist who had the privilege of sharing my poetry, I invite you all to hear our stories in the documentary. I echo the call from

the live event: “Come and see; come and hear; and come and feel.” I hope you will.—Arisael Rivera RICARDO RENDÓN Writing about the sculpture, installations, and sound art of Ricardo Rendón tends to leave one breathless. There is so much to discuss about this Mexican artist who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it is difficult to know how to start. Maybe the old journalistic formula is best: the what, why, when, where, and how. His what is tremendous because Rendón is omnivorous in his use of materials. He works with industrial felt, iron, wood, paper, and more— all manipulated with punches, pulleys, and tools of physical force. He invites people to watch the construction and deconstruction of works as performance art. Or standing in front of the finished individual pieces, the viewer naturally imagines being with the artist in his studio in Mexico City during its making because the detritus of the process remain and are part of the final work. He has created, for example, installations using the ravaged trees confiscated from illegal logging, which he fashioned into eerie, reconstituted forests. Every material has a texture and a story. He says, “I always leave traces of the manufacturing process in my work.” Why does he make art? Josefa Ortega, curator at the Museum of Modern Art, Mexico City wrote, “Ricardo Rendón’s proposal is about the work processes involved in manual trades such as carpentry, blacksmithy and construction. Thus, starting from the use of objects, tools and materials linked to these jobs, Rendón produces works in which the repetitive dynamics of everyday work are rebuilt.” When and where? His most recent exhibitions have been at art fairs in Chicago this spring and now the group exhibition, “Anteparaíso” at La Galería Rebelde in Guatemala City, Guatemala. His list of exhibitions is so long and so global, that

the most succinct description of his renown is to say that he exhibits regularly in museums and galleries in every hemisphere on the planet. A visit to his website’s exhibition history is like a vicarious trip around the world. Lastly, the how? Everything about Rendón’s art points to the physical act of its making and by extension, an elevated acknowledgment of skilled, often unappreciated laborers whose traditions he honors. These fine art objects made with hand tools echo the work of those in the mine, the factory, the mill, and the workshop. He wants the viewer of his art to see its beauty—and they are definitely that—but never to forget whence the inspiration, materials, and magic spring.—Glen Nelson (Through September 16.)

mySUNDAY RACHEL RUECKERT

Rachel Rueckert is the editor-in-chief of Exponent II, a Mormon feminist quarterly that was established in 1974. She is an award-winning writer, editor, and teacher. She holds an MFA in nonfiction from Columbia University as well as an M.Ed from Boston University. Her first book, East Winds, will appear in November. It is a memoir describing her external and internal journeys to wrestle with what marriage means while backpacking through South America, Asia, and Europe as a millennial newlywed. Photograph courtesy of Rachel Rueckert. Rolling out of bed. Sunday morning is the only day of the week that I do not have an alarm set, so I get to just roll out of bed. I joke that I’m not a morning person or a night person, I’m a day person. I do a Wordle to wake up. It’s better

than checking my email. Lately, I’ve been doing this thing to center myself: I identify different shards of my psyche that are running around in my head and draw them. This is not art; it’s capturing who’s showing up that day in my life and bringing the

pieces together for a kind of roundtable discussion. These little doodles on notecards help me center, especially on days where I’m feeling really angsty, which is sometimes Sundays. Pancakes with syrup from Vermont. My Sunday morning routine is having pancakes with a big jug of real maple syrup that we got in Vermont. It’s almost like a food storage thing. You have to use up that maple syrup. We have a pretty small apartment in Cambridge, Massachusetts. I share it with my husband, Austin. But I also share it with a roommate, my friend from BYU, who is like a brother to me. He’s gay and estranged from his family, so we have a family here. My roommate needs the kitchen for most of the day to make a meal that will last him the whole week. He’ll make all of his dinners and lunches at once—it’s an operation. After the pancakes, Austin and I get out of the kitchen and get ready for church. That’s our morning. What Sunday means to me. In my life, my Sunday has gone through stages. As a child with a bit of a fraught upbringing, Sunday in our house was a list of things you didn’t do. You didn’t swim. You didn’t play golf—like dad and like bad people. You didn’t do those things. That was what I understood Sunday to be. Then I graduated from BYU and started my first career in teaching. I got really depressed. Sunday became the Sunday blues. I would really dread Sundays. Now, it’s kind of lovely. I wouldn’t say it’s a day of rest, but it is a day of openness, just learning to enjoy Sundays and make them my own. Thinking about Sundays makes me realize how profoundly grateful I am that I made changes in my life to be able to not dread my Sundays and to have the kind of job I do. My Sunday book bag. I’ve tried to be deliberate about what I read on Sundays. I’ve been reading a lot of Buddhist spiritual books lately. I really love Thich Nhat Hanh, Richard Rohr, Tara Brach, and Pema Chodron—I bring these Buddhist mindfulness thinkers into my own spirituality. I always have a book that I bring to church. Right now, I’m

reading Matthew Wickman’s Life to the Whole Being. If it’s not that, it’s The Book of Mormon for the Least of These series by Margaret Olsen Hemming and Fatimah Salleh. I always have something in my bag because sometimes I find church to be a little stressful, especially as an introvert. If I have one of my book friends along I feel better, like there is a little solidarity going on. Our gift to the neighbors. Ever since Austin and I started dating, he makes spaghetti and Brussels sprouts. We have that every Sunday, so I’ve eaten that every Sunday for years. It’s so plain and simple—just dripping in olive oil. We eat very unhealthy amounts of it, but it’s such a comfort food at this point. I live in this apartment building where there are six units. When you walk in on Sundays, the whole building smells like Brussels sprouts. So that’s our little Sunday gift to everyone else. Writing for others. I love to go to bed early on Sunday. For me right now that’s about 10 o’clock or after an Exponent II board meeting. It took me a long time in my life to accept that it’s okay for me to want to be a writer. I love my job, and I love my work. I’m kind of a one-person circus between writing, teaching, and editing. And I adore it all. I could spend my whole life working because I love it so much, which makes me very grateful. My transition to the upcoming week starts on Sunday nights. I co-founded a company called Kleio that does family history story writing—it’s mostly mentoring folks working on telling their own family stories or ghostwriting them for other people. My grandmother just passed away a month ago, and my grandfather will probably be following her soon. On Sunday night, I am writing his stories, based on interviews I had with him. It’s not going to fit in the work week otherwise. It needs to be kind of deliberate time set aside right now.That’s Sunday night. It’s sacred and meaningful to me. I feel honored to get to witness his stories and to try to shape them into something that can translate to other people and his posterity.

ONtheLIST BOOK ROUNDUP by STEVEN L. PECK

Mosaic created of over 200 books covers published in 2022 by LDS authors.

What excites me in the world of soon-to-appear Mormon literature? Looking ahead, there is much that has sent my heart aflutter. One a book of fictional short stories, and the other a memoir. First, the memoir. As a writer, I’m always looking for things that will aid me in thinking new thoughts, enhance my historical perspectives, and help bet-

ter contextualize and understand the things that make my people who and what they are. So the newly-published book, A Chosen Path: A Memoir of D. Michael Quinn has my attention. He was a historian’s historian, and the world he inhabited in his life was some of the most defining moments of contemporary LDS History. He navigated a place

where his commitment to both his faith and the truth as he saw it made him a controversial figure for much of his complex and intriguing life. William Morris’s short story collection, The Darkest Abyss: Strange Mormon Stories coming out from BCC Press around Oct 4th this year, is flat-out wondrous. I’ve known William for a long time, and his work has had an impact on my own. For many years we were in a writing group together that included the late Johnathan Langford and Scott Parkin. This collection is William at his best. The stories are multivalent, enjoyable, compelling, and literary. The titular “strange” might have been replaced with “weird and delightful.” These thoughtful stories are a master class in storytelling and craft, but you won’t notice that while you are reading because you’ll be having too much fun.The stories are speculative fiction in all of the right ways. I loved every one of them, and I think you will too.

THE SEASON LISTS BOOKS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED Over 200 books have appeared so far in 2022 by authors who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and another 50 titles have been announced to be published before the end of the year. This can only mean that while most of us spent the early months of Covid pajama-lounging and aspiring to the fictional lifestyles of Ferris Bueller or Rip van Winkle, these writers kept a slightly more disciplined daily calendar. Imagine gathering them all together for a formal, celebratory dinner. What a complicated seating chart that would be! You’ve got the Angry Politicians’ table, the Youth-in-Peril fiction table, the What’s-the-Name-of-Your-Planet fantasy table, the Soothing Self-help table, the Ever-rigorous Academics table, the Romance table(s), and the Kids’ table.There would be tables for intense historians, for doctrinal seminarians, and for keepers of the

flame of high literature (pronounced: lí-tri-chur). There is science fiction and non-science fiction. We would need a table a bit removed from the rest for poetry, a crowded table for scholarly journals, an overly-staged table for stylists, cooks, and interior designers, and probably some additional seats for party crashers—those not officially of the faith whose books on LDS history and culture or fiction add to the merry mix. So many books, so many seating possibilities. How would you match up the authors? For our listing of 2022 books published so far this year, explore the table, below. (To discover forthcoming books as they are released, stayed tuned to The Season.) We will provide page-turning info for each book as it appears in print, including details about authors, titles, publication dates, brief book descriptions, publisher credits, and bookseller links—all to make you hungry for reading. Bon appétit! To search an interactive table that lists books published so far this year, before The Season began (September 14, 2022), click here. Information includes titles, authors, publication date, book descriptions, and live links to booksellers. The books are listed by publication date, with newest titles appearing first.

FURTHERMORE WHAT IS THE SEASON? by MYKAL URBINA I am thrilled to present you with the newest project of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. It is called The Season. It is so ambitious, its scope is so wide, and its potential so high, that I am almost afraid to describe it. Essentially, it is this: to document—as far as is humanly possible—every work of art in any creative discipline made public this year by artists who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or feel like part of its culture, anywhere in the world. And to help distill what we expect will be an overwhelming amount of content, we are creating a free, monthly publication to write about these artists and artworks with the same level of joy, curiosity, and intensity as our favorite magazines. Every wild idea starts with a wild question. I consider myself to be above-average in my arts knowledge, based entirely on my professional proximity to world-class artists. My background is working with some of the most distinguished performing arts organizations in America. I worked with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center for years and then moved to the other side of the country to be with Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Orange County, California. Both of those institutions have rich histories and traditions of excellence at the highest levels and engagement with very different communities where they reside. It was an honor to be part of those families. When in 2022 I became the executive director of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts and relocated to Salt Lake City, Utah, I realized how little I knew about the artists of my faith community.

Who are our poets? Where are our composers? What art, infused with my culture and belief, am I not seeing on the walls of my chapel and the pages of my manuals? Even so far this year, I have been continually surprised to discover the quality, breadth, and diversity of artists who in some way self-identity as Mormon. I am so very proud to be able to share their works with others. That is the role of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. And yet I know that there is so much more to be uncovered. Here was my wild question: What would it look like to discover and publicize all the art being made out in the world, organically, by Latter-day Saint artists? And could we bring all of the Center’s skills and interests to bear on a project that would go beyond talking about our arts, but would show them…all? An important aspect of The Season is its timing. Why right now? I have a feeling that after the shutdowns, delays, cancellations, postponements, and bottlenecks of Covid, these next twelve months are going to present an opportunity that may never be duplicated. It may be a year we look back upon as the time when artists reemerged, changed, newly self-reflective, emboldened, and ready to make their move. Imagine the data that a year’s worth of searching may provide us in the future? It was simply too rich an opportunity to ignore. The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts exists at the intersection of divine creativity and cultural relevance. What a bustling crossing it is! As ever, we hear the same questions from a curious and prodding (self-appointed) border control within our

Mykal Urbina, center, at the Center Gallery in New York City.

audience: What “counts” as Latter-day Saint Art?, Who is included in a definition of Latter-day Saint artists?, Where in the world are these creators? In The Season, we answer those three questions, definitively: Everything. All of us. Everywhere. From September 2022 to August 2023, let’s refocus the scene on our way-makers: self-identified Latter-day Saint artists of all stripes, globally, whose artistic work bears the influence of their LDS faith, belief, or cultural roots. The Season is our genuine, bullish attempt to document one year of Latter-day Saint art in its broadest sense, wherever it is happening organically around the world. We’re certain we have no idea what to expect. What we do know is that this is the moment to set aside “the canon,” to decide we will embrace everyone, and to take a truly introspective look at the fullness and richness of our cultural village; ours is no ordinary village. Here is our plan: each month, we will share our publication, The Season, and it will include short

previews, longer articles, profiles, interviews, educational works, lists of off-the-radar works, summaries of what has happened that month in the arts, extended feature articles, and more. Anyone who subscribes to the Center’s emails will receive The Season in their inbox. But we also want you to be able to search for things that are tailored to what you and your family and friends want to explore and where you live.We have crafted an exhaustive listing of things that will take place in that month: art exhibitions, book publications, recitals, concerts, podcasts, and performances, searchable by locations and their creative arts disciplines. Want to know what’s going on in Mexico this month? Great. Look it up. Eager to know when an artist’s gallery exhibition opens? Terrific. Here you go. Yet a simple listing doesn’t go far enough.We want to provide more information and make it easy to get access to it. Each of those event happenings includes images, descriptions, dates, maps, and on-

line links to where you can discover more. Find a new podcast that sounds interesting? Hurray. Here’s the link to listen right now. Encounter a book that piques your curiosity? Excellent. Click on the bookseller link and order it today. See an event for later in the month that sounds cool? Super. Add it to your digital calendar with a click. To give you an idea of the scale of this thing, our initial research shows that over 200 books have already been published in 2022 by authors who are LDS. Another 50 are already announced by publishers to appear before the end of the year. What about podcasts? A few hundred of them are already documented. It’s difficult to predict, but any given month may have as many as 500 event listings to peruse. The Center’s existing databases of composers, visual artists, dancers, and others are our bedrock source material. We’re looking each of them up to answer the question for the artists: What have you got coming out? We’re realistic enough to know that we’re going to miss things. Maybe we’ll miss a lot of things. So we plan to take all of the information you have and are willing to share, even for events starting September 14 that we may have missed.We’ll document them, too. Together, we’re crowd-sourcing the answer to a big, big question:What is going on? You’ll see on our website an email address that you can use to let us know of something that’s coming up that you want to be sure we are onto. We also welcome letters to the editor sharing your insight and further reactions to our articles. Thanks in advance for them. We have a terrific team at work on The Season. Our editor-in-chief is Glen Nelson, who never met an artist he didn’t like and seems to have a knack for uncovering new voices in LDS arts culture. Our communications chair is Emily Larsen Doxford who has devised a fantastic cadence to keep you up to date throughout the year on a host of digital platforms of our many offerings. We have treated the launch of The Season as if it were a shiny, new digital magazine with its own design

identity, thanks to Connor King and Megan Eckersley. Our contributing writers are a who’s who of expertise and talent. I’m serving as the publisher of the whole thing, which is a bit overwhelming but also exhilarating. Still, I felt strongly that a small team was insufficient to capture the potential of the project. We are very excited to share that our Editorial Board is made up of sterling examples of the various art forms as well as people who represent diverse identities within the Church. Their names appear within our publication. Just for fun, each month we will ask our Editorial Board members to provide something cool for readers: what book is on their nightstand, what song they just added to their playlists, and so on. If you follow the arts like I do, you will have noticed that LDS artists are everywhere these days and stories about Mormons pop up all the time. I’m not completely sure what that’s all about. Here is one high-profile example for you, but there are many others: In early March, Brandon Sanderson, a prolific sci-fi and fantasy novelist who is LDS, started a kickstarter campaign seeking a staggering $1 million to publish the four novels that he wrote during the pandemic. He said that over the previous two years, “a group of ideas wormed their way into my brain and I found I couldn’t let them go.” He hoped to raise the money in 30 days. It took his fans about 35 minutes to reach the $1 million mark. And the pledges of funds kept coming in. After 24 hours, according to a breathless article in The New York Times, the tally was up to $15.4 million. Kickstarter announced it was the single most successful day in their campaign platform history. He wasn’t done. At the completion of the campaign, 185,341 supporters had pledged…drum roll, please…$41,754,153! The Season will capture the projects that grab headlines and the opposite end of the spectrum, too—humble projects created for audiences that

could fit in your living room. Works by artists many know as well as work by artists almost none of us knows, yet. To us, it is all interesting. What’s more, we believe that all of this has the potential to be fascinating not only to people within our culture but to the world. We want to share it in a way that can appeal to anyone, anywhere. Mormonism as a cultural phenomenon is once again (or perhaps, still) trending in the zeitgeist; look no further than your recommended Netflix line-up for proof. And while the community itself is the subject of great speculation, the fingerprints of Mormonism exist in all our favorite forms of media, from video games to animation to font design. Over the next twelve months, we’ll attempt to capture and extract the impact of Latter-day Saint creators within the larger landscape. In oth-

er words, what are they making? What is the influence of their Mormonism on their art? And why does it matter? With gratitude to our Editorial Board, collaborative partners, designers, and developers, we present to you The Season. Read, listen, watch—and then, please, tell us who and what we’re missing. This is the gathering and the celebration. This is all the hard-won, handmade pride and neighborliness of a global ward pinewood derby, though swap block carvings for inspired masterworks of every artistic discipline. Let’s see, together, what the most creative hands among us are molding. Curtain up on the 22/23 Season.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS LIZ BUSBY

GLEN NELSON

Liz Busby is a writer of speculative fiction, creative nonfiction, book reviews, and other literary criticism. She is the co-host of the podcast about movies and TV from an LDS perspective, Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree.

Glen Nelson is the author of over 30 books. His most recent is John Held, Jr.’s Fiction, published March 2022.

STEVEN L. PECK RICHARD BUSHMAN A Bancroft Prize-winning historian, is the author of Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling, and many other books on American history. His forthcoming volume is a cultural history of the Golden Plates.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

Steven L. Peck is an evolutionary biologist, ornithologist, poet, and novelist. His latest novel, Heike’s Void, was published in April 2022.

LUISA PERKINS Luisa Perkins’s 2017 novella, Prayers in Bath, was recently named to the 100 Significant Mormon Literary Works list by the Association for Mormon Letters. Her forthcoming work is her second cookbook, Comfortably Yum.

ARISAEL RIVERA JEREMY GRIMSHAW Jeremy Grimshaw is the author of the article, “The Lindsey Stirling Effect” and the book, Draw a Straight Line and Follow It, about the composer La Monte Young.

Arisael Rivera is an actor, playwright, and poet based in The Bronx, New York. Most recently, his poem “Jubilant Feet” was published in the anthology Love Letters to Gaia by Miro C.

RACHEL RUECKERT CONNOR KING Connor King, who created the graphic design for The Season, is a senior designer at The Walt Disney Company.

Rachel Rueckert is the editor-in-chief of Exponent II. Her first book is a memoir about marriage, East Winds, due November 2022.

MADELINE RUPARD

MYKAL URBINA

Madeline Rupard received an MFA in Painting from Pratt Institute. Her recent paintings of the American West appeared in this years’ New American Paintings Juried-In-Print Exhibition, Issue #156.

Mykal Urbina is the Executive Director of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. Arizona-raised, New York-educated, Orange County transplant, current Salt Lake City resident, Mykal previously worked for the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center and Segerstrom Center for the Arts.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

theSEASON OCTOBER2022

inMIND THE EXPANDING WORLD OF MICHELLE DORRANCE by GLEN NELSON The citation when Michelle Dorrance was named a MacArthur Foundation fellow in 2015 read: “Michelle Dorrance is a tap dancer and choreographer breathing new life into a uniquely American art form in works that combine the musicality of tap with the choreographic intricacies of contemporary dance. Dorrance uses her deep understanding of the technique and history of tap dancing to deconstruct and reimagine its artistic possibilities…. Dorrance has moved beyond the episodic nature of traditional tap pieces—with solo dancers competing for the most audacious phrase—to craft evening-length ensemble works that tell compelling stories through rhythm and the arrangement of visual information.” At age 36, Dorrance was anointed a MacArthur “genius,” given an unrestricted gift of $625,000, and thrust into the rarified space of the most admired artists in America. For audiences only casually aware of tap dancing, it is traditionally an art form of one-upmanship: a performer dazzles, then another tries to top it. Fast feet flash and metallic sounds slap. Fine, but Dorrance wanted more. She was trained by tap master Gene Medler in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, the daughter of a gifted dancer and teacher and a famous collegiate soccer coach, and she was exposed to living legends of the art form. After dancing with Savion Glover’s group Ti Dii and with the cast of STOMP in New York and on tour, she

founded her own dance company in 2011, Dorrance Dance, which now tours in the U.S. and internationally. It is an award-winning staple of the most important dance venues today. She wanted to create a company for tap dance with the range and permanence of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Her ambition transcends celebrity. Dorrance seeks to be relevant today, to connect audiences, through tap, to history, the blues, and the pioneers of the art. She has said, “To be a professional tap dancer in my generation is to be a historian.” Scholars have pointed to a fusion of Scottish, Irish, and English clog dances, hornpipes, reels, and jigs to sacred and secular West African dances for origins of tap dancing in America. Some research suggests that enslaved Africans and Irish indentured servants in the South observed each other’s dancing. Still other researchers note that urban environments such as the Five Points district of New York City contributed to tap’s development, where multiple, ethnic groups lived in cramped conditions and responded to urbanism of the machine age. Dorrance is especially interested in tap’s connections to Black dancers. She notes,“Tap dance is the first American dance form. People don’t know that tap dance is older than jazz music. But we’re looking back to tap dance being an alternative when

Image: Michelle Dorrance (left) and Tiler Peck (right). Photography by Christopher Duggan, used with permission.

the drum was taken away from the slave. What’s left but your body? Tap dance and the blues come from the same place, and that they both find, from that place of incredible oppression and devastating history, and that they find their way through that oppression and that struggle to be a joyful expression is unbelievable and transcendent.… Those legacies—tap dance and the blues—are alive and rooted in everything today, and so many people know it and so many people don’t.” If you think of a tap dancer on stage or in film, you likely visualize a single dancer, virtuosic, no doubt, but isolated. Or if they appear in a group, they dance in unison, almost removed from other individual relationships or from storytelling. Dorrance asks for a shift in the audience’s perception of what tap can be, which includes an acknowledgment that the tap dancer is performing to music

but also making music, and when multiple dancers get going, that music becomes counterpoint, even harmony, and when those relationships extend over 10 minutes, 30 minutes, 60 minutes, they become narrative sagas. Dorrance has described herself as both choreographer and composer. She is as capable as any great tap dance choreographer of stunning the audience with intricate sound, movement, and textures—her polyrhythms are mind-melting—but she asks a further question: What does the sound mean? She has choreographed for her company: evening-length works that are conceptual and narrative; works that investigate the possibilities of computer technology, that turn a tap floor into a soundboard connected to digital samples; additional pieces are experiments with dancers in site-specific works that investigate a space’s unique

acoustics; and she has created collaborations with dancers who are not tap dancers, at all. In a series of appearances at dance festivals, Dorrance has pulled together unlikely partners for one-time-only performances. Most notably at the Vail Dance Festival, she has transformed these pièces d’occasion into choreographic laboratories. An example is 1-2-3-4-5-6, premiered in 2016, to music based on a rhythm by Steve Reich. The four dancers onstage represented four dance traditions–they are also a metaphor for a society of isolated tribes coming together: Michelle Dorrance (tap), Robbie Fairchild (ballet, New York City Ballet), Lil Buck (Memphis Jookin, solo artist), and Melissa Toogood (modern dance, Merce Cunningham Dance Company). Without altering the separate performer’s dance vocabularies, Dorrance highlighted what they have in common, how they speak to each other, how they learn from a shared movement landscape. (Watch the YouTube video and prepare for a lightning strike of brilliant invention.) Fairchild was an obvious choice as a collaborator in that piece because he is also a Broadway hoofer, but in 2018 American Ballet Theatre commissioned three short works by Dorrance that left ballerinas in their toe shoes— there’s a hard box inside that shoe, after all—and the experimenting continues.

This omnivorousness does not come naturally to all dancers. For example, it is ingrained into a ballet dancer’s body from their earliest training to make no sound, whatsoever. Here, the choreography demands as much percussive sound from a ballerina as possible, and from every angle of her toe shoe. Onstage, two musicians vocalized beats in sync with the sounds of the tap. It is no surprise that Dorrance selects sound for her works with up-to-the-minute connoisseurship, including contributions by her frequent composer-collaborator, her brother Donovan Dorrance. The work that night whipped the audience into what can only be described as a frenzy. In an age of begrudging, almost-compulsory standing ovations at the theater, at the end of this work, which was placed in the middle of the evening, people jumped to their feet and yelled. They could not have stood up any faster or made more noise had there been placed electrodes under their seats.

I was in the audience earlier this year when Dorrance premiered Time Spell with Tiler Peck, principal dancer of the New York City Ballet, performing alongside a host of other ballet luminaries. (When I refer to her as the choreographer of a work, I must note that Dorrance is unusually generous in acknowledging co-choreographers; she spreads the credit liberally, including to her dancers. She is a born collaborator. Speaking to The New York Times about the MacArthur grant, she demurred, “Here’s the truth—I can’t accept this award as an individual. I can’t comprehend that because I haven’t done anything…. I’m not pursuing this for me.”)

Last year, Dorrance choreographed her first Broadway musical, Flying Over Sunset. It opened December 13, 2021. The show presents a fictional meeting of Aldous Huxley, Clare Boothe Luce, and Cary Grant, each of whom in real life had used LSD for therapeutic purposes years before it was labeled as a controlled substance. In an interview for an accompanying publication by Lincoln Center Theater, Dorrance confessed that she used psychedelic mushrooms as a young person, and she said, “In my last trip, the one that made me quit doing drugs, I had a very spiritual experience where I realized that what I was experiencing—what I was seeing, feeling, hearing, and understanding—was beyond my mortal capacity to understand. And, in my young Latter-day Saint mind, I thought, Oh, this is technically beyond the veil. It’s not that it was evil or wrong, but I felt that I was witnessing something that I was just not meant to see yet. Something that I didn’t have the capacity to fully understand or even to fully handle.”

Time Spell contrasted dance forms and then melded them, including ballet, tap, and break dancing.

LDS artists have no greater responsibility to insert their faith tradition overtly into their work than

any other professional –plumbers or lawyers, say– even if LDS audience members crave the insight those pairings might provide. I am not the one to write about the connections between Michelle Dorrance and Mormonism—her artistry and her values—but they are there, awaiting examination. I will ask this question, although there are and have been many LDS artists of distinction, has any of them fundamentally changed their art form? Dorrance has and does. As The New York Times very

quotably wrote in a review of her evening-length work, SOUNDspace, in 2016, “With each performance of Dorrance Dance, tap expands.” (October performances of Dorrance Dance will be in Richmond, VA and the Hudson Valley Dance Festival; November in North Bethesda, MD; and a two-week residency in December at The Joyce Theater in New York City.)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

OUTandABOUT MEET MARIANNE Never one to judge a book by its cover, I judge books by their titles. Take, for example, the forthcoming book about the French fascination with Mormon culture, Marianne Meets the Mormons: Representations of Mormonism in Nineteenth-century France. Who is this Marianne character? And why is she meeting the Mormons? I imagine a quiet Parisian street. Marianne is on her way home from the boulangerie, baguette under her arm. Two young missionaries step into her view. With wide smiles, they hold out Le Livre de Mormon.You can guess the rest of the story. Of course, Marianne’s identity is more complicated than this imaginary vignette suggests. Her life really begins in the years following the French Revolution when, after removing King Louis XVI from power, the French concoct a new female symbol to personify their political ideals. Eugène Delacroix later paints her as the busty and courageous standard-bearer in his timeless Liberty Leading the People from 1830. Or, for a more contemporary eye, she’s the cover model of Coldplay’s 2008 album Viva la Vida, or Death and All His Friends. In either case, Marianne is real and invented; a symbol of revolutionary identity and French liberty, and a metaphor through which nineteenth-century France defined its nation-hood vis-à-vis the many geographical, religious, and political “others” forming around them. Scholars Heather Belnap, Corry Cropper, and Daryl Lee prove that Marianne met the Mormons again and again in art, journalism, and French popular culture. And that with each meeting, the Mormons helped Marianne formulate French identity at critical moments in French history. Often these meetings told stories of inverted expectations and comic hubris (polygamy jokes abound). Or they

simulated Mormonism for an audience unfamiliar with the realities of the American West and LDS history. Reimagining their meetings, I can’t help but wonder, perhaps Marianne helped the Mormons figure themselves out a little bit, too?—Brontë Hebdon (The University of Illinois Press volume will be released October 25.)

NATIVE MEDIA THEORY Native Media Theory is the YouTube channel of Latter-day Saint and Navajo (Diné) filmmaker, Elias Gold. His articulate and insightful videos, with just the right dash of ranting, offer indigenous perspectives on movies, television, video games, and social media. And he’s just dang fun to watch and learn from. He’s reviewed films and TV shows like Antlers, Reservation Dogs, and Dark Winds, and covered subjects like Native American tropes in horror films and what Native Americans think about Disney’s depiction of Pocahontas. From the day I met Elias in the screenwriting class I teach at BYU, I knew he was going somewhere. After he took my directing class, the verdict was in: He is witty, smart, and talented. He beautifully owns his indigenous heritage yet doesn’t take himself too seriously. He’s also charitable: never taking others to task when they make a misstep in today’s landmine-laden fields of race relations. Since graduation, we’ve stayed in touch, and recently he texted to say that after posting a reaction video and analysis to the trailer for Prey, the new sci-fi action horror prequel from the Predator universe, director Dan Trachtenberg reached out: “Your video on our film was so thoughtful and well put together…. Amber [Midthunder, the lead]

and I were ecstatic over it! I can’t wait for you to see the film!!” Trachtenberg then set up a private screening for Elias, and Disney arranged for Elias to interview stars Amber Midthunder and Dakota Beavers. This is how he rolls. I’m sure that won’t be the last time this happens. Nor will I be surprised to see Elias making his own intelligent, perceptive films about the indigenous experience in America, and more. The way I see it, he just might be America’s answer to Taika Waititi. —Jeff Parkin (Check out the channel.)

PROXIMITY THROUGH PODCASTS “You should start a podcast about it!” The suggestion came to my friend Ben from a single working mom after she missed a panel discussion by LGBTQ+ Latter-day Saints. Her heart wanted to engage in vital conversations concerning faith and sexual orientation, but her demanding schedule made it impractical. A few weeks later Ben called me up and our podcast, Questions from the Closet, was born. The woman’s idea, though simple, solved more than just her scheduling conflicts. Our podcast has become a widespread, accessible way to build representation, community, and connection at the intersection of our faith and our identities. It provides a user-friendly resource for others to learn about our experience. As social trends have explored identity, equality, and civil rights, many members of the Church have examined how their identities interact with their faith and with Church history. Podcasting has become one of the most popular ways to share insights and experiences for Saints who belong to minority groups. Examples of this can be seen in podcasts like Beyond the Block, which explores the experience of LGBTQ+ and Black and Indigenous People of Color in the Church, and At Last She Said It, which shares gospel insights, blessings, and challenges from a female perspective.

Identities matter. They inform how each of us are viewed and treated, and how we shape the world around us. They influence how we interact with gospel teachings, and impact how we fit in the surrounding culture. By exploring our own identities and gaining proximity to others, we can heal divisions, find validation, and increase belonging for ourselves and others. Luckily, stepping into that space doesn’t have to be daunting and impractical. It can be as simple as searching a podcast! —Charlie Bird

SAVING ME Aaron Johnston pitched a live action, family sitcom to BYU Broadcasting about an old man who has everything in life except happiness, and who decides to build a time machine to rescue his 11-year old self. Great, the studio brass said. But there was a problem: 11-year olds don’t stay 11. If the show were successful, puberty would be its own ticking bomb; there’s no time machine for actors (alas). Instead, Johnston was partnered with Kelly Loosli, the co-creator of BYU’s Animation program and its current director. Saving Me became an animated series—the first animated series for BYUtv— led by Johnston, Loosli, and studio executives Brian Gibson and Roddy McManus. The production studio for Saving Me is Sphere, located in Montreal. Production began in January of last year for 20 episodes divided into two seasons (so far), and its premiere episode airs October 1 on BYUtv. Johnston (a New York Times bestselling author of science fiction) and Gibson built the show’s narrative while Loosli was tasked with the design of its characters and environments. Any adult sitting in front of a TV, holding the remote, with kids alongside, knows that finding a show to watch together is only slightly less complex than navigating time travel itself. Loosli writes us, “The great thing about animation is that if you write the script with layers you can appeal to both children and parents and that sort of co-viewing

experience is really what we are hoping for. I think that co-viewing goal with message driven content is really at the heart of what BYU Broadcasting would like to achieve.” (Airing on BYUtv app and BYUtv.org, October 1.)

THE NATIONAL PARKS TOUR

Nearly every track invokes the wild: coyote calls, tall trees, open skies, seas of stars, desert winds, and blue moons. Omnipresent, too, is a reverence and awe for the beauty of the Earth – Ooh I can’t explain, I see it all around me / Ooh it’s in my veins, I feel it so profoundly / Beautiful world, it’s a beautiful world. (“Mother Nature,” Track 7 on Wildflower).

National Parks across the country have Covid era-induced cabin fever to thank for a sudden surge in visitors from Yosemite to Yellowstone, Glacier to Acadia.The other National Parks surge? The growing popularity of the Provo-born indie-folk band by the same name. Trade visitorship for listenership: The National Parks’ latest single, “Angels,” which dropped September 7, 2022, saw more than one million streams in its first six days after release.

The National Parks, ever on the rise since their 2016 crowning as Utah’s “Band of the Year” by Salt Lake City Weekly magazine, are currently on tour supporting Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors and Judah & The Lion. But look no further than the lyrics of the recently-released “Angels” to know that no matter where the Wildflower tour and future expeditions may take them, The National Parks’ home will always be in the red sandstone canyons of Southern Utah:

The National Parks the band is more than a cheeky nod to its founding members’ surnames. In every lyric and melody since their 2013 debut album, Brady Parks from Denver, Colorado (guitar and lead vocals), wife Megan Taylor Parks from Draper, Utah (fiddle and vocals), Sydney Macfarlane from Kaysville, Utah (keyboards and vocals), and Cam Brannelly from Draper, Utah (drums) have embodied the hook of their most well-known hit, “As We Ran”: ‘Cause we belong here with the Great Tetons.

We were swaying in the firelight to the sound of coyote calls

And belong they do. The group’s Utah-grounded sense of exploration and adventure extends past their great outdoors music videos, filmed on location, (“Wildflower” at Bryce, “Monsters of the North” at Zions, “Angels” at Grand Teton) and deep into their musical stylings. Their fourth and most recent album, Wildflower, sheds its predecessors’ folksy overtures to embrace the freedom of the wild, wild Intermountain West. Like the eponymous wildflowers, each track blooms where it is planted, from the electric “Horizon,” to the dreamy, acoustic “Daze,” to the sung-around-the campfire “Painted Sky.”

—Mykal Urbina (The National Parks fall tour continues across the country through October 22.)

Our silhouettes like giants dancing on Zion canyon walls We climbed up where the angels land You looked right at home then you took my hand I thought hey, I’mma tell our kids about this someday

THE PLAYER Trivia Time: Name, if you can, the LDS artist who has had books published (this year!) by Knopf, Viking, HarperCollins, G.P. Putnam, and Rocky Pond. You might not know his name—that was one clue, the title of this article is another—but a bibliophile certainly recognizes those sterling publishers. Still stumped? Would it help if we gave you his books’ titles? It might if you have young kids who love

picture books. They are, respectively, Not Enough Lollipops, Vampire Vacation, Paletero Man, Stop and Smell the Cookies, and Millions of Maxes. The artist is Micah Player, and this illustrator of humorous, colorful books is on a serious roll. At the end of October, Player’s art will stand for itself, as he participates in an invitational group show, The Original Art 2022: The Exhibit, at the Society of Illustrators in New York City. Since 1980, this annual exhibition at the Society’s Upper East Side townhouse museum is a showcase of the original art produced for the year’s best children’s books. A jury of peers—illustrators, art directors, and editors—selects which works to be honored in the exhibition, and Micah Player’s work is among this year’s esteemed, illustrious group. An Alaska native, Player, arrived at illustration through the world of design in the apparel industry. His signature style is bright, global, whimsical, and socially engaged. In collaboration with authors, he is the 2022 recipient of: the Bank Street Book List for the story about a Los Angeles ice cream vendor, Palatero Man; Amazon Editor’s Pick for Millions of Maxes; Publisher’s Weekly New and Noteworthy List for Palatero Man; and the Minnesota Star of the North Award for Kids’ Read Aloud—Friday Night Wrestlefest, a title that was one of Parent Magazine’s Best Children’s Books of 2020. He is a self-described “author, illustrator, letterer, designer, ink-slinger.” The newly-published Spanish-translation title of Paletero is ¡Que Paletero tan Cool!, like Player’s of-the-moment imagery, cool indeed. (Society of Illustrators exhibition runs October 26 through January 7.)

was this the face In spring, 2020, Center for Latter-day Saint Arts issued a call for proposals entitled Art for Uncertain Times. Artists, creators and scholars from all over the world responded to the call, and fifty proposals were selected. Our organizational philosophy was this: Who better to navigate the global health

pandemic of COVID-19 alongside the long-embattled pandemic of racism than our artists? The Center’s overriding belief that creators can be our most important sages during a moment of global distress underscores Georges Braque’s inclination that “art is a wound turned to light.” Husband-and-wife team and sometimes artistic collaborators, Jamie and Emily Erekson, were selected as grant recipients for Art for Uncertain Times. In April, 2020, Jamie (composer, interdisciplinary artist, and creative producer) and Emily (interdisciplinary artist, composer, and performer) proposed their initial collaboration. But over the past two years, their project grew in scale and ambition, adding the Utah Division of Arts and Museums and The Salt Lake City Arts Council as funders; and evolved to respond to the undercurrent of rising social tensions. Initially a reflection on individual isolation, was this the face has unfolded into a dialogic exploration of the self defined by the other, and the other defined by the self. was this the face is also a discourse on hybridity: it is both an online and interactive experience as well as a curated presentation. It is both audio and visual; voluntary and planned; static and dynamic; representational and figurative. Willing participants, photographed as part of a growing archive, provide portrait material for six cross-sections of the facial visage. Each photograph is uploaded, sectioned, and composited into an evolving image, which changes every few seconds on a constant loop and projected onto the south wall of the Salt Lake City Public Library. The Ereksons’ capable fusion of genres amplifies tensions related to intersectionality; and the facial portrait is something and nothing all at once. At one point the facial strips render and project on the screen, challenging the nature of the image over and over again, while sounds of the accordion frantically crescendo and rarely resolve. The result? The viewer anxiously anticipates what never comes: permanence. Underneath the evolving portrait is a static design that references a traditional mugshot. Instead

of incarceration or booking information, however, is a listing of current date next to textual abbreviation: “RCVD.” The implicit question here is about reception. How does the viewer receive the work? How does the individual receive the other? And, perhaps more importantly, how do our most significant public or community institutions–referenced by the mugshot–shape, frame, or receive us? The role of the public institution on the self is a question the Ereksons ask not only through form but also through function, with the premiere of was this the face displayed at the Salt Lake City Public Library in October.—Emily Larsen Doxford (Add your portrait to was this the face and see the installation at the Salt Lake City Public Library, or visit it online.)

LINDSEY STIRLING Lindsey Stirling, dancing pop violinist famously adept at performing two ways at once, has always been her own artist—serving, simultaneously, as a fascinating glimpse into 21st-century Mormonism. Her skills recall the rigorous music lessons demanded of many Latter-day Saint children. Her joyful, idiosyncratic hybridization of dance and performance unleashes the weirdness in which our culture uniquely thrives, while her pop music tastes, often encouraged to young talents to optimize their possibilities of church ambassadorship, keep her solidly accessible.

sic videos, Stirling’s self—the young woman balancing a pop career with loyalty to her religious community, the person who has spoken openly about struggles with depression and anorexia— can often seem to disappear. Who is she beneath the pop artists she draws from? The album’s first single, “Ice Storm,” steps back from the reflective chillstep of 2019’s Artemis and embraces the high drama and rock sensibilities of her earlier work. This change seems less like an artistic progression and more a cold-blooded marketing choice. There’s little doubt that while pop music and Youtube survive, Lindsey Stirling will continue to thrive along with them. But in a career that has decades ahead, we might ask: How will Lindsey Stirling change? Will new collaborations bring out new, less-accessible dimensions? Will she free herself from covers and medleys and allow audiences in deeper? So far, Stirling’s inner self—a place far more complex than the casual listener might perceive—remains hidden in a storm of glittering ice.—Ted Bushman (Snow Waltz will be released October 7.)

JONNA Author Seth Godin once said, “An artist is someone who uses bravery, insight, creativity, and boldness to challenge the status quo. And an artist takes it personally.”

Stirling’s upcoming album, Snow Waltz, her sixth overall album and second holiday release, represents her second project with Gladius, Grammy-nominated producer who’s worked with Demi Lovato and Justin Bieber, and will include collaborations with David Archuleta, Bonnie McKee, and Frawley. Stirling describes it: “I wanted to give the songs a whimsical, pixie-like feeling that’s quintessentially me.”

To find someone who is brave, has insight, creativity, and boldness, there is no need to look any further than Finnish singer-songwriter Jonna, who will be featured in “Diamonds of the North—Finnish Singer-Songwriters Live Showcase” at Scandinavia House in NYC on October 21st.

What is “quintessentially” Stirling is harder to pin down than she here suggests. Amid a storm of pop covers and seemingly lab-grown viral mu-

After winning the television reality competition Popstars in 2002 with the band Gimmel, Jonna signed a solo deal with Sony Music Finland and

What led Jonna to be the type of artist described above? The answer is a story of determination and will.

was nominated four times at Emma-gala (the Finnish Grammys), becoming a bonafide success. She was the first artist to really combine American influenced pop R&B sounds and Finnish lyrics. However, she wanted to do something more. She decided that she wanted to make an English-language album, share her music and her story with a wider audience, and raise mental health awareness with her music. She said in an interview with Allison Aston in 2009,“I write songs to myself more than about myself. It’s therapeutic to let it out in my songs so that it’s not just all somewhere inside me…. Then, when I’m performing, I try to believe what I wrote.” Her record label was not on board with her switching to English. She decided to do it on her own. Bravely forging a new path as an independent artist, she went on a 7-year journey that led her from Los Angeles, to studying Pop and Jazz vocal performance in Helsinki and Stockholm, to crowdfunding and releasing her album Sound Mind–her voice, her way. Recognized as a brave and bold artist who paved the way for other Finnish singer-songwriters, Jonna will be sharing her voice and infectious energy at Scandinavia House this October. This is a showcase you will want to witness live.—Arisael Rivera

DANIEL EVERETT Arriving at the NY Art Book Fair this October is the newest publication by artist Daniel Everett, Vantage Point, in collaboration with artist, Mårten Lange, and published by Actual Source Books. The project came into being after a serendipitous realization between the two artists that they were both photographing the same buildings of Tokyo at different times of day. Where Lange’s camera casts a soft, atmospheric grisaille on skyscrapers and intersections of the city, Everett reveals the buildings with a stark clarity. He discloses systems of man-made control such as safety nets, wiring,

and scaffolding that suggest the tenuous line between chaos and order in urbanity.Their visions of Tokyo interplay to suggest two distinct, valid ways of seeing a city. To add a monochromatic film, as Lange has done, is to purposely obscure and instill mystery; Everett’s approach to clear the air around it and present it in sharp detail is to hand all information over and let the viewer interpret and judge for themselves. Everett evidently trusts you with that task. Daniel Everett is a prolific visual artist with a history of solo shows, two monographs, and whose work no less than inspired the Swiss designer, Nolan Paparelli, to create the typeface,“Everett.” As an Associate Professor of Art at BYU, his impact on the young artists of Provo, Utah is undeniable. He helped pave the way for conceptual thinking in the Fine Arts program, designing classes that exposed students to artists such as Félix González-Torres and Jenny Holzer while challenging them to think and work beyond traditional mediums into new dimensions of sound art, performance, and installation. Off-campus he operates a gallery space, Arcade on Stadium, holding regular exhibitions and providing a model of engaging with the real world and building community where you are planted. If you are near New York, be sure to check out his work at Actual Source’s booth at Printed Matter’s NY Art Book Fair, October 13-16, 2022 at 548 W 22nd Street.—Madeline Rupard (The book will soon be available worldwide on actualsource.org.)

BRIAN KERSHISNIK As painted canvases go, 108 by 246 inches is pretty large. Even artists who dream big think twice before committing the time and materials and space to make monumental paintings. Everything about a project of this kind is at an increased scale, including artist’s risks and viewer’s expectations. If you stand in front of a painting about war that is the physical size of Picasso’s Guernica, for example, you expect a powerful punch.

Suit up, then, for Aprés la guerre, a 20-foot, recently-finished painting by Brian Kershisnik, completed after 18 months’ work during the pandemic. It is to be unveiled at his one-person show at David Ericson Gallery in Salt Lake City, Utah. The exhibition, Refuge, will include other recent works as well, which “continue to explore living, loving, longing, leaving, and returning,” the artist writes us. Kershisnik’s big painting represents the aftermath of war; the two sides are gathering to face each other—boys and girls, men and women, animals and infants. None is unaffected. Viewers will see figures that are nearly life-sized and because of their proximity in a gallery environment, the canvas will force visitors to step into the artist’s bar-

ren landscape, too. It is an enigmatic work: What kind of war has just ended? Is it a pre-mortal battle or an earthly one? Our emotional backdrop at the moment is colored by the daily war coverage arriving from Eastern Europe. We will be viewing the painting even as Ukrainian soldiers retake lost towns and discover atrocities and devastation revealed by retreating forces. Or is the war of the painting metaphorical? After recent years of lockdown and caustic politicking, who does not feel embattled emotionally, right now? The absence of war is not necessarily peace. (Exhibition opens September 27 and run through October 18; artist’s talk on September 30.)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

mySUNDAY MARIO R. MONTANI

Mario R. Montani worked in public relations and as a singer in the Coro Estable de la Orquesta Sinfónica Provincial de Bahía Blanca, in Argentina. He writes the blog Mormosofía, essays about Mormon culture, that grew from letters written to his daughter, and he is part of the collective, Cofradía de Letras Mormonas, a quarterly online journal dedicated to describing and discovering the work of Mormon writers in Spanish. Photograph courtesy of Mario R. Montani. Yerba mate and breakfast. I usually get up at 5:30 or six o’clock in the morning, not only on Sunday—that’s my hour to stop sleeping. I like to use that time in the morning. I try to enjoy reading the scriptures or a talk and also writing

about some subjects that I am working on. That is my time, usually, until seven o’clock. Then, I wake up my wife, Mabel, with some yerba mate in bed, with a metal bombilla straw. Mate is our national hot drink. So we start the day as a family. We

have breakfast, and we spend some time in the kitchen preparing the food so that it will be ready in advance for lunch. In our house it is just me and my wife. All the children are gone. We have one daughter together, Edelweiss, and she lives in another city about 200 miles from us, with her family. There, she plays with the Río Negro State Orchestra, and I have three other children from my first marriage. They are all older. We have 14 grandchildren. We live in Bahía Blanca. People in Buenos Aires call us the south, but for us, the south means Patagonia. Bahía Blanca is a city of about 500,000. The present version of meetings. Then we prepare to go to church. Our meetinghouse is about eight blocks from home. We usually will pick up some neighbors that are members of the Church and drive them there. My wife is recovering from a stroke, step by step. It is not easy. Beginning this year, we usually go by car. I play the piano for sacrament meeting. That’s how I keep my fingers working. Our building has one congregation in it. I have been a member of the Church all of my life. My grandfather and my mother were members, and my father converted to the Church. In our ward, mostly, we have known each other a long time, but we are in a difficult moment right now because of the pandemic. Some people are still not coming back to the present version of meetings. We still have the WhatsApp version or Zoom or YouTube version, and some prefer that because of their health or because they have grown accustomed to doing it that way. We used to have an attendance of about 100 people; we are between 60 and 70 right now. Nap then WhatsApp. Then after the second hour class or meeting, we will come back home and have dinner. Whenever we can on Sunday afternoons, we have a small nap.We need it because we wake up early, so it helps us to keep going during the day. It’s a short nap we call a siesta.Then in the afternoon, we try to dedicate time to our family and friends. Our daughter is far away, and we miss her very much. And the grandchildren,

too. I have a grandchild in the mission in Southern Brazil. I have another grandson getting married in Bolivia. So we try to keep in touch with all of them by phone, by WhatsApp, mail, or Zoom, depending on where they are. A double approach. I have what I could call a double approach to the day of the Lord. First, it is undoubtedly His day, no? So we partake of the sacrament, remembering His atonement, His sacrifice. And we share our testimonies with the other members of the Church in the ward. But at the same time, the scriptures say the Sabbath was made for man. So I think it’s also our day. I think it’s my day. Maybe it sounds a little selfish. But I like to think this way, that it is also our day, to stop working, to stop doing the daily routine things and make time, especially time for our families. But also to find time to be ourselves, I think. For me this is important. It is the way it works for me. Nature and art and friends. In my youth, I discovered that there were two things that helped me to be in touch or be closer to the Lord and His word. First, nature and second, art. So I always try to do something about that on Sundays. Sometimes we watch or read material that is produced by the Church, but sometimes not. In other moments, I prefer something that brings me closer to the creation, watching and learning about animals or plants, or about art, reading a good poem or story or listening to good music. And I feel close to the Lord in those ways. I see it as a gift and also a responsibility. I intend to keep myself in balance, in equilibrium. My wife and I used to sing in an opera choir for more than 20 years. It started as a hobby, but after some years, it became a pretty important job for us. My wife is an accountant, and I help her whenever I can, but we try not think about work on Sunday. We are in our seventies now, and we find our friends are really important in our life.We try to give them some time on Sunday evenings—not only to visit them and share a dinner, but to receive strength from them. Maybe in prior years, we didn’t realize that as much as we do now. We find that is important, too.

ONtheLIST COME, FOLLOW ME RESOURCES

Screengrab of Come, Follow Me Resources searchable table listing nearly 100 offerings. To access the table, go here.

Four years ago, in a General Conference address that recalibrated what members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expect about going to church itself, President Russell M. Nelson called for an adjustment,“It is time for a home-centered Church,” he said, “supported by what takes place inside our branch, ward, and stake buildings.” He teed up Elder Quentin L. Cook, who then described the specific changes of two-hour Sunday worship services, new emphasis on the Savior, and announced, “…a new Come, Follow Me resource for individuals and families that is coordinated with what is being taught in Sunday School and Primary.” The manuals for the curriculum were available immediately thereafter, and in January 2019, a newly-designed immersion into the New Testament began, with each year bringing a set of scriptures to study. The pattern of four years of the standard works is coming to a close now, and shortly the Church curriculum cycle will begin again. President Nelson’s “church-supported” message was buttressed by extensive study aids produced by the Church in addition to the manual and available on its official website. Meanwhile, industrious members, institutions, and semi-affiliated businesses—we could have predicted this—supported the support, as it were, and created many, many additional materials to aid people in their Come, Follow Me journey. These ventures resemble the cottage industries of the 60s and 70s, when the Church counsel to have extensive home food storage engendered for-profit businesses to supply wheat, freeze-dried foods, canned goods, water tablets, food dehydrators, and more to anxious members. No surprise, then, that Come, Follow Me has unleashed a 21st-century marketplace of its own.

In tune with the era, entrepreneurs, as well as good-hearted sharers, have brought out podcasts, videos, companion manuals and class notes, printables for children, and they have used the platforms of Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, Soundcloud, Spotify, Etsy, many websites, and more to distribute them. Some of the aids are for sale and use a subscription model or offer products for direct purchase, but the vast majority of the study resources are offered free and with the generosity and vigor of an enthusiastic seminary teacher. The Season has attempted a roundup of these resources. Our list includes aids created by scholars, busy moms, entertainers, local teachers, and more. These fracture into something for everybody. You can see an artwork a day or poetry or music that corresponds to the weekly study. Adults can be part of virtual classrooms and watch teachers— Covid made every teacher the proxy equivalent of your ward Sunday school instructor—give polished, spiritual presentations. Others look at the weekly study through a specific lens of identity. Some creators have fashioned games, coloring pages, activities, and more for young children: each is tied to the weekly unit of home scripture study. They range from the flashily produced to the handmade DIY. With the acknowledgment that it’s incomplete, take a look at the nearly 100 Come, Follow Me offerings we found, below (including some sites with hundreds of individual products). If we’re missing something, send us a note, and we’ll add it to the list. Looking over these resources, maybe you will decide to regularly check in or sign up for something right for you, giving a new, digital meaning to “follow me.”

LETTERSto theEDITOR Congratulations on The Season. This is fantastic. Just this week, I googled the name of an artist to determine whether he was LDS. Now not only names but articles, and since I will know their tour dates, I might be able to get tickets to see them perform. We really needed this magazine. Fabulous. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate that you sent me my first issue. Sharon Bender Basking Ridge, NJ New York, NY

I really enjoyed your insights on the Christian backgrounds of The Killer’s frontman Brandon Flowers and solo artist Bruce Springsteen (“Brandon Flowers’s Pressure Machine,” September). Both are global superstars with upbringings that peek through their lyrics. But for me just the idea that Brandon Flowers hails from Nephi, Utah,

makes me a proud daughter of Utah pioneers. My great-great-grandparents who emigrated from England and Scotland—Benjamin and Sarah Jane Bamford Riches and James R. and Jane Ann Ollerton McPherson—settled that farming community. My grandpa Heber Cyrus Crane was mayor for years in the mid-twentieth century, and my family’s visits to Grandma and Grandpa Crane’s always made the social column of the local newspaper— not too unusual for a small-town newspaper in the 1960s except for the fact that we visited every other Sunday. It was a community of about 2,000 when my mother grew up in the 1920s and ‘30s. Now it is bustling with over 4,000 residents. It’s still small, it’s still quaint, and people on Main Street still say hello. I encourage anyone traveling on I-15 to take a Nephi exit and explore. Who knows, you may run into a young and upcoming global superstar. Peggy Johnson Salt Lake City, Utah

CONTRIBUTORS CHARLIE BIRD Charlie Bird is a bestselling author of the book, Without the Mask: Coming Out and Coming Into God’s Light, and is a podcaster based in Utah. He is a lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who loves hiking, travel, and gymnastics.

RICHARD BUSHMAN A Bancroft Prize-winning historian, is the author of Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling, and many other books on American history. His forthcoming volume is a cultural history of the Golden Plates.

TED BUSHMAN Ted Bushman writes musical theater and science fiction. His musicals include Cyrano Electronique, Theodore in the Valley, and Human; his stories have been published in Beneath Ceaseless Skies and Metaphorosis.

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD Emily Larsen Doxford is the marketing and communications director for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. A writer and communications professional, she received her MA in American and English Literature from NYU.

CHRISTOPHER DUGGAN Christopher Duggan is a New York-based photographer with a decade of experience capturing

dance in New York City and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

BRONTË HEBDON Brontë Hebdon is a Ph.D. candidate in Art History at the Institute of Fine Arts, NYU. She is also the 2022-23 Veronika Gervers Fellow at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada.

MARIO R. MONTANI Mario R. Montani is the author of the blog Mormosophía, and he is part of the collective, Cofradía de Letras Mormonas, a quarterly online journal dedicated to describing and discovering the work of Mormon writers in Spanish.

GLEN NELSON Glen Nelson is an author and librettist. His oratorio with composer Ethan Wickman, To a Village Called Emmaus, was recently recorded by Craig Jessop and the American Festival Chorus and Orchestra for a forthcoming commercial release.

JEFF PARKIN

MADELINE RUPARD

Steven L. Peck is an evolutionary biologist, ornithologist, poet, and novelist. His latest novel, Heike’s Void, was published in April 2022.

Madeline Rupard received an MFA in Painting from Pratt Institute. Her recent paintings of the American West appeared in this years’ New American Paintings Juried-In-Print Exhibition, Issue #156.

ARISAEL RIVERA Arisael Rivera is an actor, playwright, and poet based in The Bronx, New York. Most recently, his poem “Jubilant Feet” was published in the anthology Love Letters to Gaia by Miro C.

RACHEL RUECKERT Rachel Rueckert is the editor-in-chief of Exponent II. Her first book is a memoir about marriage, East Winds, due November 2022.

MYKAL URBINA Mykal Urbina serves as the executive director of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts.

editorialBOARD WHAT ALBUMS OR SONGS ARE YOU CURRENTLY PLAYING? CHARLIE BIRD Enya, Caribbean Blue

TED BUSHMAN

JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE Taylor Swift, Folklore

BENJAMIN TAYLOR

Lifelike, Porter Robinson

Animals as Leaders, Animals as Leaders

Put Your Records On, Ritt Momney

Reliant K, Five Score and Seven Years Ago

Vladimir Martynov: The Beatitudes Goodmorning, Tampico Lasting

KWANI POVI WINDER The Piano Guys, Peponi

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ Francis Andreu, Los Tango Que Quiero-En Vivo en Teatro Solis

MYKAL URBINA, publisher Alexandre Desplat, Little Women (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

JEFF PARKIN Martial Solal, Jean-Juc Godard’s a Bout De Souffle

GLEN NELSON, editor Rachel Willis-Sorensen, Rachel

ARISAEL RIVERA AJR, The Click

MADELINE RUPARD Talk, Talk, Laughing Stock

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD, communications Judah & the Lion, Revival

theSEASON

NOVEMBER2022

inMIND ARE WE ALIKE? by RICHARD L. BUSHMAN

Image: Megan Knobloch Geilman / Sam Zauscher, used with permission

Unlike earlier themes in the Church’s triennial international art exhibition, this year’s show, the 12th since 1987, invites theological exploration.

Themes like the 10th exhibition’s Tell Me the Stories of Jesus or the 6th exhibition’s Latter-day Saints Yesterday and Today called for illustration of well-

known events. This year’s All Are Alike Unto God (2 Nephi 26:33) requires speculation. It presents artists with a theological puzzle: How can we be alike unto God when we are so different in our national cultures and religions, our complexions and our genders, our temperaments and our tastes? People don’t want to be like everyone else. Muslims don’t want to be Catholics. Most Africans do not want to be Europeans. How do you depict some essential sameness that makes us alike before God while still preserving the personal peculiarities that are essential parts of our natures? More than a dozen of the 148 artists in the exhibition solved the puzzle by filling their canvases with replications of a single object—stones, or blobs, or tiny bowls, or flowers, or hands—that are both similar and different. The blobs are of differing shapes and colors, even different sizes, while still of the same basic type.The bowls are made of different materials, some with pedestals, some not, some one color, some another. An up-to-date depiction titled God’s Zoom fills the canvas with faces in the squares which we have become so familiar with in the last few years.

Leslie M.W. Graff, 352 Volumes. All images reproduced with permission of the artists.

The most ingenious of these replication paintings looks into the water at a host of sea shells of about the same size and color, but when the viewer steps back a few feet the face of an Island woman can be detected looking out from the bottom of the sea. I was amused and intrigued by the painting of stacks and stacks of books by Leslie M.W. Graff, of slightly different sizes and colors. How interesting to think of people telling their stories in books with God as reader, listening to what we have to say. The replication series struck me as ingenious and beautiful but not necessarily moving. I was more touched by paintings that focused on individuals. They turned the question of being alike unto God into another query: Will God include me among those he listens to. Colby Sanford’s From the Mere Confines of My Heart has a woman outside a house in the darkening evening, pleading to be heard.The unlit house, no more than a dark shadow in the

Colby Sanford, From the Mere Confines of My Heart

sheep also appear slightly comical.They seem both baffled and wise. Are we ready to accept them and they us, considering that we likely look a little strange to them too? I wonder also about Megan Knobloch Geilmann’s Pietá with a mature woman holding a large sheep on her lap. She looks up perplexed and beseeching. How am I supposed to manage this creature, she seems to say. Perhaps the problems of salvation are too large for us, and we inevitably appear awkward and overmatched.

Abigale Palmer, All the Colors Inside of Me

Over 800 artists submitted for this show of 148 selections.The numbers in themselves are inspiring —so many skilled people willing to puzzle through a scripture and turn their reflections into art.They are adventurous too. Their work goes beyond the art which we ordinarily see in our meetinghouses which is largely illustrative. These artists resort to abstraction and symbols to tell their stories. The viewer has to investigate and ponder, not a bad outcome for a visit to an art exhibition.

Alyce Bailey, The Others

painting, is home but also ominous. Is the life inside too much for this woman? It is unlikely that any of these artists would call themselves theologians, but their art reminds us that we all have to be theologians of a kind. We have to deal with the perplexities that the scriptures thrust upon. Art makes us think about problems that we might otherwise slide over. What are we to make of the three sheep faces in Alyce Bailey’s The Others? Bailey’s is the most puzzling painting in the show. Alhough dignified, the

Megan Knobloch Geilman, Pietá

OUTandABOUT 36TH ANNUAL SPIRITUAL AND RELIGIOUS ART OF UTAH

Lovetta Reyes-Cairo, Colby Sanford, Christina West, Nathan Williams, and Emily Tidwell Yeung.

As the foliage slowly fires up and simmers in red hues, the art community in Utah once again gathered to celebrate and enjoy the 36th edition of the Springville Museum of Art’s Annual Spiritual and Religious Art Exhibition.The exhibition was launched Wednesday, October 12 in a well-attended opening ceremony. This annual spectacle celebrates the diversity of religious experience and belief in the Utah community. A total of 229 pieces were selected from close to 550 works of art submitted by artists from across the state and from all religious backgrounds depicting a rich and varied portrayal of spiritual themes.The museum’s curating approach has notably widened through recent years to include a broad array of artistic themes, and techniques.

This iteration of the exhibition remains true to the SMA’s efforts and commitment to promote, support, and affirm the local art community since 1903.— Eduardo Alvarez (36th Annual Spiritual and Religious Art of Utah continues through January 11.)

This year’s exhibition was curated by Dr. Rita R. Wright (Director, Springville Museum of Art) and Esther Hi’ilani Candari (Artist/Director of Programming, Writ & Vision Gallery), who was “… particularly impressed with the variety and inclusion with which the submitting artists depicted Christ and the number of works centering powerful female narratives, figures, and symbols.” Notable participants included: First Place Award: Jody Gerber (He Speaks When All is Still); Second Place Award: Whitney Johnson (Partakers of the Gift); Third Place Award: Mary Sauer (May My Soul Commune with Thee);Awards of Merit went to: Eduardo Alvarez, Michael B. Coleman, Stacy Minch, Chelsey Swanson, Terrel Van Leeuwen, Albin Veselka; and Honorable Mentions given to: Gregory L. Abbott, Mary Crabtree, Gisele Da Silva, Rose Datoc Dall, Christian Degn, Vincent Mattina, Steven Newman,

CHRIS BACON Chris Bacon, no relation to Kevin Bacon (although with a resume as extensive as his is becoming, I’m sure he’s only a few degrees of separation from him many times over) is a film and tv composer. His newest project is the upcoming Netflix series, Wednesday, a spin-off helmed by Tim Burton surrounding Wednesday Addams, the precociously sinister daughter from the famed Addams Family franchise. Chris contributed music under the show’s lead composer Danny Elfman; a regular collaborator of Burton’s and one that Chris has worked with before. After graduating from BYU, Bacon attended the film scoring program at USC. This led to a mentorship under award-winning film composer, James Newton Howard. Despite being in the company of music giants and a few super heroes (Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness), he has still carved out space on his own. Bacon has been nominated for two Emmys for his work on Bates Motel for A&E and the NBC musical hit, Smash. In addition to his more dramatic projects, the husband and father of four also has a lighter side

including Beethoven’s Christmas Adventure and Gnomeo and Juliet. Oh, and Chris has three degrees of separation from Kevin Bacon by way of the animated film Alpha and Omega which starred Danny Glover who worked on Lonesome Dove with Diane Lane who starred in My Dog Skip opposite Kevin Bacon. Just in case you were wondering.— Joël René Scoville (Wednesday drops on Wednesday, November 23 on Netflix.)

DYLAN FINDLEY The themes of loss and hope run throughout composer Dylan Findley’s latest work for piano trio. In fact, two specific losses led directly to Findley writing the piece. It began when the Greek ensemble Galán Trio was planning its North American “Kinesis Tour.” The ensemble had reached out to Findley about visiting the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, but when Findley’s university appointment there was not renewed—and, consequently, the trio’s tour date fell through—Findley helped them book not only an alternate date at a different university, but two more additional ones. “I helped them, and they said I’d be able to write for them,” Findley explained. It was “an exchange of goodwill” coming out of the disappointments for both Findley and the trio. In the resulting piece, entitled Ánimo, Findley sought to capture the “spiritual energy or enthusiasm” that the Spanish word connotes—and it was inspired by a different loss. “Over the past few years, I’ve lost three out of my four grandparents,” said Findley. “I wanted to write something that made me think about them, but in a way that was light, though not necessarily light-hearted.” Indeed, from its opening, Ánimo sparkles with high, bright sounds from the violin, cello, and piano. Over its seven minutes, the piece is by turns playful, lyrical, and, occasionally, fragile. True to his inspiration, throughout the piece Findley weaves in fragments of the hymn,“Families Can Be Together Forever.” For listeners who recognize

them, these quotes add color and depth to the music’s meaning.Without becoming its focal point, they encourage listeners to interpret the music’s ephemeral moods as an expression of hope in the face of uncertainty.—Joseph Sowa (Ánimo will be performed by the Galán Trio across five Midwestern states November 1-9. For specific dates and venues, visit the composer’s website.)

MICHAEL HICKS There’s no bigger fan of Michael Hicks than me. You’ve probably seen the movie Dead Poets Society with the students climbing on their desks to intone “O Captain, My Captain” in praise of their teacher? That’s me when it comes to Michael Hicks. And I’m one of the lucky people that author Steven Peck mentions in his preface to Mike’s new memoir, Wineskin: Freakin’ Jesus in the ‘60s and ‘70s. I’m a former student who became one of his “professorial colleagues” until his retirement from the BYU School of Music a few years ago. So, this brief preview about Mike’s memoir is biased. I thought I should come clean about that. Whether you know Mike personally, by reputation, or not at all, this memoir will speak to you and entertain you, regardless of your background or religious affiliation (past or present). I say “speak to you” because as strange and extraordinary as Mike’s life has been, especially in the younger years in California which he chronicles in this book, his experience speaks to all of us—the way the weirdness of our youthful encounters and obsessions shape our adult life. I doubt I’m the only one who identifies with Mike’s youthful obsessions with monsters, sci-fi B movies, and the classic television series Twilight Zone, despite our generational divide, not to mention his discovery and subsequent obsession with music. His recounting of recording clips off his clock radio, attending music festivals and concerts, and seeing films like 2001: A Space Odyssey that all fueled his interests, match up with my own versions

of such experiences, and I expect most readers will find similar analogs. But to get back to the extraordinary parts that will entertain, Mike’s life will seem far from typical for most readers, especially those who have grown up as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This was certainly my reaction, personally, when I first got to know Mike as his student in Composition 1 at BYU in 1988— my young mind blown away by the new music of Birtwistle and Crumb he was introducing me to, the personal stories from his “Jesus Freak” days I would occasionally get glimpses of during conversations in his office, and the evidence of his early obsessions with books, recordings, and memorabilia all around. I didn’t know there were Mormons like Mike, and I’m grateful for the detail this memoir adds to the bits and pieces of his story that I’ve put together in the years I’ve known and worked with him. To use a line that shows up in letters I reserve for my best students, “I give Wineskin my highest recommendation.” Read it, enjoy it.—Steven Ricks (Wineskin: Freakin’ Jesus in the ‘60s and ‘70s is to be released on November 21.)

RAT FINK When you picture art and objects from American counterculture of the 1960s and 70s, Mormonism is probably not foremost in your thoughts. Still, the new exhibition at The Emmanuel Art Gallery in Denver, Colorado, Rat Fink Revolution: Started with a T-shirt, Now We’re Here and the publication of a memoir by Michael Hicks, Wineskin: Freakin’ Jesus in the ‘60s and ‘70s, provide opportunities to expand your mind, as the psychedelic era repeatedly encouraged. (See a separate Out & About article in this issue for a preview of the forthcoming Hicks memoir.) Ed “Big Daddy” Roth (1932-2001) was a central figure in Californian hot rod culture. As a repulsed

reaction to the bland commodification of American culture epitomized by Mickey Mouse, he created the character of Rat Fink, a hairy, green cartoon rat that became the symbol of ‘rodding. The current exhibition charts his fascinating and extensive influence on cars, fashion, design, and culture. Meanwhile, another reaction to the Mouse took place on the opposite coast as Ultra Violet (Isabelle Collin Dufresne) (1935-2014) borrowed from her immersion in Andy Warhol’s Factory to create a series of images that attached Pop Art wings to Mickey, thereby making a visual pun of Michelangelo’s name: Mickey, angel. How curious that both of those artists would become LDS. Cultural genealogists might have fun linking Ultra Violet, Warhol, The Velvet Underground (Warhol managed the band, and it was essentially The Factory’s house band) to La Monte Young (1935-), another LDS connection, who worked with the band’s John Cale. At the same time, another early rock band, New York Dolls, featured original band member Arthur Kane (1949-2004) on bass. He would eventually join the Church, too. What influence did Mormonism have on Young, Roth, Dufresne, and Kane? In that time period, very little or none. Young, who at the age of 90 is still performing in New York, was born and raised in the Church, but Eastern thought supplanted early LDS influences on his music. Roth converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1974, Dufresne in 1981, and Kane in 1989. Still, step back a little, and the kaleidoscope becomes rich. What was it about Mormonism that drew these iconoclastic souls to it? Each is a bold-face name in the chronicle of the period. Either they are outliers or our version of our cultural output needs some readjustment. Probably both. These artists left their stamp on the broader American culture by rejecting the establishment.And they left a mark on LDS culture, too, for those willing to see it. I lived with Ultra Violet when I first came to New York in 1985, and we were friends until her death.

Regarding the Church, I can tell you this: She was all in, and her belief shows up in her work everywhere. Watch the sweet embrace of the Church and family history by Arthur Kane in the Greg Whiteley 2005 documentary, New York Doll, and read about Roth’s dedication to LDS service opportunities in Manti, Utah, where he spent his last years, and you’ll see an intellectually diverse portrait of Mormonism that demands some label expansion. Wouldn’t it have been wonderful to get Young, Kane, Ultra Violet, and Roth in a room together in the late 80s? They were all members of the Church by then, all so strangely interconnected to a nation’s cultural revolution. I am curious what their works have to say to each other, about their country, and their membership in the same religion. I can imagine a museum exhibition as some kind of proxy family reunion, perhaps with a room dedicated to Mickey Mouse, made stranger by all those LDS early animators at Disney contrasted with and their rebellious 1960s/70s artistic cousins. That is a show waiting to happen.—Glen Nelson (Rat Fink Revolution: Started with a T-shirt, Now We’re Here continues at The Emmanuel Art Gallery through November 17.)

RYAN HAMILTON In January 2022, fans of Ryan Hamilton were eagerly awaiting his return to Salt Lake City–two nights set for the comedian to perform and make them belly laugh. Sadly, only a few days before he was set to perform, the comedian announced that he would have to postpone the show. The reason: He was hit by a bus. As reported by ABC4, Ryan Hamilton said, “I am sorry to say I have to move some upcoming shows as I was in an accident. I was hit as a pedestrian in a crosswalk by a shuttle bus.” Many loyal followers took to his Instagram to show their support and shock for one of the most famous clean comedians. Ryan Hamilton is a Latter-day Saint, Idaho raised, New York favorite comic. The New York Times said

of him, “One of the most reliably funny regulars at the Comedy Cellar [in NYC], an observational comic who often riffs on the absurdity of his own wholesomeness.” He has been headlining his own show for years and his Netflix special, Happy Face currently streaming on the platform, is a favorite among fans and comedians alike. Thankfully, after recovering from an arm that needed surgery, several broken ribs and even a collapsed lung, he began touring again last month. He will continue with dates through the end of the year and into 2023. In November alone he will be at Punchline in Philadelphia, Cobbs Comedy Club in San Francisco, and the Colonial Theatre in his home state of Idaho.—Arisael Rivera (All dates can be found on the comedian’s website.

LOVE YOUR LINEAGE Recently, I had the chance to connect with Miyamoto (Miya) Loretta Jensen and Michelle Franzoni Thorley for a Zoom interview regarding the launch of their upcoming podcast, Love Your Lineage. Miya Jensen is a professional genealogist specializing in Polynesian family history and Michelle Franzoni Thorley is a Xicana visual artist, family historian, and anti-racism educator. The friendsturned-cohosts aim to help audiences see beyond missing names to show how everyone, no matter their background or family situation, can make deep and powerful connections to their ancestors. Produced by LDS Living, the Love Your Lineage podcast drops November 1, 2022, with new episodes occurring weekly. Centering BIPOC Histories At the beginning of our interview, Jensen and Thorley jokingly recall the origins of their “modern love story.” By this, they refer to the online Metaverse where they met (rightfully, on an LDS family history discussion group on Facebook). Both have been thought leaders in Latter-day Saint and industry circles, using their social media platforms to build

and engage with family history communities. But their personal friendship deepened when they began trading direct messages about the limitations of the “traditionally Eurocentric” industry and its praxis. Explains Jensen, for white, western families it’s “like holding a mirror up and looking backward” to trace their origins for generations upon generations. However, indigenous family histories don’t follow this same linear trajectory. “This is like a mirror looking forward,” Jensen says. Love Your Lineage is centered in the BIPOC family history experience and the multi-faceted ways to access and share these histories. Neither Jensen nor Thorley is immune to the practical challenges that have come from exploring their marginalized histories. In fact, Jensen–a pioneer of Polynesian genealogical research–has traced her family to Samoa, Hawaii, Japan, Germany and France. Yet, while earning her degree in Family History & Genealogy at BYU, she learned “best practice” strategies for Polynesian family history work by finding a Polynesian family living in England and following their lines in their non-native country. Now, she is effectively writing the playbook on how to perform genealogy in Polynesia and Oceania. Likewise, Thorley shares the “gut-punching” moments of frustration with her own family history, noting how easily she can trace her European ancestors but not her Mexican ancestors. She often uses her visual art practice to render the family members who were erased from the historical record. A Resource for Healing Love Your Lineage, in many ways, is the resource Jensen and Thorley wish they had available when they were doing their own work. “Family history can be really triggering for people of color,” says Thorley. Because the process can trigger trauma, isolation, erasure, and shame, Love Your Lineage is primarily concerned with creating a “space of connection and healing for BIPOC individuals” How? “By taking skeletons out of the closet and giving them a proper funeral,” Thorley says. This podcast,

with its slate of therapists, thought leaders, and diverse professionals throughout the season, is intended to safely discuss, understand and mourn painful topics. The podcast is also about celebration. It’s no coincidence that Love Your Lineage launches on Día de los Muertos (“Day of the Dead”), which is an ancient, multi-day holiday celebrated in contemporary Mexico and among those of Mexican heritage globally. This early November celebration is a joyful period for family and friends to gather and honor loved ones who have died. Día de los Muertos, like the podcast itself, celebrates a genealogical consciousness that is more about intersectionality than tracing one’s family tree. Specifically, how do we operate in our families and communities with greater racial literacy, cultural competency, and healing? How do we gain understanding for the ways our ancestors moved, breathed, thought and interacted with the world? For Thorley, the prism of perspective comes down to the “search for authenticity.” For Jensen, it is the “‘Aha’ moment that comes…when a heart is turned to one, then more than one, and then to the Divine.” Why Tune In? Undoubtedly, Jensen and Thorley are tackling the most personal of subjects: our families. They are also optimistic Love Your Lineage will lead out in the destigmatization of long-held attitudes regarding family history, particularly within LDS culture. If my casual Zoom interview is any indication, I’m confident they will meet their audiences each week with refreshing credibility and vulnerability. These women finish one another’s sentences. They handily pick up the silver threads of one another’s thoughts, creating bright and musical discussion. And I’m hopeful the duo will create a welcome, recurring space for their listeners–an “I wish I could meet these women for lunch” kind of intimacy–to provide significant topics with the nourishing honesty they deserve.--Emily Larsen Doxford. It is produced by LDS Living.)

AMMON AND LIAHONA OLAYAN Introducing Ammon and Liahona Olayan, a dynamic entertainment duo whose heritage is rooted in Hawaii. Ammon (19) is the oldest of nine children, and he is a year older than Liahona (18). When they were younger, they lived in a tent on the Big Island of Hawaii to be near their relatives and learn about their Hawaiian heritage.They had a pet goat, lived off the land, and learned how to write music. Their music career has taken off after the debut of their original song, “Listen to My Heart,” now called “I Don’t Wanna Be Alone,” on the ABC reality show American Idol. Their performance gained more than 11.4 million views, and now this multitalented pair is dominating stages with their uplifting, energetic music, and superb performances, garnering a loyal following of people of all ages. Their new album called Gotta Move On (released only on CD) consists of 10 powerful songs, including the hit song, “I Don’t Wanna Be Alone,” and the new viral hit song, “Pray to God,” which

was released on their YouTube channel on July 19, 2022 and garnered more than 3 million views in less than three weeks. On Saturday, June 25, 2022, they electrified the crowd at the Covey Center in Provo, Utah with their upbeat singing and dancing as they performed all the songs from their album. In August 2022, the brother-sister duo returned to their homeland of Hawaii for the first time since their American Idol journey. On August 29, 2022, they were the headline performers at the legendary Blue Note Hawaii venue. In addition to writing music and singing, Ammon plays guitar and ukulele, and Liahona is a selftrained pianist.Their style of music is a mash-up of Christian, Pop, R & B, Hip-Hop, and Soul, covering a wide range of music genres. Ammon and Liahona are aware that music is their gift, and they attribute their family’s love and support, their steadfastness, and the direction they get from the Lord for their success so far.The duo is ready to set the world aflame and make their mark in music history.—Keith Lionel Brown

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

peekBACK Artists like suspense a little too much. As in, “Hey friends and family, I’m happy to announce my new concert (or exhibition opening, film premiere, or book launch) tonight at 8:00.” Well, congrats on that, but would it kill you to give folks a little more notice? Those of us working on The Season are in a constant struggle to cover the arts as they are happening and write about them before they join the history books. Despite our best efforts, some events will pass by without acknowledgement.

We are happy to add a new feature to our publication. It is called “Peek Back,” and each month we will capture a few interesting things that came to our notice after our latest issue was put to bed. We continue to add to our calendar of events, The Listing, even after something has taken place. Why bother? Because at the end of this year-long project, we want to have a rich document of as many offerings as we can. You can discover past events (including those newly added) by going to The Listing and navigating through “previous events.”

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

ONtheLIST INSTA-ARTISTS Globalize your feed How can you expand your own list of artists to follow? Although many visual artists have gallery representation and show regularly, the majority do not. They rely on their websites and social media to share with collectors and fans what they are doing. With the goal of helping you learn about artists who are likely new to you, we’ve compiled a list of ten artists’ Instagram feeds who are living and working outside the U.S. Georgina Bringas (Mexico) - georginabringas Kazuko K. Covington (Japan) - kazuko_covington José de Faria (Portugal) - josedefaria.art Hildebrando de Melo (Angola) - hildebrando_de_ melo Melvin Lans (Colombia) - melvinlans Daniel Martinez (Uruguay) - danielmartinez.art Ricardo Rendón (Mexico) - ricardorendon2014 José Ramon Riveros (Chile) - joseramonriveros Susana I. Silva (Argentina) - suisslo_papercutting Shohei Takahashi (Japan) - shohei.taka

mySUNDAY GREG KEARNEY

Greg Kearney has worked as an editorial cartoonist for over 40 years. His work is syndicated in 170 newspapers in the United States and abroad. He specializes in local politics and agricultural policy. Born in Maine, he lives in Topeka, Kansas. Image: Greg Kearney, self-portrait, courtesy of the artist.. Cereal, Cats, and Scouts. My typical Sunday is about the most boring scenario imaginable. Let’s see, our church starts at 10:30. I get up. I’m diabetic, so I don’t ever get to fast. I’ve never fasted, ever. So I’ll get up, and I’ll have my usual allotment of cereal and milk. Diabetics live in a world very constrained by what we can eat. So it’s the same thing every day, at the same time every day. I wash up, get dressed. I live with my

wife, Jill. No one else. We have cats. They don’t go to church. At my age, my children have all grown and left on their own. It’s just Jill and I now. We don’t have to hustle around getting little children ready for church singing, “Saturday is a special day” or anything like that. I’ll come down from my office after I dress. I volunteer with the scouts as a Scout Chaplain. So sometimes on Sundays, I get to wear my full

dress uniform because I’m going after church and doing things with the scouts. I go and try to convince other people’s churches to sponsor scouting. That’s what the council has me doing. I’ve been involved with scouting all my life. As a boy, I was a Sea Scout back in Maine. And then I’ve held various positions all around the world as I’ve moved for work. I was a National Scout Chaplain with Scouts Australia. The Cartoonist’s Mind. We have three wards in Topeka, and my ward is one of the smaller ones. I live down in the city center in a 1909 house that was built and owned by a Presbyterian minister, Reverend Solomon Alt. Everybody else downsizes at my age, but I’ve gone large here in this great big, gigantic house. It’s on the National Registry of Historic Places. I’ve got a little metal plaque outside my front door. On Sunday morning, I come down from my office because my work sort of demands that I do something every day, or nearly every day. I know I’m not supposed to work on Sunday, but I do because my cartoonist mind never really shuts off. It keeps purring along, there. I usually try to draw Monday morning’s Kansas cartoon on Sunday. I’ll sketch it, but I won’t finish it usually, and then I go off to church. And then I’ll do the inking and stuff either late on Sunday or Monday morning. So I’ll go in, I’ll sit down, and I’ll just draw the sketch of the cartoon and then kind of leave it. And off I go to church. Because of the scouting, I get the chance to go to a lot of different people’s services. Ideas for Cartoons. For cartooning ideas, the internet’s great because I can bring up the Portland, Maine paper or the Bangor, Maine paper or any of the papers in any of the states. And I look at the agricultural news publications: AG Week and Modern Farming.You’re always looking for the kind of news story that jumps out at you. Every day I glance at them and try to figure something out. Every once in a while my sister will email me with something from Maine and go, “You’ve got to draw about this.” I’ve never had much trouble thinking up the ideas. And I’m known for being very fast at

drawing, which is a real advantage because of the amount of stuff I have to make. BYU and Stamina. My first political cartoon goes back to when I was 15 years old in high school. I went right into BYU, I guess, as a published editorial cartoonist, but I kind of had to wait for Steven [Benson] and Pat [Bagley] to leave town, so that I could rush in there. One of the tricks to political cartooning is that it requires stamina. You’ve got to be able to sit down and do it every day. Some of my ideas are better than others, but the point is that you have to do it every single day, and it requires that stamina. The faculty advisor at the Daily Universe at BYU was telling me that they haven’t really produced any cartoonists—I think there was only—one other one after me—because they found that people could not sit there and come up with a good idea every single day and draw it out. And that’s really the test of a cartoonist, of a political cartoonist particularly, or even a comic strip cartoonist: the ability to sit down and say, “I’m gonna make this every day.” Sundays and the Books of Mormon. My brain never shuts off from work. It just flies along because I’ve gotten up in the morning, and I probably sketched something, and it is sitting on my drawing desk. And then in the evening I know I have to ink it. It takes me, from the time I start sketching till the time it’s a finished drawing— unless there’s something unusually complicated about it—I usually have the whole thing done and dusted in under an hour. The one project that I’ve tried to work on on Sundays, which is different and is church related has been very slow going. (I have a newfound appreciation for Joseph Smith doing this.) I have been going through and formatting in ePub format for computers, a version of the Book of Mormon, which has both the LDS and the RLDS versifications, side by side, so that no matter which system you use, or are accustomed to, you can go to that and then find the corresponding versification of that section in the other. The texts are identical, but the marking of the verses is different. I have family in both ends of the thing [LDS

and Community of Christ], and that always drove me crazy. I work on that sometimes after dinner. I’ll sit down and try to do one chapter, “Just one more chapter.”

The end. That’s it, in general. I have dinner, and I watch a little television, and I might ink the cartoon if I have the time. Otherwise, it waits till Monday. And that’s it.You know, like I said, it’s really kind of boring around here.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

FURTHERMORE WAITING FOR THE CHOSEN by GLEN NELSON

Image: Maddison Colvin, Composite Christ, 2022 Image composited of stills from depictions of Christ in film and television: The Chosen (2017-present), Mary Magdalene (2019), Last Days In The Desert (2015), Son of God (2014), The Gospel of John (2014), The Passion of the Christ (2004), Mary Mother of Jesus (1999), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), Jesus (1979), Jesus of Nazareth (1977), and King of Kings (1961). Commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts.

At the end of Season Two of The Chosen, the juggernaut, multi-season series that retells the story of Jesus using a visual palette of antiquity and the lingo of the 21st century, the characters of Matthew and Jesus have finished workshopping what

will become the Sermon on the Mount, the individual beatitudes tailored to reflect the foibles of the inner circle of followers, and a group of thousands is gathering on a hill in Northern Israel to listen. A new follower, Judas, has just arrived on

the scene, his name held back ominously for effect. Presumably, the new season will pick up at that point. Will the disciples have enough food for this huge crowd? Well, yes and no. The Chosen made national news during its first season, not for its contemporary treatment of scripture or artistry, but for its inspired financing model and its ambition. The pilot was released on Christmas Eve, 2017, and the eight episodes of Season One appeared April 21, 2019. In the beginning of that year, The Hollywood Reporter noted that using a legal provision that offered equity to investors through crowdfunding, the series had raised nearly $9 million (eventually, the amount became $11.1 million). Its goal was to issue 13.9 million shares. It was not the first to use crowdfunding for film and TV production, but it is the most successful, so far. The TV series Mystery Science Theater 3000 raised $5.8 million on Kickstarter, and the film Veronica Mars raised $5.7 million. At the end of some episodes of The Chosen, Dallas Jenkins, who created the series and writes and directs each episode, makes an onscreen appeal that viewers contribute to the show, which, according to The Wall Street Journal, has no ties to any Hollywood studio, network, or streaming service. Their names—there are a lot of them—appear in the scrolling credits that complete each episode. Jenkins, who is an evangelical Christian, has lofty and zealous dreams for total viewership to be global and reach one billion people. Years ago, Jenkins created a 19-minute film shown on Christmas Eve at the Illinois megachurch which he attends, Harvest Bible Chapel, titled The Shepherd. Producer brothers Neal Harmon and Jeffrey Harmon in Utah saw the video and suggested to Jenkins that it might build audience interest if posted online for free. 15 million views later, the first multi-season video series on the life of Jesus began to be realized with the Harmons’ VidAngel, now Angel Video, acting as distributor. In its credits, the show is listed as “An Angel Original.” It is filmed in Texas and on the biblical backlot of Gos-

hen, Utah, which is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and employed for their own scriptural filmmaking. Before The Chosen, Jenkins made a series of short films for his church that included the casting of Jonathan Roumie as the lead character. In those shorts is found the genesis of Jenkin’s Jesus. The first seasons are distributed on The Chosen app, the Trinity Broadcast Network, BYUtv, Peacock, Apple TV, Prime Video, and elsewhere. For at least the last 80 years, commercial entertainment adaptations of the New Testament have provided a revealing mirror to the social trends of the day, including the divisions between us. The radio series by Henry Denker, The Greatest Story Ever Told—it aired from 1947 to 1956 and was made into a best-selling book by Fulton Oursler in 1949 and a luxuriously stiff film in 1965, all with the same title—relied on the Bible text for the character of Jesus’ dialogue. But by the 60s, the times, they were a-changing. Young audiences craved someone divine who looked like them, even in their fringed suede, denim, long hair, tie-dye, ponchos, headbands, beads, and peasant blouses, and more, who talked like them. Hollywood’s biblical epics and their draped robes of pageantry and archaic speech had come to feel remote. As young American students distanced themselves from the pews of mainstream Christianity they intoned nevertheless the Christian vocabulary of peace and love like a group-think, feel-good mantra. The barrier was not the message but the manner of its delivery. From that cultural pool, the surprisingly groovy parables of St. Matthew emerged as a staged musical by John-Michael Tebelak, titled Godspell, at Carnegie Mellon University in 1970. By the time it arrived Off-Broadway (May 17, 1971) re-scored by Stephen Schwarz and with a hippie-Jesus leading a small cast of actors and audiences through an earnestly straightforward, hummable telling of the scriptures, Godspell had attracted little controversy and a following well beyond hippie cul-

ture. It was a magnet for talent, too. Imagine being in the theater for the Toronto production in 1972 and seeing this young cast perform “Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord” and “Day by Day”: Victor Garber, Gilda Radner, Martin Short, Paul Shaffer, and Eugene Levy. Not bad, at all. Godspell is now a staple of community theater, church basement fundraisers, and regional productions with shoe-string budgets. The show remains very popular for performers far too young to know of its original stage production, audio recording, or film: during the 2020-21 academic school year, Godspell was the sixth most-produced musical in U.S. high schools, trailing the Addams Family and Charlie Brown. Its darker twin, Jesus Christ Superstar, took a different path. When Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice shopped around their rock opera version of the Passion, which places much of the drama on the shoulders of the character of Judas, commercial stage producers would have none of it. Undeterred, the songwriters issued it as a concept album in 1970. The BBC banned it, at least briefly, and labeled it sacrilege; however, the boxed set double album became such a monumental hit in the United States, that multiple, unauthorized staged productions sprang up based on the sung-through work’s recording alone. Broadway beckoned. Lloyd Webber and Rice’s show had its Broadway premiere on October 12, 1971. New York theatergoers must have felt like they were witnessing an invasion of stage Jesuses as Godspell and Superstar played simultaneously, downtown and uptown. In the Broadway production, Judas was played by Black actors Ben Vereen and Carl Anderson, which became significant to the adverse reaction of the show by some religious groups. The show was designed to provoke. Bans, condemnations, and protests followed quickly. A film of Superstar appeared in 1973, directed by Norman Jewison, whose Fiddler on the Roof (1971) convinced Universal Stu-

dios to proceed with his adaptation. Anderson reprised his stage performance as Judas. That casting was galling to the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith which was joined by the American Jewish Committee in condemning the film. Their concerns had one valid point (mournfully, with ongoing resonance) as the director of the League, Benjamin R. Epstein, wrote, “…the movie’s sharp and vivid emphasis on a Jewish mob’s demand to kill Jesus can feed into the kind of disparagement of Jews and Judaism which has always nurtured anti-Jewish prejudices and bigotry.” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued this policy statement in September 1971: “Leaders in the Church should not authorize or permit the use of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar in any Church-sponsored meetings.We regard it as being incompatible with the spirit and doctrine of the Church concerning the divinity of the Savior.” You will not be seeing a production of Superstar today in an LDS cultural hall, either—Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, maybe—but other denominations have softened toward the fifty-year old show. The Vatican officially endorsed Superstar in 1999, and three years afterward, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said it was “a sincere effort to tell the story of Jesus in contemporary musical and ethical terms.” How should the character of Jesus be depicted on the page, on stage, and on screen? Even for a writer coming to a project from a position of belief, many questions arise. Is it acceptable to write dialogue for the character to speak outside of direct biblical quotation? Should scriptural figures be fictionalized and given backstories and plot lines of their own? What can be invented? There are questions for audiences, too. If someone disagrees with an artist’s creative choices in those matters, what is that person to do about it?

Issues of taking sacred texts and interpreting them for contemporary audiences became a battlefield, and increasingly, the rhetoric grew hotter. “This is Hollywood’s worst hour,” wrote an indignant Jerry Falwell about the film adaptation of The Last Temptation of Christ, in 1988. “Neither the label ‘fiction’ nor the First Amendment gives Universal [Studios] the right to libel, slander and ridicule the most central figure in world history.” He called for a boycott, not only of the film, but any and all business interests from the film’s parent company, the media conglomerate MCA. Speaking for the LDS Church in his role as managing director of the public communications department, Richard Lindsay let it rip: “In our view this film trivializes the message and mission of Jesus Christ. We abhor the unconscionable portrayal of Jesus Christ in intimate sexual scenes and as a voyeur. Men and women are left poorer by exposure to the stereotypes the movie portrays.” In case a primer is needed, in the 1955 novel by Nikos Kazantzakis and the 1988 film adaptation directed by Martin Scorsese, the character of Satan conjures a final vision to tempt Jesus down from the cross: that the Son of God will live like his peers do, passionately fall in love, have children with his wife, and disavow his messianic calling. It’s devilishly subversive and radically ordinary. In the novel and the film, Jesus rejects this vision and fulfills his mission from God into martyrdom. After the novel appeared, some members of the Greek Orthodox clergy called for the author’s excommunication. Kazantzakis was no hack. The author of Zorba the Greek and numerous other volumes and translations of classical literature was a revered artist in Greece and internationally. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature nine times, and in the year of his death, 1957, he fell one vote shy with the Nobel Prize committee, losing to Albert Camus. Maybe acclaim is beside the point, though. Many people in the 80s

and 90s hungered for arts-related fights, and religious-themed projects were easy targets. Last Temptation added fuel to the fire of righteous indignation in a society that was becoming increasingly eager to engage in the public assignation of right and wrong. Vilification became something of a spectator sport. Artworks became litmus tests because reactions to them were taken to reveal the audience member’s values—a weaponized word of the era—and a way to place people into defined categories with rigid parameters. It was politically advantageous to label people as good/ bad, friend/foe. Artists were guilty of such manipulative impulses, as well. Still, for every cynical artist who used religion to shock, for example, there were operatives maneuvering to leverage the ensuing controversies for their own purposes. For viewers of artworks who called such judgments into being, opinions regarding them became identity markers, and all of it was becoming calcified in direct, public view. The term “culture war” began in the 1920s to reflect the divide between American urban and rural peoples, but the responses to these late-century entertainments in the news targeted culture itself, and the term’s revival in the 1990s began to feel ever more war-like. Today’s social media trolling, name-calling, and cancel culture have nothing on the bitterness and dangers of that period.Violence and death threats against artists were common. They extended outside of Christianity. Salman Rushdie lived in hiding, under police protection, for approximately ten years after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa calling for his execution for writing the novel The Satanic Verses, and an attempt on his life took place in public as recently as August 12, 2022 in Upstate New York, in which the novelist lost an eye, the use of one hand, and suffered more than a dozen wounds in his neck, chest, and torso. He will live, but many artists’ careers in the era before the new century were made and lost, not on the quality of their work but on their positioning to the political reactions to their works.

There was not a lot of public turning of the other cheek. Still, scriptural source material presented such tantalizing possibilities to artists that it proved irresistible. Many, many adaptations of the Bible story found in the Gospels appeared on screen and on stage then and since, often with the participation of the greatest writers, directors, musicians, and actors of the day. Some of these films lean toward piety: King of Kings (1961), Jesus of Nazareth (1977), The Visual Bible: Matthew (1993), The Miracle Maker (2000), The Passion of the Christ (2004), Mary Magdalene (2018), Messiah (2020), while others employ irreverence, humor, reimagined archetypes, and the self-reflective possibilities of the Bible as dramatic literature: La Voice Lactée/The Milky Way (1969), The Passover Plot (1976), Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979), The Jesus Film (1979), Jesus—The Film (1986), The Gospel of Us (2012). Of course, any given person might see piety or irreverence in their neighbor’s opposite reactions. One more example is worth retelling before turning back with hopeful anticipation to The Chosen, Season Three. In 1998, Roman Catholic rights groups leaked a new play that was set to be produced at the Manhattan Theatre Club in New York by one of its favorite playwrights,Terrance McNally. He was on a hot streak. He had penned an extraordinary string of hit, award-winning plays over the previous decade, nearly one each season and most of them for MTC. This forthcoming play was called Corpus Christi, and its conceit is that in an updated structure of a Medieval Passion Play, Jesus and the apostles are gay. The city, its churches, theatergoers, and press erupted.There were anonymous threats of bombings and other extreme violence. MTC used the threats as an excuse to cancel the production altogether, a shock given their prized relationship with the author. An open letter from esteemed playwrights in defense of McNally—and their accusations of moral cowardice, censorship, as well

as threats of their own aimed at the theater company—caused MTC to rescind its cancellation and to mount the play, after all. It opened on September 22, 1998, and audience members passed through newly-installed metal detectors to get to their seats. As for the play itself, it is in many ways a simple story of the main character, here named Joshua, as he is born in Corpus Christi (the Texas town where the playwright graduated from high school), grows up, is surrounded by friends, travels, and loves. At the end of the play, Joshua returns home for a last supper with his friends, is betrayed, and is crucified for being gay.The death scene is brutal, and the stage directions in the script call for it to be almost unwatchably violent and disturbing. Aside from the play’s action, the language itself is unabashedly vulgar. F-bombs rain down on the page in torrents, for example. And yet, McNally’s compassionate tone for these characters, however arch and stereotyped, is representative of his plays with other gay figures in them, of which, there are many sterling examples. For some, attending the production came to be like participating in a political rally.The play ran for two months, a duration not atypical for non-profit, subscription companies in New York. It might have passed by entirely with little lasting notice. It wasn’t especially praised. Ben Brantley, The New York Times’ theater critic, who is openly gay, wrote of the play as unconvincing and undeveloped. Comparing it to other works that draw from the Gospels, he wrote, “Yet as a piece of writing, ‘Corpus Christi’ feels lazy. It rides piggyback on the mighty resonances guaranteed by the story that inspired it, and rarely reaches beyond the easy novelty of making its central character gay, with such attendant scenes as a wedding of two men.” However, something of national impact happened during the run of Corpus Christi. Two weeks after opening night, on the evening of October 6, nearly 2,000 miles away from the theaters of City Center,

On the set of The Chosen. Photograph: Mykal Urbina.

two men abducted a gay student of the University of Wyoming in Laramie, lured him into their truck, took him to a remote field, taunted him, robbed, beat, and tortured him so mercilessly that doctors later deemed the victim’s injuries too severe to attempt to remedy.The men, who are now serving life sentences in prison for murder, bound the dying freshman to a barbed-wire fence and left him. The police found Matthew Shepard 18 hours later, covered in blood except where his tears had washed trails down his cheeks, still alive. He never regained consciousness, and he died in an intensive care unit after six days. In response, hate crime legislation was enacted over the next decade, including the federal Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009. One struggles to imagine Shepard’s pain and terror, made even more harrowing by his memory of being raped repeatedly and beaten on a trip with high school friends to Morocco three years earlier. His suffering in Laramie is almost too painful for us to consider. Back to the McNally play, though, if an audience member looked disdainfully on its final scene’s violence as offensive, gratuitous, manipulative, or simply in bad taste when the play first opened, after Shepard’s murder in Wyoming, the reactions of viewers and those who had followed the controversies of Corpus Christi in the papers shifted. It became real, suddenly prescient. The play was the same, but the world had changed. Think of McNally, too, going through the darkness of having such a personal play appear in the storm of public controversy, danger, and betrayal, only to observe it as prophetic weeks later. One month after the opening, he wrote about the experience in his preface for the published edition of the play, “…[Matthew Shepard was] beaten senseless and tied to a split-rail fence in near-zero weather, arms akimbo in a grotesque crucifixion, he died as agonizing a death as another young man who had been tortured and nailed to a wooden cross at a desolate spot outside Jerusalem known as Gol-

gotha some 1,998 years earlier. They died, as they lived, as brothers.” Writing about his goals for the play, he added, “At the same time it asked you to look at what they did to Joshua [Jesus], it asks that we look at what they did one cold October night to a young man in Wyoming as well. Jesus Christ died again when Matthew Shepard did.” What is lost frequently in discussions of artworks that are challenging or works by artists “not like us”—whatever that means—is the fact that real people create these things and real people experience them. It raises again the ageless questions, What is art for and what can it do? Art changes us. In the theater, this is a communal experience. The push/pull of critical and social posturing sometimes forgets those things. What’s more, as we change, these artworks blur and morph and reappear in ever-shifting ways. Although your response might be the opposite of the person next to you, art continues to alter us in our spinning world because it keeps playing in memory, like a repertory theater of the mind. There is no one right way in art, and that is its own burden and virtue. Aside from the variety of responses in any given audience, each of us holds a range of reactions in ourselves. Duality is a component of our age, even if social politics paints it otherwise.We ask ourselves to keep many artistic points of view and their subtle colorings resident at the same time. Future thinkers armed with perspective might look back on our day as a time when our unending consumption of digital content became a gateway to embrace discordance as essential to our omnivorousness—not by aspiration to claim all knowledge as our providence but by entitled assumption and technological reality—that we held all art in our palm at once. Is The Chosen good or bad art? Are the people who watch it or don’t watch it good or bad? Neither art nor ourselves is static. That is one reason

why the labels that attempt, however slyly, to calibrate moral goodness in art simply don’t work. A pronouncement—whether it is praise or condemnation—of a faith-derived artwork as uplifting, sacrilegious, devout, or blasphemous is only as permanent as we are, which is to say, not very fixed at all. We are each in flux. On paper, The Chosen shouldn’t work. It shouldn’t be effective. The bizarre gap between characters in costumes and on sets that aspire to historicity who then speak so colloquially is, like, totally jarring. Typically, that kind of anachronism kills the viewer’s ability to be fully immersed in a dramatic work. It pulls the viewer in and out of the action by disrupting its consistency. It violates the rules of its own universe. It is like listening to two languages at once. Here, Jenkins’ choices do not seem to be artifice nor caprice but simply the way he envisions the characters and the story as meaningful to and a mirror of contemporary life. It is the gateway he believes to be the most direct route for viewers to understand his point of view and interpret the source material. To be sure, it takes some time to become accustomed to this approach, to relax and just roll with it. At the end of one emotional scene in the first season of the show, Jesus heals the leper, gives him a new tunic, and says, admiringly,“Green is definitely your color. Not too shabby.” You won’t find that verse in the Gospels. Many of the characters sound like that, jumping in and out of contemporary cadences from what is otherwise intended to approximate period speech. In another scene, this one from Season Two, a former highway thief offers an extended, remorseful confession that he has attacked and robbed a Jewish traveler in the dark and left him beaten and naked, to die on a roadside. Jesus forgives him, and assures him omnisciently that in fact his victim did not die. Then realizing that he and his posse should be on their way because it is getting dark, Jesus deadpans, “You never know what sort

of men will lay in wait along the side of the road.” There is an awkward pause, then Jesus says with a smile, “Too soon?” These are scripts that embrace the vernacular nearly at every opportunity. The language and references of The Chosen are so contemporary that if Jesus were to begin a scene by saying, “Two Pharisees walk into a bar…”, not one viewer of the series—none of the millions of them—would even bat an eye. At a base level, even for purists, it is forgivable because it is enjoyable. The recent Star Wars series, The Mandalorian, can be boiled down to an irresistible, two-word pitch: baby Yoda; The Chosen finds distinction in a similarly concise description: Jesus is funny. The conceptual embrace of humor began to evolve in the early short films that Jenkins made for his church. In a 2015 short, Jesus (with Roumie already cast in the lead role) watches the disciples arm wrestle. Thaddeus surprises the group and bests Andrew, to which Jesus says, “Even I didn’t see that coming.” In terms of character and setting, the series straddles the societies of the imagined Bible and Anywhere, U.S.A. The male and female disciples joke and tease and play and bully and fret. They are given tics, disorders, and troubling histories. The actors, aside from their unplaceable, foreign accents that occasionally come and go without warning, are very much represented visually on screen by the creative modes of restless camera work and other present-day filmmaking techniques. This should add up to be a disruptive, unending whipsaw for the viewer, particularly those who come to the show expecting a Bible-bound experience; they are, after all, its core audience. Consider the hubris, then, involved in writing and filming such contemporary plot and dialogue representing hallowed figures of the Bible, including One in whose name people around the world pray every day, and conjuring backstories and personalities foreign to or merely hinted at in the canon of Christian scripture. It is quite audacious. It shouldn’t work.

And yet. The viewer finds the unique spirit of the series in the intangibles that transcend its cleverness, especially in the surprising insights that strike when least expected. (It might be a fascinating social experiment to take this concept one step further: to film the exact same script with the same performers in modern dress on the streets of New York or Las Vegas or even Tel Aviv. How far would the audience allow itself to be pushed with updated versions of scriptural art? Would faithful series viewers swoon after such an approach or hunt for torches and pitchforks?) There is a method to the series’ approach. It is not a biblical bait and switch. The humor makes the miracles feel more unexpected. The music is effective and, particularly when miracles occur in the plot, tingle-inducing. The contemporary language helps a viewer to imagine walking alongside the historical Jesus, Himself. Dramatically speaking, these are no small achievements. As is, The Chosen is so winningly human, so insightful and engaging, it almost persuades anyone to be a Christian. Jenkins has a plan, and by making the characters feel like your next door neighbors—granted, a funnier version of them and more physically attractive—they feel real in a way that no Hollywood biblical epic has matched. These disciples are messy and messed up, meaning, they are like we are. What disbelief is Jenkins asking us to suspend in this approach to storytelling? Perhaps our shared reverence for sacred texts has been a barrier to understanding these men and women all along and putting ourselves in their sandals. Clearly, a top priority of the show is relatability. In LDS culture, children sing a line from a song by Janice Kapp Perry, “I’m trying to be like Jesus….” As people watch the movies, TV series, and stage productions cited here, including The Chosen, what kind of Jesus do they want to be like? As Max von Sydow,Victor Garber,Ted Neeley, Jeff Fenholt,Willem Dafoe, Corey Behnke—to give some examples from the films and plays noted above? What

are the traits in these performances that draw us (or fail to draw us) to Jesus? Right now, millions of people likely want to be like Jonathan Roumie, the Jesus of The Chosen, and they might not be able to articulate exactly why. Certainly, he projects an appealingly original, wise, funny, playful, teasing, handsome, restrained, good, persecuted, loving, loyal, intense, knowing, honorable, strong, miraculous, and calmly divine being—in many respects, a being you did not imagine existed. You might think this appeal radiates innately from the actor himself, but Roumie’s previous performances on American network television do not have that same, charmed effect.This role has clearly tapped into something meaningful for him. It does not detract anything from this warm and winning actor to suggest that this unexpected emotional connection between character and audience is principally Jenkins’ doing as his writer and director. It is still early in the story and early in the series, but as a creative duo, they’re onto something. In a discussion of all of these dramatic projects, Christian believers can be forgiven for jumping to judgment. It is surely a protective impulse for Christians to want to safeguard this revered text. It is called the Holy Bible, after all. Who should have the job to make art from it? What should be its interpretive barrier of entry? We wonder and worry at the possibilities of the new: a 70’s hippie singing with a guitar? A rock opera portrayal? Monty Python’s perverse universe? Mel Gibson’s repulsive violence? A vision of Jesus making love? Gay apostles? Jesus cracking jokes? Any of us is justified to think as we want about any and all of the above projects, especially after having learned enough to construct an informed opinion. However, viewers might surprise themselves by wading through them and finding new ways to enlarge their faith and to see things from others’ view as they explore. What would Jesus do?: the perpetual guiding question of contemporary ethical choice making. Here’s a follow up: What would Jesus view?

Dallas Jenkins envisions seven seasons of The Chosen. We are beginning Season Three with Jesus’ first, large-scaled public sermon, a Woodstock of blessedness.The series is a chronological survey of the life of Jesus with an occasional, looping backstory. Readers of the Bible know what’s coming over the next seasons. It will be fascinating to see how the viewing audience reacts over time. Will they be like the flash mobs of ancient Israel who

were adoring fans of a celebritized Jesus, until they weren’t? Will audiences and financial backers of The Chosen mirror this fickleness or fealty as the series’ storyline grows darker and opportunities for its unique sense of humor evaporate? There may be a sorting of allegiances. Based on the work so far, however, over two seasons and counting, Jenkins is telling us to have faith.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

LETTERSto theEDITOR I want to thank you for the incredible work you do. I’ve been reading The Season and have been blown away, both by the subjects covered and also by the writing and journalism. You talked in one article about FOMO. I have that about the magazine—how I wish I could participate in some way in such an incredible endeavor. That being said, I can see God working through you. The voice you are giving to the people—the ones gifted with incredible talents—is needed and important. Thank you for continuing to be led by the Spirit in sharing the talent in our community on a larger stage! Marci Stay Stringham Morris Plains, New Jersey

I was extremely fascinated by Glen Nelson’s article highlighting Michelle Dorrance in the October issue of The Season. As an aspiring professional dancer and member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I find great inspiration from choreographers and dancers like Michelle. Her artistry and creativity are truly remarkable and one of a kind. I continue to be amazed by her talent and ability to connect with so many through her art. In the article, Glen Nelson references Michelle’s history of pulling together and collaborating with dancers who specialize in other styles of dance besides tap including ballet, modern, and break dancing. As someone who has spent most of my years training in ballet and modern techniques, I am astounded by her choice to come together with other artists to showcase how tap and other styles of dance can complement each other and work together to elevate a performance experience. As I reflected on this article, I couldn’t help but be reminded of my own dance journey and specifical-

ly some of my earliest memories of when I started tap dancing. That began not very long before I moved to New York City in 2011, to play the title role of “Billy” in Billy Elliot The Musical on Broadway. Although tap was less familiar to me than other styles of dance, the more experience I had tapping, the more inspired I became and really grew to appreciate it. In addition to Michelle Dorrance being a talented tap dancer and choreographer, she is also a highly regarded educator and teacher. In 2021, Michelle Dorrance served as the Program Director of the Tap Program for The School at Jacob’s Pillow in Becket, Massachusetts. There, selected college-age dancers have the opportunity to strengthen their distinct artistic voices by working with an elite Artist Faculty and other choreographers who have an abundance of expertise and knowledge. As someone who was fortunate enough to have been selected for the Contemporary Program at The School at Jacob’s Pillow this past summer, I know how valuable and special it is to benefit from working with such talented and hardworking artists like Michelle, who are so willing to give, share, and experiment with different ideas that they have learned during their career. Although my tap skills are pretty rusty, reading this article has definitely made me excited to dust off my tap shoes and get tapping again. It is a pleasure to read articles that highlight dance within the arts community in the Church. Tade Biesinger New York, New York

I am a long-time admirer of the work of CzechAmerican sculptor Lyuba Prusak, featured in The Season’s last issue. She was anything but an un-

known artist working in obscurity. Prusak exhibited in five countries, had a long exhibition history in the U.S. and Europe, and her work can be found in many private and public art collections, including the Czech National Gallery in Prague where she gained a following before emigrating to the U.S. Her accolades and honors are too numerous to mention here. Posthumously, Prusak’s powerful sculptures in the style of European expressionism, are sought out by curators and collectors. Laurie Lisonbee Woodland Hills, Utah

How incredibly grateful I am for this wonderful resource! Can it last forever? My TBR pile is now officially out of control, yet I have significantly less time to read because I’m so busy visiting galleries, attending concerts, and listening to new podcasts (and of course, studying Come, Follow Me with all my new reference materials). I’m simply overwhelmed by and proud of the creative endeavors of my people. Keep it coming! Raquel Cook American Fork, UT

The story of your October issue “The Expanding World of Michelle Dorrance” mentioned that Michelle is the daughter of “a gifted dancer.” That gifted dancer is M’Liss Dorrance (née Gary), who has a fascinating story and compelling career of her own. Born in Lisbon, Portugal, to a United States Air Force family, M’Liss grew up and studied dance all over the world. Her first dance teacher, starting at age three, was a woman who Umberto II, the last king of Italy, brought from England to Portugal to teach his grandchildren. M’Liss showed such interest and talent that the teacher offered to give her lessons separately from the rest of the class. From there, she studied under James Jamieson in Wilm-

ington, Delaware and then with a woman recalled only as “Madame Rossi” in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Rossi, a Russian woman married to an Italian military man, carried a big stick to keep time for the students who came from all over the world.At the age of fifteen, M’Liss won a scholarship to Pacific Lutheran University, where she trained with Edna McRae through Robert Joffrey’s program at that school. M’Liss cites McRae as her most influential teacher, as McRae pushed the dancers toward more technical awareness. McRae asked the dancers to understand the scholarly side of ballet by forcing them to pause in the middle of a dance and recite the names of steps they were doing and how to spell them. After studying through a scholarship under David Howard at the National Ballet School in Washington, DC, M’Liss went professional with Eliot Feld’s American Ballet Company in New York City in 1970. She moved to the Arlington Dance Theater in Virginia shortly afterward to be near her then-fiancé, Anson Dorrance, who was attending the University of North Carolina. She moved again to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in 1974, where she worked as a teacher for a private dance studio and for Duke University as an instructor and then as faculty. She eventually served as the co-director of the Duke Repertory Ensemble. In 1979, when Michelle was one year old, M’Liss co-founded the Ballet School of Chapel Hill. Michelle started taking dance lessons there at age three. The school continues teaching hundreds of students today and is recognized as one of top dance schools in the region. M’Liss has choreographed many works, including, most importantly: “Romanza” (1999) and “Valley” (2002) with Duke Ballet Repertory Ensemble and “The White Doe” with Chapel Hill Ballet Company.

M’Liss is the first to say she doesn’t have the “ideal” body for ballet: long legs, long neck, and a small head. Instead, her success came from what Eliot

Feld praised as her “quality of movement,” or her ability to speak to people through the motion of her body. This legacy, as well as her humility and generous commitment to building the community of dance, clearly shines through in her daughter’s work. Margaret Olsen Hemming Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS EDUARDO ALVAREZ Eduardo Alvarez is a Chilean/American artist born in 1958 in Chillán, Chile. Since the beginning of his career in the late 70s, he has pioneered in the use of matter painting and mixed media as a figurative visual art form.

LIONEL KEITH BROWN Keith Lionel Brown is a 30-year retired US Navy veteran. He is a freelance writer and a beginning songwriter, having published two songs thus far.

RICHARD L. BUSHMAN Richard Bushman, a Bancroft Prize-winning historian, is the author of Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling, and many other books on American history. His forthcoming volume is a cultural history of the Golden Plates.

MADDISON COLVIN Maddison Colvin is an interdisciplinary visual artist residing in Orem, Utah. Her work focuses on themes of ecology, built environment, and communal knowledge, and spans media from drawing to photography to video game design.

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD Emily Larsen Doxford is the marketing and communications director for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. A writer and communications profes-

sional, she received her MA in American and English Literature from NYU.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

MEGAN KNOBLOCH GEILMAN Megan Knobloch Geilman has exhibited in New York City and throughout the state of Utah, winning several awards. Her work is inspired by, among others: the Dutch masters, Jeff Wall, Sandy Skoglund, Bill Viola, Fred Wilson, and the many artists she attempts to pay tribute to through her pieces.

GREG KEARNEY Greg Kearney has worked as an editorial cartoonist for over 40 years. His work is syndicated in 170 newspapers in the United States and abroad. He specializes in local politics and agricultural policy. Born in Maine, he lives in Topeka, Kansas.

GLEN NELSON Glen Nelson made his professional performing arts debut at the Capitol Theatre in Salt Lake City with the American Folk Ballet. He writes about dance, visual art, literature, film, and music.

STEVEN RICKS Steven Ricks is a Professor in the BYU School of Music where he currently serves as Composition and Theory Division Coordinator. Several recent chamber and electronic works are featured on the album, Assemblage Chamber, released on the New Focus Recordings label, and he maintains an active recording and performing schedule with colleague Christian Asplund as “Ricksplund.”

ARISAEL RIVERA Arisael Rivera is an actor, playwright, and poet based in The Bronx, New York. Most recently, his poem “Jubilant Feet” was published in the anthology Love Letters to Gaia by Miro C.

JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE Joël René Scoville is an actress, writer, and lyricist. Her work includes musicals, an upcoming comic book, and her web series, Crazy with a K! She is a member of the prestigious BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop as both a librettist and lyricist. She lives in Spanish Harlem, NY with her husband and they have three sons.

JOSEPH SOWA Composer by day, rock climber by night, Dr. Joseph Sowa resides in Boston, Massachusetts.

SAM ZAUSCHER Sam Zauscher is an award-winning commercial and editorial portrait, fashion, and dance photographer. She is based in San Diego/Los Angeles.

theSEASON DECEMBER2022

GIFTguide The staff of The Season invites you, as you plan for Christmas giving, to feature LDS artists prominently on your shopping lists. This guide is a great starting point of exploration. We think you’ll be surprised and happy with what you are about to discover. While we are familiar with the works, we haven’t read every page of the books, listened to every piece of music, nor taken every virtual class. That is, we will stop short of an endorsement, but we invite you, as you plan for Christmas giving, to feature LDS artists prominently on your shopping lists.

All Gift Guide photographs: James Ransom

Regarding proceeds, we have no skin in the game. Our goal is to advocate for LDS creative artists and showcase their work. We receive no remuneration for your purchases, but there is one, beautiful exception: the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts and Brian Kershisnik Limited Edition Holiday Print. All proceeds will benefit the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts and our many projects, including The Season. Enough reading. Get shopping.

GIFTguide CHILDREN’S BOOKS

1. Nine-year old Willis Wilbur determines to create the first ever life-coaching app as a school project with friends. Unfortunately, the precocious fourth grader doesn’t know how to code and must get over his pride and jealousy to ask for help. Willis Wilbur Meets His Match by Lindsey Leavitt is a middle grade novel. (Penguin Random House, hardcover, 224 pp.) $13.99

2. The popular subscription service Bookroo, founded and run by three young moms, curates titles that are tailored to the young reader--board books, picture books, junior chapter books, and middle grade books--delivered as a “book club box” with multiple titles inside. Additional content opens the digital door to quizzes, rewards, author/ artist bios, and book recommendations. (bookroo.

com) subscriptions of one month to one year, starting at $19.95 3. Dustin Hansen’s ingenious book for teenagers, The Greatest Stories Ever Played:Video Games and the Evolution of Storytelling, takes the most memorable experiences in story-based gaming and examines what makes their narratives so powerful. (Feiwel & Friends, hardcover, 304 pp.) $19.95 4. With weekly Come, Follow Me lessons for children, artist Annie Poon provides coloring pages, word games, puzzles, and art activities—including a paper theater diorama of Jesus visiting Paul in prison—in Color Your Way Through the New Testament in her own inimitable style that somehow mixes the sacred and the funny. (Covenant Communications, softcover, 144 pp.) $12.99 5. On Christmas morning, the Browne family decides to start a pay-it-forward experiment. They perform an act of service, make a note about it on a gold star, and then send the star through the mail to somebody else, in turn, to repeat charitable acts of services (The Star Leads Us to Him). Off it goes to LDS missionaries and friends in Brazil, Australia, Vietnam, Honduras, Nigeria, France, and elsewhere, until it arrives where it started the next Christmas. Written by Merrilee Boyack and illustrated by Jeff Harvey. (Cedar Fort, hardcover, 32 pp.) $16.99 6. A little shepherd boy asks his father about the promised Messiah in this Christmas book about the birth of Jesus, More Than Just a Star. The inside of the dust jacket becomes a nativity scene with symbols on the front and back flaps that can be cut out to remind the reader of the symbols of the Savior. (Deseret Book, hardcover, 32 pp.) $19.99 7. “In the hottest month, on the hottest day, in the city of dreamers—California, L.A.” begins the Latin Grammy winner Lucky Diaz’s story of a little boy running through the barrio in search of his favorite paleta (popsicle). Paletero Man/¡Que Paletero tan Cool! is a colorful, bilingual (English/

Spanish) story as addictive as popsicles, illustrated by celebrated artist Micah Player. (HarperCollins, softcover, 32 pp.) $7.99

GIFTguide FOOD

1. We’re not saying that baking is a religion, but we’re not not saying it, either. At the very least, King Arthur Baking Company (established in Boston in 1790) is a reverenced brand, and their first color cookbook, Baking School: Lessons and Recipes for Every Baker, has the weight of a bible, in more ways than one. The irresistibly tasty photographs

throughout the tome are by LDS photographer, Mark Weinberg. (Countryman Press, hardcover, 389 pp.) $45.00. 2. The only way that Tara Bench’s second cookbook, Delicious Gatherings: Recipes to Celebrate Together could be better would be if it came with Tara Teaspoon Takeout Coupons attached, some-

how. It is a brilliant invitation to be the host with the most. As for the book’s mouth-watering images by Ty Mecham: Does scratch-’n-sniff technology exist for food photography yet? Asking for a friend. (Shadow Mountain, hardcover, 260 pp.) $34.99 3. Popular food blogger Si Foster often received prompts from her readers to produce a cookbook, and after years of thinking about it, the Okinawa-born cook gathered recipes and self-published (and photographed) a beautiful, professional-quality book for her fans—and those who will soon become fans. (abountifulkitchen.com, hardcover, 368 pp.) $36.99 4. Amano Artisan Chocolate is that rarest of companies: led by a quest for perfection, using superb ingredients, formed with an artist’s devotion to craft, resulting in something you can hold in your hand that will transport you to your own happy place with your first taste.The award-laden, Orem, Utah chocolate maker states, “We seek not to be the largest chocolate company—but simply to make the very best chocolate humanly, or heavenly, possible.” (amanochocolate.com) 3 oz. bars start at $8.95 5. After winning the Food Network’s Christmas Cookie Challenge in 2015, Tarsha Joyner opened Mrs. Joy’s Absolutely Fabulous Treats. She specializes in artfully decorated cookies. For those of us not close enough to Lynchburg,Virginia to stop in to her store or take one of her cookie decorating classes, mail orders will have to suffice. (mrsjoys. company.site) cookies, cakes, and caramels, starting at $15.00

GIFTguide MUSIC

1. Lindsey Stirling’s Christmas album, Snow Waltz, is like a holiday party itself—a gathering of familiar friends (with a few surprise guests) dressed up in new ways brought together with a little help— in this case with performances by Bonnie McKee, Frawley, and David Archuleta. You could just listen on Spotify, sure, but wouldn’t it feel more festive to take the vinyl edition of Snow Waltz for a spin?

(Concord Records, LP) $22.98 2. The passing from ovarian cancer of Mimi Parker, co-founder of the alt-rock band, Low, in November is a loss for the trio, for their many fans, and for music itself. This black, understated t-shirt sums up how many are feeling right now given the news. Low indeed. (Low, Hey What, t-shirt) $29.00

3. The folk/pop band The National Parks’ members come from Northern Utah and Colorado, but their new hat feels official enough for a Utahn to wear with confidence. Under their logo reads, “Band from the Beehive State,” which might be tongue-in-cheek given that the image is of a saguaro cactus. (The National Parks, Beehive State Hat) $25.00

a daily dosage. As the title suggests, readers are treated to a Christmas carol each day of December (through Christmas) with the lyrics, a QR code line to the Tabernacle Choir on Temple Square performing the carol, and the author’s lively history of the carols themselves. (Shadow Mountain Publishing, hardcover, 108 pp.) $15.99

4. It takes a certain kind of fan to seek out limited edition imports of their favorite band’s music. The Killer’s seventh and most recent outing, Pressure Machine, might be a landmark worthy of such collectibility. The British limited edition cassette has covers with a red, gray, white, or black cover. (Island Records, cassette) $21.99

10. The longest-running holiday show in Utah (if you don’t count The Nutcracker) is the annual Christmas concert by Kurt Bestor. In its 35th year, the composer, singer-songwriter goes on the road to Kayenta, UT, Gunnison, UT, Pocatello, ID, Salt Lake City, UT, Park City, UT (multiple venues, 12/1-25). (kurtbestor.com/tour) see website for ticket information

5. “This is magic in my bones,” sings Imagine Dragons on their new album Bones. You know who’s not tapping their toes after listening to the title track? Nobody alive. All the more reason to commemorate losing control with a set of stickers from the band. (Imagine Dragons, sticker set, 10.5 x 8 inches, 5 stickers) $10.00

11. Jenny Oaks Baker & Family Four is joined by Alex Sharpe and Jason F.Wright in Christmas concerts in St. George, UT, Salt Lake City, UT, Cedar City, UT, Idaho Falls, ID, Lehi, UT, Mesa, AZ, Tysons Corner, VA, Athens, GA, Sandy Springs, GA, and Huntsville, AL. (12/1-22). (jennyoaksbaker.com/tour) tickets starting at $20.00, prices vary by venue

6. You can’t lug a piano around in your backpack, but The Piano Guys’ keychain in the shape of a piano with a cello hidden inside it will liven up that keyring.Theoretically, it could be used for, you know, actual keys. (2 x 1.5 inches, anodized metal) $7.99

12. The sprawling Millennial Choirs and Orchestras mount a Christmas concert, Star of Night, in Mesa, AZ, Salt Lake City, UT, and Costa Mesa, CA (12 concerts over three venues, 12/1-12). (millennial.org) tickets starting at $21.00

7. Not a badge of honor exactly, but the flower enamel pin celebrating Panic! At The Disco’s Viva Las Vengeance album and tour signals something joyous, nonetheless. (enamel pin, 2.25 inches diameter) $10.00

13. Those too far from Salt Lake City or unable to win the ticket lottery to the 2022 Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert are invited to join the virtual music broadcast, The Promise of Christmas. (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) free streaming

8. Certainly you know the crime-fighting, superhero, new wave, synth-pop, rock and roll band, The Aquabats! Every band should have such a mission statement: They fight the forces of evil and boredom across the land in their BattleTram using positive vibes and rad music. (Gloopy, Li’l Bat decal) $3.50 9. Michael D. Young’s An Advent Carols Countdown: Stories Behind the Most Beloved Music of Christmas measures out love for music and Christmas in

14. Is there something in the water that makes residents of Salt Lake City, Utah join a chorus? So many choruses; so few days in December. One of the best is the Salt Lake Choral Artists, and their annual concert of holiday favorites includes the SLCA Concert Choir, Chamber Choir, Vocal Artists, Young Choral Artists, and Chamber Orchestra. (SLAC, 12/09-10). (saltlakechoralartists.org) tickets from $10.00-20.00

GIFTguide FICTION AND NON-FICTION

1. For nineteen years in row, New York Times best-selling author Anne Perry has given her readers a gift: a murder mystery set during the holidays. The Wall Street Journal writes, “No author since Doyle has more devotedly combined suspense with the spirit and message of Christmas than Anne Perry, the British author who has, since 2003, included a seasonal Victorian-era book in

her prolific output.” (Ballantine Books, hardcover, 209 pp.) $22.00 2. Many LDS authors are drawn to personal essays and creative non-fiction. In The Precarious Walk: Essays from Sand & Sky, Phyllis Barber pulls 17 essays written between 2009 and the present that were published in previous volumes and literary journals. The title comes from a probing, questioning

essay that tracks Barber’s quest to find meaning and purpose in an era of doubt. (Torrey House Press, softcover, 227 pp.) $18.95 3. How to boil down Steven L. Peck’s new novel, Heike’s Void? This is what the novelist himself says it is: “Heike’s Void opens with Baader–Meinhof bombing of the Frankfurt Officers Club and ends in the La Sals (as all great novels do). It takes place in Germany, Africa, Nephi’s world, Sweden, and Moab. Heike’s Void is like Jack Weyland and David Foster Wallace are in a car crash, and someone sews them back together into a gorgeous Mary Shelleyesque creature, both sentimental and macabre.” That’ll do. (BCC Press, softcover, 340 pp.) $12.95 4. In her debut novel, Beneath the Wide Silk Sky, Emily Inouye Huey draws a story from her family history as a daughter, granddaughter, and great-granddaughter of Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during World War II in the American West. The novel of teenage romance against the backdrop of racism after the bombing of Pearl Harbor received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly. (Scholastic Press, hardcover, 336 pp.) $19.99 5. Years before Steven R. Covey passed away—the author’s books have sold over 40 millions copies and formed the foundation for a business leadership empire—he asked his daughter Cynthia Covey Haller to help him write a book, his last “big idea.” Now, ten years after his death comes Live Life in Crescendo:Your Most Important Work Is Always Ahead of You. In this book, the authors provide trademark encouragement for four life phases: mid-life, following up after success, setbacks, and advancing years. (Simon & Schuster, hardcover, 288 pp.) $27.99 6. This is the autobiography that animation fans have been waiting for! After years in Hollywood working alongside Walt Disney, animator Don Bluth made a shocking decision to start his own studio company (and took a fleet of Disney animators

with him). Bluth then released era-defining movies of his own: An American Tale, The Secret of NIHM, Anastasia,The Land Before Time (and its 13 sequels), and more. Somewhere Out There: My Animated Life is Bluth’s mesmerizing and fascinating, bare-it-all story. (Smart Pop, softcover, 374 pp.) $21.95 7. Kiersten White is the New York Times best-selling author of the trilogies, And I Darken and Camelot Rising, among other books. In Star Wars Padawan, young Obi-Wan Kenobi rebels against his master and sets off on, as the book’s Kirkus review notes, an “absorbing adventure with an emphasis on self-discovery.” (Disney Lucasfilm Press, hardcover, 400 pp.) $18.99 8. A high school student in Arizona, Jason Olson called his friend Dave around five o’clock in the morning and told him that the Book of Mormon, which he’d been given, was true. “It’s true, man,” I continued, tears streaming down my cheeks...I felt it. The Book of Mormon is just as true as my Bible is.” It’s a story that any LDS person with a spirit of missionary work would love to hear. The difference in this case is that Jason Olson was a Jewish boy considering becoming a rabbi, and his budding testimony was only the beginning of an extraordinary story of one man and two faiths. The Burning Book: A Jewish-Mormon Memoir is co-written with James Goldberg. (BCC Press, softcover, 247 pp.) $11.95 9. Syd and Shea McGee’s Make Life Beautiful is a book that aims at multiple genres at once. It is a he said/she said memoir of their journey to be the fastest-growing interior design brand in the U.S. and the hosts of the Netflix series, Dream Home Makeover (three seasons and counting). It is full of self-help business and life advice. And it is organized around cleanly contemporary interior design principles that are the McGee brand. (Harper Horizon, hardcover, extended edition, 223 pp.) $26.99

GIFTguide VIRTUAL CLASSES AND SERVICES

1. Dr. Douglas Pew’s Latter-day Musiversity Membership is a subscription to materials and classes aimed at LDS music enthusiasts who want to write Primary Songs, Hymns, Hymn Arrangements, or works that enhance the worship experience. (dougpewmusic.com) monthly membership starts at $20.00

2. For the serious composer who wishes to unlock the magic of composition with tools they didn’t receive in music school, Dr. Joseph Sowa’s school offers a 15-week immersion with workshops, classes, private coaching, and more--all via zoom. The Premiere Package includes recording your new masterpiece with the Budapest Art Or-

chestra. (josephsowa.com, details online) packages start at $2,997.00 3. Let’s say you want to write a book with your story but it’s just not happening. Don’t give up.The seasoned writers at Kleio will interview you, learn about you, and turn that story into a published book. Remember that terrific experience your grandfather had? Want to capture a memory before it is too late? Imagine turning it into an heirloom. (kleiostory.com) projects, depending upon book length, start at $7,500.00 4. Emily Harris Mecham’s Monthly Flower Club is a once-a-month zoom hour to teach new floral arranging skills, pick up industry tricks of the

trade, and hear stories of Mecham’s extraordinary career as a high-end floral designer and flower buyer in New York City—ask her about the time a customer ordered 26,000 red roses to be delivered 36 hours later. (flowerswithemily.com) $10.00 each club meeting, first flower club is free. Sign up here. 5. Why not learn to paint? You know you want to. Sentient Academy offers 500+ demonstrations by expert artists teaching specific courses that are accessed online. Even a glance at the many offerings makes you want to unleash your inner-genius. (sentientacademy.com) free courses and additional tiers at $20.00 and $50.00 monthly

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

GIFTguide HOLIDAY BENEFIT PRINT

Brian Kershisnik has generously created a delightful Christmas image as a fundraiser for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. Your purchase of the original benefit print accomplishes two important things: it supports the work of the Center; and it provides your home a holiday artwork that will bring a smile to you and your guests every year, starting now. $100

To purchase: Please contact Emily Spung at e.spung@centerforlatterdaysaintarts.org to coordinate payment, shipping, and delivery details. To ensure delivery before Christmas, please order before December 16th, 2022.

Brian Kershisnik (American, born 1962) Gloria (2022) Relief print 3.75 x 4.75 (image size), 9.1875 x 9.75 (sheet size), signed and number, edition: 50, unframed

inMIND FOOD CULTURE by GLEN NELSON

Images: Courtesy of Mark Weinberg

Chef José Andrés, three times nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his humanitarian efforts involving food, wrote in Vegetables Unleashed: A Cookbook, “Food is not just fuel! Food is history, culture, politics, art. It is nourishment for the soul. If I sound excited and maybe a little emotional, that’s because I am. The simple fact of life is that we will be eating two or three meals a day every day until we die. We should all be experts at eating.” Regarding food in the culture of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, although obedience to the Word of Wisdom is a key driver of a Latter-day Saint’s identity, I am unaware of any food historian or scholar who has claimed that there exists a Mormon cuisine in the way that there is a Buddhist or Kurdish cuisine or Northern Italian or Peruvian cuisine. I am unsure how far to extend this line of inquiry, however. Does every culture create a cuisine, and can a culture exist without a food culture unique to it? What do those questions suggest about us? We lack a culinary point of view, funeral potatoes and green Jell-O, notwithstanding. No sin in that, of course. Still, it is a bit surprising. Here is a culture that thinks constantly about what it is not partaking in food, drink, and drug. Throughout the world, the limits that members place upon themselves at the table separate them and sometimes alienate them from their neighbors and friends. Not drinking, not smoking, rejecting caffeinated teas and coffee—things that the rest of the world can’t seem to function without—are prominent in our outward-facing reputation, our individual lifestyles, and our sense of self. The culture might have developed differently regarding food. Its theology of quasi-vegetarianism (“[meat]…only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine,” for example) might have become a more powerful identifier as well as a propulsive and generative force in the kitchen. Consider the ways a regional cuisine is shaped over time by its tools, climates, and accessible ingredients and then think of the early Saints in the West: a population that was as concentrated regarding geography and its

local food as the world’s regional cuisines. For any and all of those reasons, there very well could have emerged a Mormon cuisine. A global church now, perhaps that opportunity has passed. What we do have is a culture that loves food, perhaps in part as a reaction against its inability to be connoisseurs of wine, liquors, cigars, and other such categories. If it doesn’t embrace tea, coffee, and craft beers, some LDS people make up for it with herbal tea, hot chocolate, and craft sodas. Food influencers abound, too. There are LDS chefs, farmers, and restaurateurs. There are LDS food writers, publishers of cookbooks, commercial photographers who specialize in food imagery, and entrepreneurs who start food businesses in their home kitchens before opening their own shops and even founding corporate food empires. There are LDS food experts on TV teaching how to cook and judging competitions of cooking, just as there are LDS cooks who are competitors and winners of those media competitions.

New Cookbooks In the last three months, a flurry of cookbooks by LDS chefs, food photography by LDS photographers using LDS food stylists, produced by LDS publishers (sometimes all four at once) have appeared in the nation’s bookshops. Pull up a seat to the table and get a taste, just in time for the holidays. Tara Bench spent years as a Food Editor at Martha Stewart Living magazine and Food Director at Ladies’ Home Journal magazine before writing her first cookbook, using her brand name, Tara Teaspoon, Live Life Deliciously (Shadow Mountain) in 2020. Her new cookbook, Delicious Gatherings: Recipes to Celebrate Together (Shadow Mountain) appeared in September 2022, with photography by Ty Mecham and styling by Veronica Olson (additional LDS artists in New York). When asked what kind of feedback she gets from readers, Tara writes to me, “One of my favorite things to hear is that some-

one’s child, even as young as four years old, will request something from one of my cookbooks. Their parents will comply and make the recipe, and the family ends up having a new favorite dish they can enjoy together. Food can be that connector for young and old, family and friends.This resonates with people I talk to, and I’ve had many share with me notable moments when a Tara Teaspoon recipe has brought joy to their home, uplifted a sad friend, won a family cooking contest, or been a meal-showstopper they were proud of. These emotions around food, and gathering around food are real, they can be replicated, and they can be enjoyed with others.” On the other side of the country, Luisa Perkins is a novelist in Southern California. The title of her cookbook, Comfortably Yum (self-published, 2nd edition, September 2022), is a pun on the Pink Floyd song, “Comfortably Numb.” The revised and expanded edition doubled the size of the original. When I asked her to describe the relationship between writing a novel and writing a cookbook, she replied, “The connection is stories. Food tells a story. It gathers and unites people in the same way that stories do. A recipe can tell a story of tradition, innovation, family, or adventure—or all of the above. Instead of pairing foods with wines, my cookbook pairs foods with music, another way of storytelling. When we slow down and make time for stories in whatever form, life is infinitely richer.” A common thread in all of these books is generosity. The writers are sharing something about which they feel passionately, with the express desire that the reader/home cook duplicate the joy of cooking, eating, and gathering for themselves. The books are also documents of their lives. They spring from the writers’ experiences cooking with their parents and grandparents, their travels in the world, their creativity and invention, and their curiosities about the changing tastes of the public. Si Foster’s journey to writing a cookbook, A Bountiful Kitchen (self-published, October 2022) is slight-

ly different. Foster was born in Japan, the daughter of farmers, and she came to cooking somewhat late, as a college student in the United States. A young mother, for a hobby, she started a recipe club, then began a catering company, started a blog about her cooking, gained an avid following, collaborated with other women and their digital businesses, and ultimately decided to bring it all together—including her own photographs of food and lifestyle—in a beautifully-illustrated, 368-page book. Foster writes about a connection between food and her religious belief, “I’ve also had the unique opportunity to use ABD’s social platforms to share messages and interact with thousands of women across the world about faith and food from our little kitchen in Mallorca, Spain, while [my husband] Grant and I served as missionaries for our church.” No cookbook today is a mere gathering of recipes. They often spring from lifestyle brands with strong visual identities. Further, they seek to engage the readers with texts and images that inspire, entertain, and educate. Writing a cookbook is as laborious as any non-fiction volume, but nearly all commercially-published cookbooks now place a high value on imagery that accompanies the text. It’s no surprise that LDS photographers, food stylists, and graphic designers are noteworthy collaborators with publishers in the cookbook industry. King Arthur Baking Company was established in Boston in the year 1790. When they decided to create a new cookbook, The King Arthur Baking School: Lessons and Recipes for Every Baker (Countryman Press, October 2022), they tapped commercial photographer Mark Weinberg, who is LDS. He describes what the job was like for him: “This book was King Arthur Baking’s first cookbook with this many photographs and their first cookbook printed with all color images. This was a little intimidating but at the same time it was a great opportunity to be able to truly make the images my own without having to match images or a style from other books. I photographed this

book on a couple different shoots—11 days in July 2021 and 3 additional days in January 2022. Making sure the light, color temperature, and style were consistent throughout the shoot was always on my mind. The book wasn’t fully designed when I did the photography, so our team didn’t know which images would be next to each other. Once the layout was finalized, I was able to retouch the images so that photographs next to each other on the same page matched color temperature and exposure. In total, I shot over 13,000 images for this book, and the final book has a couple hundred images in it. Most of the book was photographed

in the King Arthur Baking photo studio, but we did spend one day on the King Arthur campus at the baking school and bakery. It was inspiring to work with so many expert bakers and food stylists. I learned so much, which is one of the main reasons I love photographing cookbooks—I feel like I got a 14-day baking masterclass!” On the exact same day that the King Arthur cookbook arrived on the shelves,Weinberg’s photographs for another cookbook were published, Savory Baking: Recipes for Breakfast, Dinner, and Everything in Between (Harvest, October 2022).

Cookbooks are commercial products, but that does not mean they are not artful. Another LDS photographer is James Ransom, who created the images for a cookbook, Food52 Simply Genius: Recipes for Beginners, Busy Cooks & Curious People (Ten Speed Press, September 2022). I asked him how he views the process for shooting his own fine art images versus commercial images. He writes, “I approach fine art and commercial photography similarly, using the same techniques. When I’m shooting food for a cookbook, I work with a team of stylists and an art director to execute someone else’s vision.The images must be beautiful and instructional, so the reader will understand how to interpret the recipe. When I create work for myself, the process is more experimental. I might start with one idea but end up in a completely different place.The image is imperfect and raw, but the vision is my own.” I asked photographer Ty Mecham, who shot the images for Tara Teaspoon’s two cookbooks, how he knows when he has the perfect shot. He replied, “That’s a great question, Glen. There are many hands that go into making a cookbook, but the core decision-makers on the photographs are Tara, who makes and styles the food for each recipe, Veronica Olson, the props stylist, who pulls backgrounds, surfaces, linens, dinnerware, etc., and me. I work on the lighting, the focus, and camera angle. We all work on the composition together while also doing our individual parts. When all the elements come together and the image really sings, we know we have the shot. Often we get to that place but still have minor tweaking. When there are no more adjustments to be made, we save the image and plan for the next one. I’ve worked with this same team on both of Tara’s cookbooks, and I have to say it’s really an honor to be part of such big projects with these incredibly talented women. I also get to try all of Tara’s recipes as we shoot them, and they are honestly so delicious. I’m not sure how I’m this lucky. I get to shoot and then eat delicious food for work!”

I have a collection of cookbooks. You probably do, too. Of mine, the most beautiful books are by the great American chef, Thomas Keller. On the dedication page of Bouchon (Artisan, 2004), Keller wrote this about the graphic designer of his books, “In memory of Cliff Morgan: Cliff Morgan was a talented designer and great friend, a member of our extended family, whose influential designs are ubiquitous through the French Laundry, Bouchon, and Per Se. He died unexpectedly at the age of forty-one as we were producing this book. The entire team misses him more than we can say.” I honor Cliff’s memory, too. A spectacular graphic designer every bit on par with a four-star chef, he was also my friend and an LDS bishop in Brooklyn. LDS cooks, writers, photographers, stylists, designers, and publishers are contributing to the way we eat and live. This is the time of year that people come together for the holidays…and eat. I am reminded of a comment by Chef Michael Chiarello, “What keeps me motivated is not the food itself but all the bonds and memories the food represents.” This holiday season, may your table be spread with good food, shared with people you love, and be the spring of new and fond food memories.

OUTandABOUT WELCOMING WAYFARE In July 1841, Brigham Young was told by revelation that he did not need to travel extensively any longer, in partial reaction to the January 1841 proclamation to gather the Saints who were scattered abroad, back to Nauvoo. That same month, Henry David Thoreau wrote in a letter that humankind is to approach the world as “nature looking into nature,” aware of the ways we perceive it and ourselves by looking inwardly and outwardly, both. Those simultaneously conceived ideas pose a dilemma to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today. Are we to huddle together and look at/talk to ourselves or are we a part of the world looking at and talking to the world? We are like someone walking in the woods and looking around. It is here. We are in the woods. Now what? Faith Matters Foundation is a non-profit organization that encourages the religion that, to quote Brigham Young, “embraces all truth, wherever found, in all the works of God and man.” That sounds very much like Thoreau. In December, Faith Matters launches a monthly magazine, Wayfare, which “seeks to be a companion and guide on the journey of faith.” It will include a broad array of non-fiction, poetry, and arts criticism; its editor is Zachary Davis. (wayfaremagazine.org)

CHRISTMAS MUSIC Some people experience a concert of music only once a year—I don’t judge; I follow soccer once every four years—and the concert they choose is the message of Christmas. No matter where you live, there is likely live Christmas music close by.

LDS performers are busy the month of December. By the time the big day arrives, they likely celebrate it with a long nap and a sore throat. This year, notable Christmas concerts and related tours include groups showcasing new holiday albums: Gentri, Lindsey Stirling, and Mat and Savanna Shaw, as well as annual favorites Kurt Bestor, The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, Millennial Choirs and Orchestras, and One Voice Children’s Choir. Additional concerts among many include The Gibbons Family and Friends, Harriet Petherick Bushman, and a return of a Christmas musical by James Conlee, Star of Wonder. (To discover more about these concerts and tours, see our calendar, The Listings.) In a typical LDS congregation, you are likely to see a mini-pageant or Christmas concert at church, as well. Performers will be front and center, of course, but as you are listening snug in your Christmas sweater, don’t forget to acknowledge the composers and arrangers whose work they are performing. (See The Listings for event descriptions and locations)

ANNIE POON Annie Poon’s Color Your Way through the New Testament is described on the website of its publisher (Covenant Communications) with details of the packed activity book’s 52 coloring pages, connections to the Come, Follow Me curriculum, and lesson plans for Primary teachers and LDS parents. All true, but it is missing one, crucial descriptor: The book is fun! Many products created for children by adults are sort of odd, aren’t they? It is as if the adults re-

sponsible for them can’t remember what it was like to be a kid. The tone of them is off, as ineffective as trying to communicate with a teenager using baby talk. Poon’s new volume—it is the fourth in the series of reactions to the standard works— nails the elusive goal of scripture study: finding its joy. Her pages of interactions, games, coloring pages, prompts for drawing, and even a cut-out and pop-up theater so kids can stage their own biblical dramas are also packed with witty and knowing surprises, as rewarding to the probing reader as the scriptures are themselves. (covenant-lds.com)

KIERSTEN WHITE’S LATEST It is quite extraordinary how many LDS authors can claim the credit of having written a New York Times bestseller. One of the most successful of them is Kiersten White, who lives in San Diego with her family and, according to her bio, her deeply ambivalent tortoise. The final title in her Arthurian legend trilogy, which is aimed at young adult readers, comes out in paperback in mid-December.White, probably not related to T. H.White, whose The Once and Future King (1958) launched an industry of narrative knight tales, delves in original mythology of Guinevere in The Excalibur Curse (Delacort Press). It is an adventure story that tests the queen’s sense of self and her relationships with friends and enemies alike. Kirkus Reviews wrote of this book, which gives backstory to the legendary character, “Readers will be ensorcelled by the redemptions, revelations, and reconciliations.” To say that White is a prolific author is leaving too much to the imagination. Her 2018 novel, The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein (Random House/ Ember 2018) was an NPR Best Book of the Year, and her books commonly appear on bestseller lists. Check this out: White’s books that appeared in 2022 are the following: Hide (Del Rey, May 2022), Wretched Waterpark (Delacorte Press, June 2022), Padawan (Disney Lucasfilm Press, July 2022), Vampiric Vacation (Delacorte Press, September 2022),

and The Excalibur Curse (published in hardcover last year and now in softcover). By any measure, an extraordinary year! It looks like she’s taking a breather, unless she has some unannounced titles ready to appear; her next book is Mister Magic, a novel about former child stars who reunite years after a tragic accident ended their children’s TV program (Del Ray, August 2023). (books available nationwide)

HOLIDAY PREMIERES How much newly-written music will you hear during the month of December? Probably more than you think. Arrangers are putting new spins on traditional carols and reconfiguring their music for the performing forces currently at their disposals. It might feel like holiday music all blurs together in an endless, looping soundtrack of the familiar winterlandsantababybellsnutcracker, but it is also a time when talented composers are commissioned to write new works to appear prominently in holiday and devotional programming. This year, two notable LDS choral examples are premieres by Daniel Gawthrop and Andrew Maxfield. Gawthrop is certainly the most successful choral composer in the Church who isn’t employed by it, and Maxfield is a young go-getter who is steadily compiling success upon success. “Be the Light” by Daniel Gawthrop will appear on the program Light From Darkness performed by the College of Southern Idaho Music Program, and Andrew Maxfield’s “The Lamb,” which won a prize from Ensemble Altera in the U.S. will be premiered by the Choir of Royal Holloway in London. (Gawthrop, 12/11; Maxfield 12/4)

DEUS REGIT Imagine that you are an artist of distinction. Your works are so unique that a viewer seeing them immediately knows they are yours. You are the Fabergé of your field, and your work is featured

often on the covers of magazines and heaped with accolades and awards. On national television it is called the best in the world. It sells for premium prices, and connoisseurs snap up your latest pieces to add to their collections. Your works pop up with regularity at Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and other auction houses that handle fine art and collectibles. Imagine all of that. Let it soak in for a moment: picture success at that level in the arts today. Is this hypothetical? No; I am describing the work and reputation of David Oscarson, among the most highly-regarded artisans in the world. Oscarson creates limited edition writing instruments. That is his artisanal niche. The earlier reference to Fabergé is intentional. The process of creating his enamel objects is so technical that workers in Oscarson’s shop apprentice for five years to do it. Essentially, an Oscarson pen is guilloché—finely-etched patterns in precious metals that are covered with a translucent glass enamel, fired at 1,000° Fahrenheit, and finished by hand painstakingly, layer upon layer. That would be difficult enough, but Oscarson creates narratives by designing pens around themes of famous figures, moments in history, or concepts such as car racing, art movements, and literature in highly complex and overlapping patterns. Some writing instruments are embellished with diamonds.A David Oscarson pen sells at retail from $4,000-$80,000. This article is about something beyond the artistry, though. It is about art and religious identity. Let’s say you are Oscarson and therefore that you are a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as he is. From time to time, in your work, you have referenced your religious beliefs in the objects you make, but for the most part, obliquely. To use examples from Oscarson’s previous series: a harvest-themed pen was inspired by the carpets of the Nauvoo temple (CNBC called one of these “the best pen in the world”); a pen depicting images of sun and moon referenced exterior LDS temple decorations; another about the

Tree of Life used multiple texts from diverse ancient cultures, including from the Book of Mormon, in its promotional materials. For the most part, however, belief and identity have remained in the background. Not repressed, certainly, but not necessarily highlighted in the object itself, either. Any opportunity to discuss an artist or artisan working at this level is a pleasure, but with Oscarson, something new and unusual is happening that should be of significance to scholars, other LDS artists, and their patrons. It is a case study that provides an opportunity to ask questions that LDS artists often face concerning the ways they engage with audiences regarding the aspects of their identity that include religious belief, the consequences of including content that connects to faith in their work, and the risks or rewards of drawing on their beliefs in their work. In Print The cover story to the October 2022 issue of Pen World was written by Suzanne C. Lee. The bi-monthly magazine founded in 1987 describes itself as the premier publication for fine writing instruments and handwriting culture. Lee’s article is titled, “Heavenly Realm.” The pens by Oscarson discussed in the article are from a newly-issued series, Deus Regit (God Rules). In the article, Lee describes what the symbols on the pen (God appearing through the clouds, for example) mean to Oscarson, who he is, and what he believes. It says, “…he is a proud member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For Oscarson, the Deus Regit pen is a work of gratitude to God, a testimony to His mercy and goodness; God is ‘the light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God’ (D&C 88:6, 1213).” (It is a bit surprising to see a citation from the Doctrine and Covenants in a publication like this.) Next, Lee describes Oscarson’s belief in heaven, spirit prison, and the concept of resurrection. It

quotes him, “This is my favorite part of the pen: when we lived in Heaven as spirit children of God, this plan was presented to us, and we chose to come to Earth, take our chances, and see if we can make it back.We come to Earth and we’re tested.” The article goes on to describe the three degrees of glory symbolized by the sun, moon, and stars, which appear on the pen’s barrel. (Remember, this is not the Ensign, this is an article is a magazine of collecting aficionados, presumably written by someone largely unfamiliar with the Church.) It continues with Oscarson’s genealogy—his ancestors were early members in Nauvoo–and it notes that one of these is Lydia Knight who followed Brigham Young to the Utah Valley saying, “Our place is with the Kingdom of God.” The title for the pen series is Deus Regit, which comes from Knight, “God rules.” I find all of this very interesting. The author of the article moves beyond arm’s-length reporting. She internalizes the message and writes about its appropriateness, of light over darkness, “The excellence of the piece lies in its accessibility to all writers; its central metaphor is so fundamentally human that it can resonate with all.” In the article—and with the pen—Oscarson bears his testimony, “This is doctrinal. This is who I am. This is everything I hope to be. It says in Psalms ‘Do good and dwell forevermore.’ That’s my hope. With all the struggling and trying we do, this sums it up for me. That idea of the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other? I believe that’s very real, and we choose to listen to one or the other at different times in our lives.” Lee alludes to heartbreaks in life that Oscarson has experienced and how he has found his way with a spouse who shares his worldview. The article ends with this critical appraisal, “The magic of the new David Oscarson Deus Regit collection is that it was guided with genuine feeling and based in faith, but the writing instrument, itself, carries an image that resonates with everyone. Light versus darkness is a fundamental icon…Oscarson has created a fountain pen that is, at once, entirely

personal and completely accessible for all, and it is truly beautiful.” I want to be clear that it is not my view that every LDS artist should feel compelled to make work that can be viewed and discussed theologically, as Oscarson’s Deus Regit is. I simply find it fascinating and beautiful that the artist is putting himself out there, with an audience that I presume is not especially knowledgeable about the restored gospel, its history, nor its people. In a world today that is fixated on personal identity, he is saying who he is and what he believes. I don’t assume that many LDS people even know Oscarson’s name, which is a shame to be remedied; but it seems to me that he deserves to be a cherished addition to our canon. Who else is working at his level of artistry, enjoying such national recognition, and is placing LDS doctrinally-focused art into the broader discussion? Oscarson is turning doctrine into art, not because he was commissioned to paint a mural in a temple, illustrate an article in the Ensign, or to participate in an art exhibition where most of the audience will be LDS. Quite the contrary; he is inviting others to see and feel what he feels. He is making this work simply because he decided to make, precisely, the object that would mean the most to him, regardless of the audience’s background or its potential response. Oscarson acknowledges the risks of creating this work and putting it out into the world. The Pen World article notes this about the artist, “He explains that as he has gotten older, he worries less about how such a fountain pen might be perceived.” If you were an artist, and LDS, what would you make? In what ways would the things you care most about be discernible in your work? The Season is a project to document something quite simple, largely without agenda, merely this: What are artists who are LDS making? Deus Regit is what Oscarson is doing. And we applaud him for it.

ONtheLIST GIFT OF SELF: 10 ARTISTS WHO TAKE PORTRAIT COMMISSIONS A commissioned portrait is an instant heirloom. This list of ten covers broad stylistic territory— the stately and traditional, the contemporary and conceptual, and the charming and humorous. Some of them offer specifically the commissions of people, animals, places, and things. Valerie Atkisson’s interest in family history has translated into commissioned painted portraits, and conceptual works in diverse media: paper, metal, and etched glass. Kirsten Holt Bietler’s portrait commissions contrast realistic beauty with whimsy. Esther Hi’ilani Candari creates elegant portraits that draw from multiculturalism and human connection. Casey Childs creates portraits (both paintings and drawings) that are classically influenced. Nathan Florence represents the human figure realistically but places it into a setting that embraces contemporary art techniques. Watercolorist Jana Parkin creates portraits of people, animals, homes, and temples. Tom Plummer’s interest in 20th century German Expressions is visible in his vibrant portraits.

Kah Leong Poon is a New York-based photographer who specializes in dance and portrait photography. Tyran Schouten has created murals for Trader Joe’s and worked with some leading illustrators. His portraits have a blend of commercial and fine art sensibilities. Illustrator Melissa Wood uses a photograph of your house to create a simple, sleek line drawing.

mySUNDAY JENNY OAKS BAKER

Concert violinist Jenny Oaks Baker is no stranger to new stages. Performing as many as 20 concerts a month over a period of four decades, this Grammy-nominated, Billboard topping artist realized this year that she is in a new stage of her life. As she said to Meridian Magazine in October, “I have been throwing myself into performing with my children and building my albums and concerts around them. I’ve been with my kids on stage the last few years

of my life. Now I find myself saying, ‘Wait Heavenly Father, they are leaving. You gave me this wonderful, incredible time with them, which has been great, but now what am I going to do with my life?’” Many LDS mothers can relate.

More than music. Of course we love music and love performing together, but music is also a lot of work for us. When we have downtime, we want to spend it doing something outside of music...like baking, or watching movies, or exercising.

This coincided with her goals to provide audiences musical events that focused on Jesus Christ, her epiphany being that instead of waiting to be invited to perform and then attempt to influence the programming toward the Savior, she could develop concerts herself if she started a production company and took on the new and daunting roles of producer and manager. Her company’s first venture is a 10-city tour, Joy to the World! A Sacred Christmas Celebration, with Jenny Oaks Baker & Family Four (her instrumentalist children) and special guests Alex Sharpe and Jason F. Wright. Image courtesy of Jenny Oaks Baker.

Christmas Day. This year Christmas lands on Sunday. I think it will be a really special experience, after all our Christmas performances in big concert halls across the US, to perform our last Christmas program in our home ward—for friends and neighbors, without payment and without applause—but with an abundance of the Spirit. That will be the perfect end to our Christmas tour.

Christmas morning. Two days before Christmas my family and I will have just finished our 10-city national Christmas tour that I have also produced. Additionally, on Christmas Eve we will have performed at the MTC for the missionaries. I would hope that Christmas morning we will be able to hopefully sleep in a bit, have breakfast together and then open a few gifts before we head to our ward sacrament meeting where I will conduct our ward choir and also perform with our family in our ward Christmas program. Then hopefully after church we can all take a nap. Family traditions at Christmastime. We love to cook yummy food and eat it together as a family. We always make almond roca together and give it to loved ones. (My mom started this tradition.) We also love traveling together! Christmas is a great time to travel and experience new Christmas traditions of other cultures! We have performed at Christmastime in Greece, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Albania, Italy, Portugal, France, and this Christmas season we will be traveling and performing all around the U.S. I am grateful that we are able to perform music as a family that brings us and our audiences closer to the Savior— especially at Christmastime.

peekBACK IT’S NEVER TOO LATE The Listings is our events calendar of works by LDS creative artists, and we do our best to capture all that we can. Still, we occasionally come across something interesting that has already ended by the time we learn about it. No! To quote Cher, “If I could turn back time.” When we encounter something after the fact, we document it nonetheless with an entry in The Listings. That way, you can still search and learn about it; click on “Previous Events.” Here are a few works from last month definitely worth a belated look. Juan Antonio Santoyo is a composer, pianist, and director of the opera company, Tarhiani Ópera México. His new concert work for solo piano is titled Las Vigilias, and each of its sixteen movements is the story—he describes them as offerings—of (and to) a beloved, deceased member of his childhood in Oaxaca to the present day.The composer performed the work and made it available on YouTube for Dia de los Muertos. A full audio recording is forthcoming. Meanwhile, additional works by Juan Antonio Santoyo were performed in a tour of M5 The Mexican Brass. The ensemble is Latin America’s most success ensemble for Brass Quintet (trumpets, French horn, trombone, and tuba), and part of the group’s purpose is to commission contemporary Mexican composers. Two works by Santoyo appeared on the program, Brasscination, November 6, 2022, performed at the First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta. The Utah Masters Fine Art Tour is sort of like a parade of home except it’s to visit some of Utah’s

most recognized visual artists in their studios, including a few with international reputations who otherwise do not exhibit in Utah. It’s too late for this year, but it is an annual event.You can sign up for next year’s tour and see which artists you missed this in 2022. Nigerian singer-songwriter TeeRoy Tyobee has performed alongside prominent vocalists, 2face idibia, M I Abaga, Teckno, among others. After he joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2016, TeeRoy’s music shifted to songs of inspiration, including “The Plan,” which is about the Plan of Salvation. He recently released a new song “We Are” on YouTube. This new song is unlike his previous releases in that it is a call to action—an anthem—an upbeat song which delivers the powerful, undisputable message that we are more than what we think we are. Shirae Telford released in October a new Christmas music video. In her notes to the YouTube post, the singer-songwriter notes that she does not remember writing the song 8 years ago, but after her brother Stephen was killed at the age of 28 by a drunk driver in 2016, this song brought her comfort in its message to “Fear Not.” The cinematic video of the Nativity is the result.

LETTERSto theEDITOR It’s hard to describe how in awe I am with The Season and all the work that the Center for Latter-day Saints Arts is doing. For much of my postBYU artistic career, I felt distant from the community of shared faith that inspired so much of my earlier music composition work. Yearning for a sense of connection, I traveled to New York for the 2019 Festival where I met several people who have become enduring friends. Into the pandemic, The Center has continued to welcome, encourage, and inspire me and other artists seeking to belong. The Season is something new and ambitious, and it carries that same spirit of connection and community, might I say gathering, at the heart of the organization. My friend and fellow composer Joseph Sowa recently surprised me with some questions that led him to write his article in The Season about my new piece Ánimo (that premiered tonight in Minnesota!). It is humbling to have my music promoted so publicly in The Season’s November edition alongside luminaries like Chris Bacon, Michael Hicks, and Rat Fink. Thanks to The Season and the Center for Latter-day Saints Arts for creating a hub for artists and audiences, for unveiling the multiplicity and diversity of creative activities among us. Dylan Findley, composer Wooster, Ohio As a concert organizer and composer, I have often realized only during the performance that I’m experiencing a truly remarkable event. And shortly following that realization is the regret that I haven’t invited more people, that some of my friends had no idea this was even happening. And by then it’s just too late! The moment is gone.

I appreciate The Season’s attempt at avoiding this regret, getting the word out about new extraordinary live events. I also appreciate seeing my event in the context of all the other amazing things going on...it reminds me I’m part of a rich and diverse world of artistic/theatre/musical productions. Daniel Bradshaw, composer Laie, Hawaii I’m grateful to The Season because I’m very happy to have people who share the same faith. And I’m deeply grateful to The Season for the chance to meet people who love the gospel and who love art. Shohei Takahashi, artist Kumamoto, Japan

Thank you for the terrific write-up on our exhibition Rat Fink Revolution: Started With A T-Shirt, Now We’re Here. Ed “Big Daddy” Roth is the “King of the T-shirt,” and widely acknowledged as the pioneer who began designing and selling graphic T-shirts in the late 1950s. Featuring his rebellious Rat Fink, Roth birthed a character outside the mainstream who represented the rest of us, a champion for the outcasts. Roth’s influence employing graphics as an integral part of our identity can be seen everywhere today, from T-shirts to hats, skateboards to posters, or any time we slap a sticker on a water bottle or laptop. As part of our research we took a group of 12 staff and students from CU Denver to Manti’s annual Rat Fink Reunion hosted by Ilene “Trixie” Roth, Ed’s widow. In interviewing friends, family, and fans,

constant threads emerged of Ed’s love for people and life. “Big Daddy” was a caricature, symbolized by Roth’s whimsical winged top hat and vibrant purple topcoat. And even though Ed Roth was larger than life, he did not put on pretentions; he was genuine and gregarious, and never shied from sharing his faith with people he met. It’s his faith that inspired everything he did and how he made his way through the world. In our exhibition we’ve tackled notions of “high” and “low” art, displaying Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and Takashi Murakami with Ed Roth and Mad Magazine, punctuated by skateboards, sculptures, album covers, T-shirts, and Hot Wheels. Roth’s in-

fluence in popular culture can’t be overstated, even though many of us don’t realize the revolution he helped kick off. The Emmanuel is the oldest religious structure in Denver, and the first building in Colorado on the National Historic Register. Seeing Rat Fink adorn the walls of this former Episcopalian Chapel converted to a Jewish Synagogue and now a contemporary art gallery, reverberates Roth’s sincerity, creativity, and place in elevating our aspirations through artistic creation. Jeff Lambson, Director and Curator University of Colorado Denver

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS JENNY OAKS BAKER

JAMES RANSOM

Jenny Oaks Baker is a violinist who has released 18 studio albums, received a Grammy nomination, and has topped the Billboard charts. Her latest venture is the creation of a production company to manage concerts of her own design, and the first of these is Joy to the World! A Sacred Christmas Celebration, which is touring throughout the month of December in Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Virginia, Georgia, and Alabama.

James Ransom is an award-winning commercial photographer with over ten years of experience shooting stills and motion for brands spanning the food, still life, and interiors industries. He lives in New York City with his wife and four children.

GLEN NELSON Glen Nelson’s work as an art collector formed the basis of the book, The Glen & Marcia Nelson Collection of Mormon Art. The collection of over 150 works by LDS artists–including paintings, drawings, photography, ceramics, sculpture, textiles, etchings, and artist’s books created from the 1860s to the present–was gathered over a period of 25 years. It was acquired by the Church History Museum for its permanent collection in 2016.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

THE SEASON GIFT GUIDE ARTISTS The Aquabats!, Jenny Oaks Baker, Phyllis Barber, Tara Bench, Kurt Bestor, Don Bluth, Bookroo, Merrilee Boyack, David Butler, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Steven R. Covey, Si Foster, Emily Belle Freeman, James Goldberg, Cynthia Covey Haller, Dustin Hansen, Emily Inouye Huey, Imagine Dragons, Tarsha Joyner, Brian Kershisnik, The Killers, Kleio, Lindsey Leavitt, Low, Shea McGee, Syd McGee, Ty Mecham, Emily Harris Mecham, Millennial Choirs and Orchestras, The National Parks, Jason Olson, Panic! At The Disco, Steven L. Peck, Anne Perry, Douglas Pew, The Piano Guy, Micah Player, Art Pollard, Annie Poon, Salt Lake Choral Artists, Sentient Academy, Joseph Sowa, Lindsey Stirling, Mark Weinberg, Kiersten White, and Michael D.Young.

theSEASON JANUARY2023

inMIND GAME ON!: LDS COMPOSERS WRITING VIDEO GAME MUSIC SOUNDTRACKS by BENJAMIN DEAN TAYLOR

Grid of six pixilated images of composers, (detail) top row, left to right: Jeff Broadbent, Lance Montgomery, and Joshua Aker; bottom row, left to right: Ron Saltmarsh, Chance Thomas, and Benjamin Dean Taylor.

I’m not a writer or a journalist. I’m a freelance composer who supports my wife and six children writing concert music, primarily for orchestras and wind bands. I get commissions from ensembles and performers all over the world to write original music—my career is a dream come true!—but today I’m not wrestling with quarter notes, eighth notes, and treble clefs, I’m arranging words on a page. I’ve always been curious about the video game music industry. As an avid gamer myself (who stopped keeping up with games in my late teens around the time of SimCity 2000 and World of Warcraft), I recognize the importance of a good video game soundtrack to the overall gaming experience. Let’s face it: Super Mario Bros would not be nearly so cool without its incredible music and sound design. Or Contra, or Dr. Mario,Tetris, Donkey Kong, Zelda (one of my favs) or Sonic.You can probably hear the music of those games in your head right now. So how does a video game soundtrack get made? How does a composer get into that profession? What role are LDS composers playing in that industry? It turns out that LDS composers are leaders in the field of video game music. I had the pleasure of speaking with five LDS video game composers as I wrote this article. They very generously gave me a behind-the-scenes look into their careers and art form. I was shocked (pleasantly) to find out that each of them has a full-blown career, has been recognized with awards such as Oscars, Emmys, and G.A.N.G. awards (Game Audio Network Guild) and has created the music for some of the highest profile games in the world, including Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, Resident Evil,Transformers, Lego Chima, Infinity Blade, The Lord of the Rings, X-Men, and Dungeons and Dragons Online. I’ll share with you what I learned about the business of video game music, how the creative process works, how these composers balance family with work, and what role their religious faith plays in their music and career. Here we go.

Let me first introduce you to Jeff Broadbent. Back in 2006 or so, Jeff and I were BYU classmates both studying music composition. While we shared the same major and completed the same assignments (primarily writing music for live performers), we were both headed in very different directions with regard to our careers. I can remember Jeff spending hours in the ALMA computer lab on BYU campus studying scores by the likes of John Williams and Hans Zimmer analyzing their use of melody, harmony, orchestration and counterpoint. Jeff says, “I loved my time at BYU studying modern art music. I learned so much there, in terms of the fundamentals of music composing, and an appreciation of many art forms. I think the world is richer for the many art forms we have. I love to go to art museums, and look at visual art also. To me, it is all connected (literature, music, art). They speak to the human experience, and have something of eternity in them. These kinds of things help give life meaning and purpose.” After BYU, Jeff studied at the UCLA film/tv/video game scoring program before launching out on his career as a freelance composer. Jeff now lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and five children. He recently returned from the Hollywood Music in Media awards where he was recognized as a winner in the category of Video Game Trailer Score with his music for League of Legends:Wild Rift. Another buddy of mine who was also my BYU colleague is Lance Montgomery. Lance told me how he originally set out to be a “Hollywood” composer. But after learning what that entails, including expensive schools just to make connections, years of underpaid work, hard hours that make family life difficult, living in LA, etc., he says, “The game industry has been much more sustainable as a career for me. Many, many more games get made than films.” Lance now lives in Salt Lake City, Utah where he runs his own company focused primarily on music and sound design. Joshua Aker also studied music at BYU after switching from getting a law degree; however, he did not pursue the usual music composition de-

gree. He remarks that, “I didn’t make it into the BYU comp program. But maybe for the better as I wasn’t very interested in the emphasis on atonal music and 12 tone rows, you know, John Cage heady stuff.” He remembers writing the music for Infinity Blade in his bedroom studio, which included recording sound samples of banging on sheet metal he had found in the HVAC department of Home Depot. When Infinity Blade hit 100 million downloads and became the “fastest-grossing app ever for iOS,” he was ecstatic! He went on to score Infinity Blade II and Infinity Blade III. He is now running his own boutique production company based in Utah called SomaKat which specializes in telling stories through sound. Ron Saltmarsh is a composer and professor at BYU in the commercial music area. In our conversation he recalled programming early video game chips to make sounds, including music, from simple oscillators (we hear those early game soundtracks as bleeps and bloops—think music from Super Nintendo or Atari). Ron actually helped code some of the first software to facilitate composers writing music for the early video games. You’ll also recognize the game Guitar Hero, for which he served as a consultant. He now lives and works out of his home studio in Utah. And finally, I had the opportunity to chat with Chance Thomas, who some call the father of game music. He wrote one of the world’s first live orchestral scores for a video game in 1996 called Quest for Glory V: Dragon Fire. He has since gone on to write for dozens of well known games including The Lord of the Rings, Avatar, Marvel, and Warhammer. Chance is also a product of BYU having started as a business major but then was able to transfer his scholarship to the music school. Chance recently officially retired from composing in February of 2022. I should add that there are other LDS composers making a name for themselves in video game music. Sam Cardon has scored several games including World of Warcraft - Mists of Pandaria, and

Chad Cannon worked on a team of composers for Ghost of Tsushima. Each of the five composers I interviewed told a unique and fascinating story, though several themes emerged. First, many of them continue to be active performers on their principal instruments. Most grew up playing music in rock or jazz bands. Some had classical training on their instrument; some did not. Some own and play some very unusual instruments (like Jeff’s hurdy-gurdy and guitarviol). I found it fascinating that none of them live in LA (the Mecca for all film and video game music). Each of them went to BYU. Each of them is a freelance composer, like me, working on contract for specific projects as opposed to a salaried position with a specific company. Other than Ron who is now teaching at BYU, they all make their living solely off of their composing work. No small feat! They all started writing music when they were young, and often they were on the cutting edge of technology. Infinity Blade, featuring the music of Josh Aker, was the first iOS game to run on an emerging 3D platform called Unreal Engine. Chance Thomas scored one of the first video games to use a live orchestra. Ron Saltmarsh made significant contributions to early video game music programming. Lance Montgomery is part of a community of composers pioneering new techniques in binaural spatial audio (a very cool specialized version of surround sound) as well as audio-only and blind accessible games. Josh may have said it best, “I just try to be a good service provider. My first scores prior to Infinity Blade were cringe-worthy. But I was rehired because I was malleable.” When asked about their creative process, not a single one responded like I would have, “I start with a pencil and staff paper and sit at my piano…” Instead, they each use technology from the very start, employing synthesizers, pre-recorded samples, as well as live musicians. Chance said, “Every step of the music scoring process involves some degree of collaboration. My favorite steps in-

volve collaborating with studio musicians during recording sessions and with the mixing artist during the music mix.” Ron and Jeff both clarified that for them, most projects are done almost entirely in the computer using virtual instruments that sound like real players. It is actually very rare for a composer to have a budget to be able to hire a full symphony orchestra for a video game. Sometimes a composer will hire a soloist or small ensemble of instruments to record some of the primary melodies, which gives the music a layer of human expression that no computer instruments can replicate. Many of the composers noted that they will often record themselves playing guitar, piano, saxophone, etc., as the soloist when budgets are tight. Logic Pro, Digital Performer, Finale, Sibelius, Pro

Tools: these are the names of the computer software programs that allow these composers to make their magic. I’ll note that I also use Finale to notate my music, as well as Logic Pro for creating my works for live instruments and electronic backing tracks, such as Techno Blade (a work for middle school band and audio track that has sounds of myself throwing knives I recorded—yes, I’m an amateur knife thrower) Lance also said he still composes everything on a grand staff in Sibelius before moving to Logic. “I still lay it out on a score. I don’t know how else I’d be able to formulate the progression of themes, timing of hits, key changes, seamless loops, etc.” So what does a typical day look like for these composers? Jeff summarizes his work day as follows,

Top row, left to right: Jeff Broadbent, Lance Montgomery, and Joshua Aker; bottom row, left to right: Ron Saltmarsh, Chance Thomas, and Benjamin Dean Taylor.

“I usually start each day replying to client emails (music direction, requests for revisions, etc.). After that, I will generally proceed with composing music for the rest of the day. If I don’t have any current projects to work on, I will spend my time following-up with prior clients, reaching out to new studios/people, etc., in order to look for new projects to work on (in addition to updating my composer website, possible music studio/equipment/software upgrades, etc.).” Creativity is key for these composers. Josh recalls being told by a producer, “You do you.” He felt he had full creative reign when scoring Infinity Blade. “No one said, ‘you need to sound a certain way.’” Josh enjoys creating unique sounds from everyday objects that will give his music soundtracks a distinct and personal flair. “I go to Home Depot to explore new sounds. I just bang on random stuff, and when I find something I like, I bring it back to the studio to record it.” Josh recalls the excitement of hearing the sound of a piece of photography equipment unfurling one day and realizing that it would make a perfect addition to a track he was working on. And just like that, the sound of a photography reflector unfurling made its way into an Infinity Blade battle fight soundtrack. When it comes to balancing work life with family, Lance remarked, “My daily schedule is all over the place. It’s a balance I still have never struck. When workload is heavy and deadlines are pressing, I’m an emotional wreck from dawn until dawn. Not much different than the life of the ‘Hollywood composer’ I ran away from.” Chance added, “During my composing career, I found it essential to create boundaries to protect my health, my family, and my faith. I did not work on Sundays, as that was reserved for my faith and family. Friday nights were reserved for my wife. I kept an open door policy during the week so my kids could check in with me. I learned about and practiced good nutrition, exercise, water intake, and other essentials in order to preserve my primary creative asset (my brain).” And what about their shared LDS faith and how

does that play into their composing? Chance commented, “Early in my profession, I made a decision not to work on R-rated films or M-rated games. I think the sensitivity of the human spirit is something that should be carefully preserved, and I was unwilling to have it bludgeoned by graphic content. Finally, I would always pray before starting to work each day, typically asking for inspiration so that the music I composed would be fitting for its purpose, achieve a standard of excellence, and serve to entertain and inspire others.” Jeff added, “I have always felt guided by God in my career path. I will regularly pray for guidance and help in composing, as well as business and career decisions.” Lance elaborated that for him, his faith keeps him pushing forward during the hard times, “It’s a hard career as a freelancer. Ups and downs. Sticking to my career has seemed illogical at times, with the responsibility of supporting a family. As a core part of our faith, we’re charged with building the kingdom of God, beautifying the world with our talents, working at and improving those talents and not hiding them. Sometimes when I have felt like I am done and need to give up, other than the logical argument that I’ve already put so much time and money into this and it would be a waste to give it all up, the one thing that has driven me to keep at it is the notion and feeling that this is what I was meant to do and that someday it’ll amount to something even greater. Whether that greatness is for the actual benefit of mankind, or simply in the eyes of God, I don’t know. All I know is that I’m not allowing myself to hide my talents.” In our conversations, each composer I interviewed expressed hope in a bright future for the video game industry. Jeff noted, “With Steam and the downloadable games market, as well as mobile phones, there is a great deal of opportunity for many developers to create games. I feel like over the past decade, a diversity of video games (including a re-emerging of retro video games) has occurred. It is no longer just the large video game companies that are dominating—there are many independent studios also, making great games.”

And this means more need for rising talent to come to the foreground.

terrain of leisure time and specifically of video gaming.

Lastly, there is the theme of the composers’ concern for their children. It came up in just about every interview. Josh noted that he often takes his kids to his studio (walking distance from his home) and that the kids will read books or play games quietly on the couch while dad composes. He does some of his best work when his kids are around. When I asked Lance about his dream project, he said he would love to be making “games for children—educational and joyful.” Ron also composes in his home studio, and while his children are now grown and gone from the home, he recalls with fondness the era of being hard at work and hearing the children on the other side of the studio door. I understand what they mean. I’ll speak for myself that I wouldn’t be able to do what I do without the encouragement and support of my family. There is something extra motivational and special when I sit down to work knowing that after two hours of composing I get to take a break and wrestle with my 4-year old Jeffrey and 2-year old Rose. I write better because I’m a father.

For old people—I’m sort of old—some of this vocabulary feels a little foreign, and I understand how people who did not grow up playing video games might think it all as unimportant. It’s just a game, they might say. But new forms of entertainment have always been dismissed in their infancy. Take television. Frank Lloyd Wright said, “Television: chewing gum for the eyes.” In 1939, The New York Times ran an editorial with this statement, “TV will never be a serious competitor for radio because people must sit and keep their eyes glued on a screen; the average American family hasn’t time for it.” Well, that was a little bit off the mark. The average person watches 141 hours of TV per month today. (Click here to listen to my music.)

It is fascinating to me that these composers are at the center of such a dynamic entertainment industry. A report published by Grand View Research in 2021 described the global video game market to be valued at $195.65 billion. It is growing fast, too. The report projects annual growth of 12.9% through 2030. (For reference, the global market for movie and video production in 2021 was $90.92 billion, and the global publishing market is projected to be $112.5 billion in 2022.) A few factors are responsible for the growth of gaming: the popularity of massively multiplayer online, Free2Play, and multiplayer games. Around the world, advanced gaming consoles have altered the experience of gaming with record & share and cross-platform gameplay. Action, role play, simulation and strategy, e-sports tournaments, educational tools and cognitive learning: all are dramatically altering the

I think of the history of media—from the inventions of sound and film technologies, to the TV, the computer, and beyond—and I marvel at the role of artists to turn technology into something meaningful and transformative for everybody. When you watch a movie, you might be unaware of the music, but you feel it. You would certainly know if it weren’t there. Gaming is exactly the same. It is paramount to the experience. Thinking of the global influence of LDS media artists of the past, they include the innovators who went to Hollywood in the early 20th century, who worked with Disney, Cecil B. DeMille, the great westerns, who wrote the movie scores for hundreds of well-known films, who won Oscars, who made television transmission possible, who invented stereophonic sound, and so much more. The history of art is being created right now. Video games are a growing part of that world. These LDS composers are a prime example of pioneers in their field whose work is being experienced by millions, all over the world. When a full history of LDS art is written someday, let’s reserve a chapter for these gaming, composing pioneers.

OUTandABOUT A BRUSH WITH AFRICA Showing now through January 13, 2023 at the Sears Art Museum in St. George, Utah, A Brush With Africa, featuring artists Ruth Hewlett Pope, Sage Gallagher, and Birgit Wudenka McMullin. This visually rich and informative show curated by Kathy Cieslewicz, springs from three artists’ different perspectives on their personal connections with Africa. During the two years that Ruth lived in Africa she felt compelled to tell her experience with paint. The majority of her large, color saturated figurative works were painted on site. Several years ago, Sage became involved in a neighborhood charity supporting women in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo and connected with those involved in the charity through her vivid and movement-filled portraits. After a visit to Africa that changed her life, Birgit joined the Peace Corps and moved to Malawi to live in a small, rural village for 32 months. As the language was a challenge, Birgit began taking a sketchbook with her and soon found that art was a powerful way to break down barriers and open doors to trust and friendship. Her mixed media work, heavily driven by line and color, is a living journal of her time alongside the people of Malawi. Her work is also accompanied by a written narrative that explains the day to day workings of life in the village. All three artists express that their time in Africa and working with the African people has changed how they see the world forever, and this is evidenced in their work, as the viewer sees the evolution of the artistic expressions of the love for

the people and their cultures.—Kirsten Holt Beitler (The exhibition continues through January 13, 2023.)

CHARLIE BIRD, MISSIONARY OF A MORE SPACIOUS ZION When Charlie Bird came out of the closet after years as BYU’s mascot Cosmo, he found a voice in the conversation between the queer community and the broader church. His first book, Without the Mask: Coming Out and Coming Into God’s Light, published by Deseret Book in 2002, became a bestseller. Speaking with The Season, he explained: “For the past few years I keep being asked the same question by members of the Church: ‘Can I be an LGBTQ+ ally while supporting Church teachings?’” Expanding the Borders of Zion, Bird’s second book, was written to provide “hope, inspiration, and clear, practical answers.” Efforts of bridging the gap between queer folk and the church have been written for decades by scholars, advocates, and relatives of general authorities, and their proliferation in the last few years is evidence of a sea change. The queer community, long relegated to the shadows, wants to speak with the church in the public square. That the book features a “Dear Future Reader” by David Archuleta makes clear this book’s strategy. Is it possible that where theologians and thinkers have failed to connect with a general Latter-day Saint audience, that a well-known, clean-cut, handsome young man might be listened to? If so, then Charlie Bird is a missionary of a different kind, preaching a gospel that equally deserves to be heard. As he puts it: “I dream of a church with congregations where LGBTQ+ individuals feel comfortable at-

tending and exercising their faith in Christ, no matter where they are in their journey.” (Expanding the Borders of Zion is available through Bird’s Instagram, with first orders shipping on January 6th.)

LATIN AMERICAN ABSTRACTION As a child growing up in Uruguay, I remember seeing the art of Joaquín Torres García, an early 20th-century abstract painter, as part of the landscape. His squares and circles, his primary colors, were a common-place sight for me. I would later learn that he was one of the pioneers of abstraction in Latin America. With the passing of the years, abstract art in Latin America grew geographically out of its origins (mostly) in the River Plate to reach places like Colombia and Mexico. It also evolved in terms of content, moving away from its origins in (mostly) geometric abstraction to reflect a very wide range of artistic praxis. This newer, vibrant world of abstraction is what curator Cecilia Fajardo-Hill brings to the forefront in her book Remains–Tomorrow: Themes in Contemporary Latin American Abstraction. The book contains artists’ biographies, nearly 30 essays, and over 700 illustrations that explore abstract art in Latin America since the 1990s. Among the 280 artists that are featured can be found a wife and a husband who are also Latter-day Saints: Georgina Bringas and Ricardo Rendón. Both have been featured by the Center for Latter-day Saints Art and interviewed in the Center’s podcast. From their base in Mexico, Bringas and Rendón have indicated that being included alongside the most influential Latin American artists is both an honor and a privilege. Their inclusion highlights that they are a key part of Latin America’s polyphonic artistic trends and helps them gain recognition in the Anglophone world. —Gabriel González (Remains– Tomorrow, published in English by Hatje Cantz Verlag, will be released on January 3, 2023, and it will be available from most online bookstores)

ABSTRACCIÓN LATIONAMERICANA Recuerdo que durante mi infancia en Uruguay veía las obras de Joaquín Torres García, uno de los primeros pintores abstractos del siglo XX, formar parte del paisaje urbano. Sus cuadrados y círculos, sus colores primarios, todo esto lo veía con frecuencia. Con el tiempo supe que él fue uno de los pioneros de la abstracción en América Latina. Con el paso de los años, el arte abstracto en Latinoamérica se extendió de sus inicios (principalmente) en el Río de la Plata para llegar a sitios como Colombia y México. También evolucionó su contenido, alejándose de sus orígenes (principalmente) en la abstracción geométrica para abarcar una gama muy amplia de prácticas artísticas. Este mundo nuevo y vibrante de la abstracción es lo que resalta la curadora Cecilia Fajardo-Hill en el trabajo titulado Remains—Tomorrow: Themes in Contemporary Latin American Abstraction [Restos— mañana: temas en la abstracción latinoamericana contemporánea]. Se trata de un libro con biografías de artistas, una treintena de ensayos y más de setecientas imágenes que exploran el arte abstracto de América Latina tras la década de 1990. Entre los doscientos ochenta artistas seleccionados figura una pareja de esposos que además son santos de los últimos días: Georgina Bringas and Ricardo Rendón. Los dos fueron en su momento destacados por el Centro para las Artes Santo de los Últimos Días y entrevistados en el pódcast de dicho Centro. Desde su base en México, Bringas y Rendón han señalado que les resulta un honor y un privilegio ser incluidos entre los artistas más influyentes de América Latina. El que formen parte del libro subraya que son un elemento importante de las polifónicas tendencias artísticas de Latinoamérica y sirve para ayudarles a obtener reconocimiento en la anglofonía. Remains–Tomorrow, editado en inglés por Hatje Cantz Verlag, será lanzado el 3 de enero de 2023 y se podrá adquirir a través de muchas librerías en internet. —Gabriel González

THE UNDRAPED ARTIST The Undraped Artist is a newer podcast that interviews “some of the world’s most accomplished and gifted artists about their work, process, philosophy and experience.” It’s hosted by Jeff Hein, an incredible portrait artist who The Art Renewal Center has titled a “living Master.” In the podcast Jeff Hein has been able to pose questions that I would ask if I could have a one on one with each artist. In their relaxed and natural conversations, you get to pull up a chair and listen in on the discussion across the coffee table. Subjects touch on the artist’s art, but they also discuss trials the artist has faced, parenthood, religion, career paths and the artist’s philosophy on life and art. Just a quick scroll through the episodes reveals an incredible line-up of world-renowned artists and experts. Bryan Mark Taylor, Quang Ho, Anna Rose Bain and David Dibble are just a few artists who Jeff has interviewed that I have admired and looked up to for a long time. I’m new to listening to podcasts, but what immediately caught my eye is that each episode also has a video recording available to watch. In either form, it’s a deeply enriching experience for artist and non-artist alike to listen along as the individuals found behind extraordinary art are undraped. — Kwani Povi Winder (The Undraped Artist podcast features a new interview each Monday.)

LUIS FERNANDO PUENTE AT SUNDANCE In the movie trailer we see a young, immigrant woman, hands clasped with her husband, she looks up and exhales “Por fin. Voy a empezar a planear mi vida.” The closed caption in English reads, “Finally. I’ll be able to plan my life.” The music, and the cinematography all set the mood. The exhale and quiet yet hopeful delivery from Alejandra Herrera pulls you in. That’s how we’re introduced to this nominee for Best Short Film at the Sundance Film

Festival, I Have No Tears, And I Must Cry. The artist behind this story is Luis Fernando Puente. He is the writer and director also known for the award winning short La Luna y el Colibri. He also co-wrote and directed El Moño with Lizde Arias which appeared in multiple film festivals in the Fall of 2022. Mr. Puente was born in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico and emigrated to Texas when he was young. He studied media arts at Brigham Young University graduating in 2019. His work is said to carry themes of “immigration, cultural heritage, and spirituality that he observes in his day-today life.” This particular story follows Maria Luisa (played by Alejandra Herrera), and how she must “[confront] the anxiety of losing the life she had planned after her green card interview takes an unexpected turn.” It has caught the eye of the Sundance Film Festival and will be featured alongside other films in their shorts category. Being able to experience the immigrant story through the voice and vision of someone who understands it is sure to make this film shine. I Have No Tears, And I Must Cry also stars Enoc Oteo and Cherie Julander. — Arisael Riversa (The Sundance film festival runs in Utah from January 19-29th.)

THE BIBLE AND THE LATTER-DAY SAINT TRADITION Latter-day Saints don’t know quite what to do with the Bible. They embrace it as the word of God, but only as translated correctly; according to the Book of Mormon, the Bible came from the original prophets in pure form, but the record has been corrupted. The 30 authors in this collection of essays to be published by the University of Utah Press exemplify how LDS scholars look on the Bible and how they react to current scholarship. The relationship with biblical scholarship has not always been friendly. For a century after Joseph Smith, modern critics eviscerated the Bible’s claims to be an inspired text while Mormons, swimming against the tide, preserved their belief in its divine origins.

In this volume, Mormon scholars largely embrace biblical scholarship and try to make it useful to Church members even when it requires reshaping our beliefs. The classic problem: how did Nephi come to include passages from Second Isaiah (chapters 40-66) in the Book of Mormon when those chapters were most certainly written long after Nephi died? One scholar’s solution: Joseph Smith’s translation was a text received by revelation which did not always conform to the writings on the plates. In the great tradition of prophetic discourse, current prophets can add to the words of previous prophets. The Ancient World of the Bible and Biblical Scholarship Among Latter-day Saints vividly documents Mormons laboring to define their place in the modern world of biblical studies.The question now: will Latter-day Saints create a critical tradition of their own regarding the Bible? —Richard L. Bushman (Taylor G. Petrey, Cory Crawford, and Eric Eliason, eds., The Bible and the Latter-day Saint Tradition, University of Utah Press, January 31.)

THE TOM BRADY OF COMPOSERS On Christmas Eve, The New York Times ran an article about professionals who, relative to their peers, are, let’s just say, very experienced. Eight professionals were featured: The Tom Brady of Bakers, The Tom Brady of Doctors, etc. The Tom Brady of Composers is the LDS master, Deon Nielsen Price, from Arroyo Grande, California.The median age of female musicians is 55. Price, at age 88, is decades beyond that. What the profile does not mention in detail is her busy schedule of composing and recording new works. In January, her latest album, Rendezvous, will be released, and it contains four works which continue her long and distinguished path of socially-aware and engaged music. The first work on the album, for string ensemble, is inspired by Ila Mae Richardson’s poem about allowing life’s troubles to be reframed as blessings; the second, for countertenor and chamber symphony, is a tribute to Beethoven on the 250th an-

niversary of his birth. Behind Barbed Wire follows; it is scored for saxophone and piano with haiku and tanka poetry to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the executive order forcing Japanese Americans into incarceration camps. Finally, is the four-movement Chamber Symphony Inspired by Hildebrando de Melo’s Nzambi (God) Paintings. Here, played by the Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra and led by artistic director Philip Nuzzo, Price takes the Angolan painter’s works as a starting point—she saw them at the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts 2018 festival in New York— and orients them to a personal response to Covid-19: “Pathos”; “Compassion”; “Quest”; and “Felicity”. The world has lost nearly 7 million people from the pandemic. To put that tragic figure into perspective, more than 100 countries in the world have total populations below that number. This is an elegy full of compassion and global relevance. (Rendezvous is available on CD from Cambria Records and becomes available on Spotify in early January).

ONtheLIST IN MEMORIAM

Robert L. Backman General authority and Deseret Book author March 22, 1922-June 3, 2022 “Elder Backman was an inspiring, energetic speaker. During his time as a General Authority, he hosted the radio program, You and Your World [and] later compiled into two books” (legacy.com). “Be a master of yourself, in thought, speech and action. Follow your own truth and justice, for each walk a different path. Uphold your own viewpoints, ideology, and beliefs for it makes you, you” (Excerpt, Be Master of Yourself, 1986). -Robert L. Backman Mary Bradford Writer, poet, one of the founders of AML October 24, 1930-November 8, 2022 Joyce Ellen Davis Utah Poet of the Year (1985) May 5, 1939-September 14, 2022 “Here is a poet of stature and sensitivity as well as a very great personality displaying insight and comprehension” (anonymous review of In Willy’s House, 1984). “We come whirling down/ like lopsided angels, each of us/ a riddle on the family tree” (Excerpt from “Triptych”). -Joyce Ellen Davis

Laura Harris Hales Scholar, founder of Latter-day Saints Perspectives Podcast August 12, 1967-April 13, 2022 “As a writer and podcaster, Laura Hales...demonstrated how to do deep dives into fraught subjects while remaining personally loyal to the church” (Patrick Mason, New York Times obituary). “What I do have is a lot of questions. Fortunately, I was able to spend hours with scholars who have become my friends and have answered some of them” (Latter-day Saint Perspectives, final podcast, May 5, 2021). - Laura Harris Hales Orrin Hatch Poet, songwriter, senator, An American, a Mormon, and a Christian: What I Believe, Square Peg, Higher Laws: Understanding the Doctrines of Christ, Freedom’s Light (music by Janice Kapp Perry) March 22, 1934-April 23, 2022 “Senator Hatch was also a man of deep faith; a gentle soul who wrote songs and poems, and shared them with friends, colleagues, and the world” (President Joe Biden, whitehouse.gov). “Politics sometimes is one simple vote,/ The vote which makes a difference,/ Which defeats or passes:/ That, upon which life and/or death depends,/ Unless oblivious to the end” (“Silver Fish” excerpt, BYU Studies, April 1983). -Orrin Hatch

Gail S. Halvorsen Memoirist, The Candy Bomber: Untold Stories of the Berlin Airlift’s Uncle Wiggly Wings October 10, 2020-February 16, 2022 “Halvorsen’s deeply human act [of dropping candy during the Berlin airlift] has never been forgotten” (Berlin Mayor Franziska Giffey, npr.org). “The airlift reminded me that the only way to fulfillment in life, real fulfillment, is to serve others” (smithsonianmag.com).-Gail S. Halvorsen Kate Holbrook Historian January 13, 1972-August 20, 2022 “Kate... started her career as an historian of Latter-day Saint women.... She edited and/or wrote many books, articles, and other expressions of her careful thought and warm caring” (kateholbrook. com). “This story... [and others from At the Pulpit] can transform the way we see ourselves as Latter-day Saints, can expand the vision we have of how to be good and how to contribute to the world” (Video about At the Pulpit: 185 Years of Discourses by Latter-day Saint Women). -Kate Holbrook Donald Ray Marshall Author, critic, educator November 25, 1934-October 25, 2022 [Don Marshall] “...asks: What is it that makes this person special, interesting, worthy of his or her own literature?” (Stephen L. Tanner, review, “A Rummage Sale with Music,” Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Summer 1980). “Plums cooling in the sycamore shade/ through the willowed evening/ bob-o-links and crickets call

them on.../ and carried with it the sweet scent of hay freshly mown and moist/ the tall cool pines” (“The Pines” excerpt from The Rummage Sale, 1972). -Donald Ray Marshall James M. Paramore General authority, sermons and speeches in Woman (1979) and BYU 1989-90 Devotional Fireside Speeches (1990) May 6, 1928-March 17, 2022 “Elder Paramore’s life was defined by his willingness to serve in whatever capacity he was called to help advance the Lord’s work” (Church News, March 18, 2022). “May God bless us at this University [BYU] and in the mission field and always to build upon that understanding, that our lives can be safeguarded against the fiery darts of the devil, against temptation, against mediocrity” (from BYU Speeches, May 2, 1978). -James M. Paramore Mimi Parker Singer-songwriter, Low September 15, 1967-November 5, 2022 David Randall Scholar, clarinettist, educator; Indiana University dissertation (1970), A Comprehensive Performance Project in Clarinet Literature with an Essay on the Clarinet Duet from ca. 1715 to ca. 1825. January 26, 1941-January 26, 2022 “He traveled the world teaching, giving concerts and holding clarinet workshops sharing his love for classical music” (legacy.com). “Music is the power of emotion expressed in sound. It can enhance our inner being” (BYU Devotional, Sept. 16, 1997). -David Randall

mySUNDAY WILLIAM MORRIS

William Morris edits and writes about Mormon fiction. He is the author of Dark Watch and other Mormon-American stories, the co-editor of Monsters & Mormons, and editor of States of Deseret. His most recent book is The Darkest Abyss: Strange Mormon Stories, published by By Common Consent Press. He is the new president of the Association for Mormon Letters, a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 to “foster scholarly and creative work in Mormon letters and to promote fellowship among scholars and writers of Mormon literature.” He lives in Minnesota. Photograph courtesy of William Morris. A typical Sunday opens with my family and I viewing at-home church on Zoom. Some members of my household aren’t severely immunocompromised but have a concatenation of chronic illnesses, and we are in the fortunate position

of still being able to view our LDS ward’s sacrament meeting at home. My Elders Quorum also recently started streaming the audio of their meetings, which I really appreciate.

New Year’s Day will probably be a typical Sunday for me. I lost interest in the Rose Bowl once it no longer was the winners of the Pac-12 and the Big 10 facing off (and I don’t watch much college or pro football anymore anyway). And I don’t make New Year’s resolutions. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have ambitions for the new year. I have several projects I want to self-publish—both as William Morris (Mormon literature) and Wm Henry Morris (science fiction/fantasy meant for the general market). And I’m hoping to release at least one amateurish but hopefully still interesting EP this year. I’m not a musician, but I love making music. 2023 will also be my year to serve as president of the Association for Mormon Letters. My emphasis for the year will be Mormonism and genre fiction, which means AML’s annual conference will focus on that topic, and Liz Busby and I will be co-editing a special issue of Irreantum, the AML’s literary mag, with the same focus. I know some active members of the LDS Church don’t do creative work on Sundays. I reserve Saturday mornings for my main fiction writing sessions, but I will often write or edit work on Sundays. However, I do focus on work that feels more like it’s serving my fellow Mormons. In fact, several years ago, I decided to no longer write Mormon fiction or Mormon literary criticism and focus on the national market instead. I tried to stick to that decision. Really tried. But I found I couldn’t. It was too much a part of me and my creative life. So instead, I decided that I would write what I want to write when I want to write it, but that I would devote at least 10% of the time I spend on creative work to building Mormon culture. A tithe of sorts. And I’ve kept that up pretty consistently. In fact, since the pandemic started, it’s been more like 80% Mormon work. I’m hoping to start a new project in 2023 that will meld both audiences/ ambitions.

My Sundays always end the same way now: I’m not sure why—probably because it feels like it sets up the week nicely—but we have at-home sacrament in the evening before bed instead of earlier in the day. My wife has celiac and so we use gluten-free multi-grain crackers. We use a Japanese soy sauce dish for the crackers and little reusable plastic cups for the water, and while the communal aspect is missing, there is something lovely and soul-enriching about the experience.

FURTHERMORE THE LATTER-DAY SAINT ART WORLD by RICHARD L. BUSHMAN

Image: Writ and Vision gallery, Provo, Utah

When we stand before a painting in a museum or look at a picture in an art book, we usually pause for a minute or two, wondering about what the painting meant to the artist or what it means to us, and never think of the torturous path that brought it to this place. How did it come about that this particular picture is hanging on the wall or appearing in the book? The process by which a painting gets to a museum wall or on to the pages of a book is concealed most of the time but not hard to uncover with a little digging. The institutions, pathways, and evaluations that convey the art to its destination constitute what scholars call the “art world.” There are many art worlds, but among them is the Latter-day Saint version which organizes a market for LDS art and leads a few fortunate works to museums and his-

tory books. An aspiring artist is caught up in this world the moment he or she decides to sell art. Friends and family like the person’s work. Would others be interested? The art world beckons. The art world may appear as a collection of humdrum organizations to market art—galleries, stores, websites, dealers, museums--not much more exciting than the marketing of school supplies or shoes. But it is of immense importance to artists because it embodies the process that answers a baffling question: Why are some paintings considered more valuable than others? Who’s to say that a canvas smeared with paint by a famed artist is of greater worth than a canvas by an aspiring high school student? To outsiders, evaluation of artistic worth often appears arbitrary, a set of pronouncements with no objective basis. That objec-

tion cannot be definitively dismissed, but neither is artistic judgment entirely arbitrary. Art work is subject to continuing evaluations by teachers, gallery owners, curators, collectors, scholars, and by you and me, and only work that passes repeated tests, rises to the top. That process of ongoing evaluation takes place within the passages of the art world.

The Way Up How does a young LDS artist rise in the art world today? Two paths open at the beginning. One leads primarily to the sale of prints and other reproductions, the other to the sale of original art. The two overlap, and the most eminent painters sell prints, but art sales fall predominantly into one category or the other. It is relatively easy to start selling prints. Beginning artists can show prints of their work on an instagram account at very little cost. The word “print” has many meanings. A print pulled from a carving on wood or linoleum or etched on metal and published in a limited number is considered an original work of art. At the other end of the spectrum, “print” also refers to reproductions made by a printer which these days anyone with a cell phone camera, a computer and a printer can do. Higher quality prints called giclee (from a French word meaning to spray and referring to the inkjet printer’s nozzles) are higher resolution, longer lasting, and classified as fine art but are still far less expensive than an original. An artist can engage a printer to reproduce good quality giclee prints on various qualities of paper. Nowadays as prices have dropped, some artists can afford a good quality printer of their own. The artist advertises her work, friends pass the word along, a few sales are made, and she is in business. A slightly more expensive website follows, perhaps increasing sales. Search on the internet for the name of anyone who is selling art and likely an Instagram page or website will appear on the

screen with images, prices, and instructions for ordering. To get their work before the art-buying public, beginning artists can display it in the art bazaars that appear off and on over two-week periods throughout the year. The bazaar rents the space, the artists put up their work, and the bazaar owner takes twenty percent on sales. Beehive bazaars advertises “handmade goods by local artists and crafters.” The 135 Art Show run by Utah Art Market takes its name from the price range: $100, $300, $500. It advertises itself as “supporting local Utah artists for over 25 years.” The bazaars have the advantage of attracting people who are in the market for art and know the general price range. The JKR gallery in Provo titled one of its exhibits “The $1,000 Art Show.” The next step is display in stores like BYU’s bookstore or Deseret Book which devote large spaces to the display of art. Prior to Christmas and Mother’s Day and during General Conference, Education Week, and Women’s Conference, people flock to the stores’ art displays. To the brick-andmortar stores, add online stores such as Family Home or Altus Fine Art or LDS Art. Family Home offers prints from eight or ten LDS artists along with fabrics and décor. The art in these outlets is primarily devotional. Altus Fine Art concentrates on inspirational art.The great bulk of the paintings at BYU and Deseret Book depict Christ, with the temples next, and pictures of General Authorities and Joseph Smith lagging behind. The online outlet LDS Art ties into the Church’s “Come Follow Me” program for family scripture study. Judging from the number of places for buying inexpensive LDS spiritual art, the market is thriving. In LDS population centers like Mesa, even Costco will sell inspirational LDS art. To supply bookstores and retail web sites, wholesale operations like Havenlight or Altus Fine Art carry stocks of prints. They save the retail outlets the trouble of licensing the work and arranging for printing. It is a big step up for an artist to move

from a private Instagram account to inclusion in the Havenlight inventory. There the art will be seen by potential buyers and given a chance to catch on in the retail market. The other path, the one leading toward the sale of original art, begins in the galleries. Utah gallery owners respond to the recommendations of teachers at BYU, the University of Utah, or one of the academies teaching art and often will at least take the work of a beginner on consignment. Sometimes eminent artists will agree to appear in a group show along with their students to give them a start. Gallery owners themselves are always on the lookout for promising talent and will sometimes give an artist they like space on their walls. Although they may sell prints on the side, gallerists main business is selling originals. Young artists who want to sell original paintings for thousands of dollars rather than prints for a hundred must catch the eye of a gallerist. Artists with primary sales of prints may advertise originals on their websites but usually they are small paintings only inches wide and tall so the price can be kept low—under $100.

Value Success in selling originals depends on establishing worth, the most important product of the art world. Each public showing is evidence that a painting is valued by knowing observers, the major goal of young artists. The price of their art and their standing in the art community depends on acknowledgment. That is why juried shows have the highest prestige. Acceptance into a show implies approval by experts, contributing to a consensus about artistic worth.A work’s value is measured by the price it can command but also by the esteem with which an artist’s work is held. No one person or event measures esteem. It is a cumulative body of opinion jointly held by gallery owners, critics, and collectors based on many judgments passed on the work over a period of

years. A sentence from the bio of one of the most distinguished artists to emerge from a Latter-day Saint background, the lithographer Wayne Kimball, epitomizes what artists dream of: “Kimball has had over 40 solo exhibitions at various galleries, museums, and educational institutions. He has also exhibited at over 250 regional, national, and international juried and invitational shows. His work can be found in more than 55 permanent institutional collections.” Every artist keeps track of these measures of eminence as the most critical part of a resume. It is hard to explain exactly how esteem accumulates, but it is one of the chief outcomes of art world processes. Experts almost instinctively pick up on how values are developing for any given artist and are able to assign a price or decide whether or not to acquire. In the larger art world, curators and dealers scan reports of auction sales and watch what is being acquired or featured in galleries and museums. In the LDS art market, gallery owners make it their business to note what is selling. This mass of data floating about shapes the evaluation of a work’s quality and an artist’s acknowledged strength. In the decorative arts world, this process enables the experts on Antiques Roadshow to assign a price to the most obscure antiquity found in someone’s closet. The LDS art world does not feature art auctions, but exhibits, prizes, and word of mouth about sales serve the same purpose. Once an artist’s work begins to accumulate esteem, galleries and dealers pay attention.They may include a painting in a show or even sponsor an individual exhibition.Very few artists merit a show of their own. Many have to content themselves with putting their work in a gallery on consignment, hoping it will sell before the gallery owner returns the work. Gallery owners who tap into the amorphous body of opinion about worth advise young artists what to charge. This part of the cycle is filled with high moments and low. Each acceptance and rejection leaves a

mark. It requires courage to keep going. Often only a desperate need to make art sustains the effort. Gradually, the persistent ones begin to feel that they are in the swim. They have become a part of the Latter-day Saint art world. They sell prints on their own sites and through retail outlets like BYU and Deseret Book plus the online dealers. They may offer originals but mainly small paintings to keep the prices low—under $500. Their satisfaction rises as the gallery owner recommends higher asking prices. From $500 for a painting, they can ask $1,500 or $5,000. Havenlight advertises original paintings by Liz Lemon Swindle for as much as $62,500 and many in the $10,000 to $30,000 range. As part of the sale, artists get to know patrons who are curious about the personalities of the people who produce the art. Patrons want to purchase a story as well as a work of art. Personality comes to have value.

Art Institutions As in the Medieval and Early Modern periods of European history, in Latter-day Saint culture ecclesiastical purchases constitute a market for art and are another measure of esteem. The range of acceptable paintings for foyer art is now limited to reproductions of 22 paintings and only a little new art is accepted for temples, but the Church History Museum purchases for its collection.The Museum sponsors a triennial competition for LDS artists from around the world. Over 800 works were submitted to the competition for the 2022-2023 show, and 148 were selected for display.Young artists have a fair shot at being included in this show, and the most distinguished sometimes submit entries. The highest honor is for the museum to bestow a purchase award, signifying a decision to add the work to the museum’s permanent collect. In addition, each of the five jurors selects two works for a merit award, and five awards are given based on choices by visitors. All these tokens of esteem add to the heft of an artist’s resume.

Beyond the Church, the gallery, and private collectors, artists can aspire to acquisition by a museum. With limited purchase funds at their disposal, curators have to choose carefully what they buy. What to acquire and at what price are complicated decisions. In many museums the curator must raise money from a donor to make the purchase, making it necessary to select a piece that will appeal to the donor. To make the case, the curator has to know how paintings have been selling, and even more the state of critical opinion. Is this work significant, which means does it have a place in the evolving history of art? Was it at one time a good example or of especially high quality. If contemporary, is it at a cutting edge somewhere in the sprawling field of art production? No one knows exactly where trends are heading, but curators and gallery owners are constantly required to make such judgments. The veteran art critic, Arthur Danto, brought the term “art world” into play in a landmark article in The Journal of Philosophy in 1964. Danto was struggling with the problem posed by Andy Warhol’s famous Brillo box. Why was such a pedestrian object judged to be art? Danto argued it required a “theoretical revision” of what constituted art. “To see something as art requires something the eye cannot decry—an atmosphere of artistic theory, a knowledge of the history of art: an art world.” Subsequently, another philosopher George Dickie expanded the definition to mean what was described as “the institutional theory of art.” Art was an artifact “which has had conferred upon it the status of candidate for appreciation by some person or persons acting in behalf of a certain social institution (the artworld).” Dickie’s definition best applies to the term’s meaning for Latter-day Saint art where an array of institutions, the ones described here, has arisen to define art values. The intellectual side of the art world highlighted by Danto is underdeveloped among Latter-day Saints. In New York or in the global art worlds, critics hop on every major show in search of exciting new pieces. The New

York Times art critics are constantly on the prowl in the multiplicity of galleries scattered through the city. The Latter-day Saint critical establishment is much less active. In the mid twentieth-century, the trio of scholars Vern G. Swanson, Robert S. Olpin, and William S. Seifrit recognized the quality of work by artists such as John Hafen, James Harwood, and LeConte Stewart (with Clayton Williams displaying the work in his gallery). Their scholarship and critical reviews established value for collectors. More recent art has not been covered as well by newspapers and magazines aimed at Latter-day Saint readers, leaving curators to rely on galleries and their own experiences to bring together new work. Beyond museum acquisitions lies the judgment of history. What will prove lasting and what will emerge into prominence over time? Joseph Paul Vorst is an example of a Latter-day Saint artist who was virtually unknown in the Latter-day Saint art world during the Great Depression when he was painting Missouri farmers laboring over their crops. Vorst came to light in the last decade through a show at the Church History Museum curated by Glen Nelson and Laura Hurtado that made Vorst part of the Latter-day Saint canon of serious painters. Likely there are others out there awaiting discovery. Through the work of art historians, the ongoing reassessments of the Latter-day Saint Art World stretch into the future.

outlets for under $50. Signed prints on quality paper cost more. Brian Kershisnik, J. Kirk Richards, and Caitlin Connolly, leading figures among contemporary LDS artists, have websites offering giclee, relief prints, and woodcuts, cards, books, and artist’s proofs.Though intensely serious about their art, these leaders want to reach a broad public and make their work accessible to ordinary buyers. For high-end prints they can charge as much as $100. Caitlin Connolly offers e” as a “Limited Edition Giclee printed with archival inks on premium Velvet Fine Art paper. Signed, numbered, and titled - your print will be only one of a set of 30 prints. Price: $100.”

Other Worlds

In this art world, as in all the many other art worlds, art production is spread along a rough hierarchy. At the bottom, there is the uninitiated novice offering to sell prints and at the top the acknowledged master whose work commands high prices ($100,000 for a large painting).The top artists do not lack for commissions and begin to emerge as widely known and recognized public figures. Collectors long to have the work of these eminent artists in their homes.

Latter-day Saint artists do not confine themselves to the Latter-day Saint art world. There are many adjacent worlds such as one represented by the Oil Painters of America, dedicated to the preservation of representational art, and the National Oil and Acrylic Painters’ Society. These organizations are linked to galleries, competitions, and forms of esteem generated within their own spheres. Jeff Hein has won prizes from National Portrait Society’s portrait competition. Casey Childs frequently exhibits in the Portrait Society of America shows. Latter-day Saint artists also merge with Western art markets and win prizes from the societies that serve these markets. In 1978 at age 32, Michael Coleman was given his first retrospective at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center. In 1999, he won the Prix de West Award at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame, and the exhibitions and prizes continue to mount up. “Get Your Art Noticed Here” was the headline for an upcoming art exhibition sponsored by the National Oil and Acrylic Painters’ Society, and Latter-day Saint artists, like all artists, respond to the call.

These top artists do not always abandon simple commercial practices for retailing their art. They produce prints and market their work in online

The Latter-day Saint market blends most fully with the Christian art market. A number of nonLatter-day Saints sell Christian art at the BYU

bookstore, and to reach a broader market, online Latter-day Saint art outlets emphasize their Christian identity more than their Church connection. One looks a long way on the website of Family Home for the words Latter-day Saint even though all the artists they feature are Church members. The blend with Christian art has been facilitated by trends in the Latter-day Saint art market where depictions of Christ predominate in the bookstores. For devotional purposes, the pictures of Christ by Youngsung Kim, not a Mormon, serve the Latter-day Saint audience as well as J. Kirk Richards. Recently, the most expensive original on the Havenlight page of original art works was Liz Lemon Swindle’s depiction of a scene from The Chosen, the popular television series, not created by Latter-day Saints and appealing to an immense Christian audience. Swindle’s work is as likely to be purchased by a Baptist collector as a Latter-day Saint. This cross-over has always existed. Works by the Seventh-day Adventist Harry Anderson are some of the most popular in the LDS store of images. More works by Anderson appear in the Church-published Gospel Art Book (2009) than by any other artist. Anderson’s friend Tom Lovell, an illustrator for slick magazines and also not a Latter-day Saint, painted the image of Moroni at Joseph Smith’s bedside that Latter-day Saints are most likely to think of when the story is told. Ecumenism comes naturally to art commerce which is neutral about denomination so long as the product satisfies the clientele. The LDS art world then is best understood as one among a variety of art worlds: Western Art, Figurative Art, Christian Art, Indigenous Art, and on and on, all of which have their associations, their galleries, and their contributing artists. Standing above all these is the art that feeds into the global art fairs in Miami and New York, the high-end auctions at Christie’s and Sotheby’s, the New York and Los Angeles galleries, the biennial exhibitions in Venice and the Museum of Modern Art, and the great national museums in New York, Los Angeles,

and other art centers. A few Latter-day Saints have a toehold in this preeminent art world and more aspire to be included. Mahonri Young was one who received modest recognition at the beginning of the twentieth century. The Museum of Modern Art’s collections includes three by Wayne Kimball. Eminence at that level is not a requirement for success as a Latter-day Saint artist. The entrepreneurial vigor energizing the Latter-day Saint art world is one measure of a widespread and often deeply felt need for art—both to make it and to enjoy it—and the institutions that recognize and foster LDS artists meet that need. Galleries and websites proliferate because Latter-day Saints want art. They want it for devotional purposes, to mark their religious beliefs on the walls of their houses and convey their commitments to all who enter. Families purchase art not because it has achieved some degree of eminence but because they like it. It reminds them of a temple wedding or their reliance on Christ. More and more art is entering into Latter-day Saint devotional practice. Like the bleeding hearts on the walls of Catholic homes, mezuzahs on Jewish doorways, or domestic altars in Japanese households, devotional images are forming a Latter-day Saint culture of religious art. The LDS art world has arisen to serve those emerging practices and bring some order to valuation and distribution. Both as patrons and as artists, an increasing number of Latter-day Saints are finding a place in an art world.

LETTERSto theEDITOR Why should I, the reportedly amazing Theric, like getting The Season in my inbox? I mean, not to boast, but I know what’s going on. New novel? play? movie? I’ve heard about it. I keep tabs on a goodly number of LDS painters and indie-comics makers and girls with guitars and so forth. I’m hip. And yet—I had no idea Big Daddy Roth had a museum show in Colorado. I love Big Daddy Roth. I heard him speak at BYU! I was just worrying, last month as I was walking to work, that the wild and strange world he created was being forgotten. Then here comes this museum show. That I’d heard nothing about. So thank you, The Season. Thank you for filling in gaps even I, the allegedly hip, cannot see. (Now, if you only included plane tickets to Denver I’d be set.) Eric Jepson El Cerrito, California

Glen Nelson’s piece on “The Chosen” (Nov. 17) beautifully lays out how the “scripture Jesus” vs. “cool Jesus” debate isn’t just an argument about reverence and propriety but about the reach and relevance of theology in contemporary life. Every encounter with scripture involves some creative licence, even if it’s just on the part of our mind’s eye. Any storyteller attempting to capture an infinite Divinity accepts inevitable sins of editorial commission and omission. (Personally, for example, I think any rendering of Jesus that doesn’t portray him as funny, at least sometimes, is historically suspect, not to mention boring.) But more importantly, any portrayal that limits the bounds of his mercy is, in my mind, far more blasphemous than a bit of anachronistic slang. Nelson’s juxtaposed imagery of Jesus on the cross and Matthew Shepard on the barbed-wire fence is not

only emotionally wrenching, but, to Book of Mormon readers, scripturally accurate: Alma 7 tells us outright that Golgotha and Gethsemane weren’t just transactions of suffering for sin, but voluntary exercises in radical empathy. We believe in a Jesus who took upon himself our infirmities “according to the flesh,” i.e., first-hand, so that he could know, first-hand, how to help us through our suffering. The cross only matters if the fence matters too. Nelson’s piece also brought to mind the moment in Levi Peterson’s The Backslider when Jesus appears to eponymous ranch hand Frank Windham in the form of an irreverent cowboy—because that’s the only way Frank could be convinced he was redeemable.What’s more blasphemous: imagining Jesus in a cowboy hat, or imagining a Jesus that would never deign to put one on? Jeremy Grimshaw Payson, Utah

CONTRIBUTORS KIRSTEN HOLT BEITLER

GLEN NELSON

Kirsten Holt Beitler is an artist and divorced mom of four boys. Her day job is making hand painted signs for Harmons Grocery in Santa Clara, Utah. She moonlights as a wannabe writer and professional symbolic contemporary realist painter using watercolor, oil, and mixed media to create introspective and vulnerable portrait and figurative work

Glen Nelson is a bookbinder with approximately 500 volumes to his credit. In 1999 he created Mormon Artists Group, which produced 29 original projects with some 85 LDS artists.

RICHARD L. BUSHMAN Richard Bushman is chairman of the Board of Directors of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. He lives in New York City with his wife Claudia.

WILLIAM MORRIS William Morris writes, edits, and writes about Mormon literature. His more recent work is The Darkest Abyss: Strange Mormon Stories, which was recently published by BCC Press

ARISAEL RIVERA TED BUSHMAN Ted Bushman is a professional actor, writer, and composer based in New York. With his partner Kristen Perkins, he recently gave a seminar as part of the Grace Church Interfaith Fellowship in Millbrook, NY.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ Gabriel González is a professor of Translation and a writer. He has published ten children’s books, two poetry collections, and a short story collection.

Arisael Rivera is an actor, playwright, and poet based in The Bronx, New York. Most recently, his poem “Jubilant Feet” was published in the anthology Love Letters to Gaia by Miro C.

BENJAMIN DEAN TAYLOR Benjamin Dean Taylor is a composer of contemporary concert music. He has received professional commissions from individuals and ensembles all over the world and is one of the few living composers today making his primary income from writing and self-publishing his music.

KWANI POVI WINDER Kwani Povi Winder is an oil painter based in Utah and an enrolled member of the Santa Clara Pueblo. She’s an inspired mother, pianist, hiker, camper, who loves reading, painting and living life.

theSEASON FEBRUARY2023

inMIND THAT SMILEY FELLA, HIT BY A BUS by TED BUSHMAN

Illustration by Blake Loosli, commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

It’s with a flair of noblesse oblige that Ryan Hamilton, opening for Jerry Seinfeld at the Beacon Theatre on January 21st, informs his audience that he was hit by a bus. “It’s okay,” he says, “you can laugh.

Getting hit by a car is a tragedy. Getting hit by a bus is pretty funny.” The audience hesitates. They already like Ryan,

the grinning Idaho boy that he is. It’s hard not to like him. “I look like where I’m from,” he explains. “People wouldn’t guess it, but when I tell them, they go ‘that makes sense.’ There’s something potato-y about that guy.” Should they laugh at his injury? But Hamilton commits, and it doesn’t take long to get the audience laughing. This is, after all, an expert at work. Ryan Hamilton, 47, has snuck his way into the pantheon of great comedians over the last decade, purely on the strength of his stand-up. Without a sitcom or a movie to his name, he’s landed himself a Netflix special, 2017’s Happy Face, opens with frequency for Jerry Seinfeld like this weekend, and even wrote jokes for last year’s Oscars. Hamilton is in the big leagues, and he looks like he belongs. How does he bridge the gap between his rural upbringing and the city-slickers he often plays for? He adapts. He might have a striking, one-of-a-kind face that he himself lampoons, but he can play the chameleon with his audiences. A member of The Season’s editorial board recently saw him perform in Idaho, where he extended his set by 45 minutes, fondly explaining “you’re my people” and filled the rest of his time with potato jokes. In New York he tells it like it is. His Netflix special featured an extended critique of New York’s brazen arrogance — at this set he only tells a few New York jokes, comparing a return to New York to a leap into a game of Double Dutch. The Double Dutch hops serve as one of the few points of physical comedy in his set tonight. If Hamilton is the personification of a cartoon, he is usually an Al Hirschfield — a swirl of strangely curved limbs and exaggerated features, rarely remaining still. He pantomimes. In his Netflix special, he plummeted gracelessly through the air while skydiving, swam through a sea of ones and zeros, and cast out undesirables as a feudal lord using Tinder. Tonight, he is more sedate — not stiff, by any means, and hardly reduced in enthusiasm, but

it’s one of the few ways in which his injuries and continuing recovery make themselves known. That is, besides the text itself. Hamilton’s set, which runs a little over a half hour, is a master’s thesis on that most important of subjects: being hit by a bus. He starts with an idiomatic deconstruction that would make Cyrano de Bergerac proud — debunking “I feel like I’ve been hit by a bus,” wondering at “throw someone under the bus.” He describes the bus, its passengers, and his experiences in the hospital, juicing from every segment of story some morsel of commentary or self-deprecation. It’s worth noting that hit-by-a-bus humor has its limitations. The set, while surprisingly diverse for its narrow thesis, doesn’t yet sparkle like previous material. As the set progresses, the depth of Hamilton’s injuries are revealed — ten broken ribs, a punctured lung — and the audience realizes with a vocal response how serious it all was. “That reveal always gets a gasp, that’s true,” he says nonchalantly. “I gasped too. I was gasping for six months.” To comedians who comforted him that he would get tons of material from the injury, Hamilton, ever the realist, replies: “Not worth it.” After Hamilton’s set, the main guest arrives — Jerry Seinfeld himself. His set, a recurring residency at the theater, unburdened by traumatic injury, is easy and conversational as ever. One sees immediately why Hamilton is (like the title character of a Broadway show nearby), the legend’s right-hand man: their styles match near-perfectly, without feeling like an impression. The major difference between them is in some shades of subtext: Jerry recognizes his faults but has no shame, offering morsels of silly insight with all the complexity of your funny neighbor at a barbecue. Ryan, on the other hand, plays himself as a wreck of hidden despair and self-loathing masquerading under a cool suit, whose observations occasionally come with a bite of subtly incisive critique. The enemies at the butt of Jerry’s jokes are, usually, innocuous — foibles, tryhards, and silly non-necessities like jet skis

and Pop-Tarts. Ryan’s enemies are himself and, at times, the larger cultural landscape. Despite these differences, the comedians make a good pairing — light, clever, their work reminds everyone in the theater of the inherent comedy and delight to be found in the details. At The Season, we cover LDS artists and try to seek out where Latter-day Saints are engaging in the highest echelons of the arts. Ryan Hamilton is, among LDS artists, a rival of any wildly successful person — up there with Michelle Dorrance, Brandon Flowers, Brandon Sanderson, and any other notable Brandons. We focus on the art more than the disciple here, believing that focusing on a person’s connection to the church can be reductive. But does Ryan Hamilton’s faith emerge in his work? Hamilton capitalizes on every quirky aspect of Latter-day Saint perception and behavior, leveraging his broad smile and uncannily optimistic features — traits explicitly pressed into many missionaries — into a funhouse mirror caricature. He captures the self-ignorance and carefree cringe of an Idahoan dad and the sort of accidental teetotaler-ism that can only be obtained by someone raised in the bubble of a culture whose maxims are given by osmosis more than consciously adopted. And yet while this portrait seems to an LDS audience indelibly connected to Latter-day Saints, Hamilton expertly scrubs all signs of the church and religion from it, in a manner so sweeping and thorough it seems hardly noticeable. Hamilton understands, in ways that most Wasatch Front artists fail to grasp, the caustic, polarizing effect of active church membership in the coastal world. Without Mormonism, Ryan is a delightful, bumbling weirdo, a hilarious self-caricature of a man with a tight sense for observation and a delightful drama in his storytelling. With Mormonism, the narrative would transform — Ryan would instantly appear as a pitiable figure, a brainwashed child living a half-life in a city that he could fully experience if only he’d leave his silly religion behind because this is the state of the Latter-day Saint in the modern

imagination — that of the poor ideological prisoner, the naif, the sap. Ryan Hamilton proves otherwise in every way. He walks between worlds as few can manage, embracing his rural roots and navigating the requirements of high-powered comedy. And while his Mormonism is unmentioned, the hints of it are unabashed. He has freely talked about his avoidance of alcohol, though he didn’t expound on his reasons. His mother is an “angel of heaven.” A set he performed on Jimmy Fallon in 2019 provided us an apt glimpse of Hamilton’s perception of the divine: he imagined a discussion between his guardian angel and God, where both decided that the hapless comedian could handle a few more embarrassments.

OUTandABOUT I HAVE NO TEARS, AND I MUST CRY I first found out about the short film “I Have No Tears, And I Must Cry” through the January 2023 issue of The Season. There a short article describes the film as a story about an immigrant woman facing a green card interview. Because of my own experiences as a wanderer in many lands, something about that description resonated with me, so I made a mental note to watch it. Because issues related to immigration and the immigrant experience are a frequent topic of conversation at home, I thought I would invite my two children to watch it as well. So a few weeks later, I sat down with my pre-teen children ready to figure out why that woman needs to cry but cannot. And now I am ready to tell you, but in so doing, let me warn you that spoilers are inevitable. Clocking at under twelve minutes, this short film written and directed by Monterrey-born Luis Fernando Puente, is tight story telling at its best. The dialogue is sparce, communicating only the essential information for the viewer to follow along. No line is wasted, as every piece of dialogue is intended to drop some information that helps the viewer understand the state of mind of the characters as well as the situation they are navigating. This scarcity approach to telling the story works well in part thanks to the subtleness of the acting. (This is a welcome respite from the exaggerated quirkiness that plagues comedies and the overthe-top performances that infest action movies nowadays.) Each character conveys their own inner world in just the right way. As soon as the couple sat in the immigration building’s waiting room, one of my children said: “Está nervioso. ¿Por qué?” [He is nervous. Why is he nervous?].

There was something about the husband’s stare that conveyed uncertainty without the need for words. When the immigration officer opened her mouth for the first time, my other child predicted: “No se la van a dar” [They won’t give it to her]. There was something about the way the officer spoke that telegraphed that there would be no green card at the end of the interview. And Mexican actress Alejandra Herrera, who plays the wife, craftily took the viewer through a set of evolving moods as the short progresses. This it all comes together satisfyingly through the lens work of cinematographer Oscar Ignacio Jiménez. Characters come in and out of focus as needed, and this is an effective way to establish what matters. In the first shot we are introduced to the main character. We see her first, and that is how viewers know that this is told primarily as her story. The story itself is related through close up after close up.There are no wide shots. Even when the characters approach the USCIS (i.e., “immigration”) building, the shot is very tight, with no sense of place beyond the wall immediately behind the characters. This helps establish a nearly claustrophobic mood to the short, where everything feels like it is taking place within rather confined spaces. This sense of confinement is purposeful, intended to underscore the restrictiveness of the system and the feelings of the protagonist. The opaque colors add to this by conveying a sense of somberness to the entire short. From a narrative standpoint, the story is told in three main beats. A conversation inside the couple’s vehicle before the interview, the interview itself in the USCIS building, and another conversation inside the vehicle after the interview. The

vehicle conversations act as bookends, as a prologue and epilogue of sorts. The prologue sets up the stakes: this is more than likely a turning point in their life together. The interview is where the battle is fought and lost. The epilogue asks an open-ended question: now what? Of course, the question is not really open ended. The viewer gets a sense that in the end things will work out. This is created by establishing a powerful symbol in the form of a green couch. This green couch works somewhat like the yellow house in Ernest Hemingway’s “A Way You’ll Never Be,” except that instead of being associated with fear, the symbol is associated with hope. Thus, while at the end of the short the wife continues to be in an uncertain place, there is the hint that things will work out. There is a determination to move forward even in the face of uncertainty. The moment the credits rolled, one of my daughters immediately asked whether there was a Part II we could watch. I explained that no, there was no “The Tears Strike Back” sequel and that that was a good thing because some stories are meant to make us think.What followed was a discussion on the nature of immigration. We talked about how migration has always been part-and-parcel of the human experience. As cleverly indicated in Jorge Drexler’s song “Movimiento”: somos una especie en viaje / no tenemos pertenencias sino equipaje [we are a traveling species / we have no belongings but only luggage]. Some people leave their homeland because they fear for their safety. Most people leave their homeland because there are better economic opportunities elsewhere. No one leaves their homeland as their first choice. When you migrate, you bury a piece of your soul in the place you leave behind. This is one of the reasons migration transforms people. And places. It is the latter transformation that causes most societies to be uneasy about immigration. Most societies are not very open and welcoming to immigrants, especially poor immigrants. For this reason, immigration policy in countries that receive large numbers of immi-

grants (again, especially poor immigrants) tends to generate controversy. In the heat of those debates, people tend to forget that for immigrants this is not a policy issue. It is a deeply personal issue. It is about the kind of life they might live, the kind of future they may or may not aspire to, the relationships they can and cannot foster. The contribution that “I Have No Tears, And I Must Cry” makes is a human contribution. It is a reminder that for immigrants, the “policy questions” are immediately personal and have a profound impact on their lives. It serves to highlight that this is about real people, with real aspirations and real problems. Of course, several feature films deal with immigration (e.g., A Better Life), but Puente’s contribution is unusual in that it shows the human side of legal immigration, which most people do not realize is both expensive and complicated and fraught with difficulty. For that reason alone, the short is worth watching. There was one thing that bothered me, though, which was the title. The title promises a sad story, and that’s what it delivers, but it also promises no tears, hinting that the protagonist is all cried out. Yet the protagonist is a happy one initially (we have no hint that she’s all cried out) and she’s openly crying by the end of the story. I understand that she could not cry during the interview, but her mood during the interview is more of confusion and even disbelief, not of sadness. The sadness comes in the epilogue. Then she just cries. So the title, as beautiful and evocative as it is, does not really connect with the story. Of course, that’s a small thing to pick on. This short film is worth watching due to everything mentioned here—the acting, the mood, the script, the topic. The film was selected to premier as part of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival in Park City’s Prospector Square Theater. It was one of 64 films that the Festival selected out of 10,981 candidates.That is an achievement in its own right. And it also signals that Luis Fernando Puente is a promising new voice to be on the lookout for. – Gabriel González

(“I Have No Tears, And I Must Cry” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, January 23.)

CELESTIAL NAVIGATION An exhibition of new works by Lisa DeLong opens February 3, 2023 in Provo, Utah. In approximately one dozen, 20 x 30” works, the artist limns complex relationships between geometric shapes that carry weighty interpretations. The paintings are made on handmade blue paper with extremely fine lines exquisitely drawn with opaque white ink made from stones and earth gathered by the artist in her trips around the world. In these works, for the first time, DeLong is experimenting with copper leaf and collaged elements, as well. She write to us, “At its most fundamental level, the forms that I work with are the circle and the square, symbols of Heaven and Earth. Every pattern I explore is essentially a conversation between straight and curved lines drawn with compass and square. Embedded in the process itself is an attempt to negotiate the relationship between these realms.” As any viewer of the works immediately recognizes, this is a slow creative process, and the artist notes that in extended contemplation, she finds unexpected insights into the randomness of nature and in new interpretations of even the most familiar geometric patterns. She adds, “In this show, many of the designs I am working with are based on the number 12. This number is connected with cosmological governance, of course being linked to how we measure time in the hours of the day, the months of the year, the signs of the zodiac, the number of the apostles, and so forth. For example, one of the paintings working with this number and its symbolic qualities shows a mountain built of a square tessellation of a 12-fold pattern. It sits in contact with a large circular form that expresses an entirely different 12-fold design. The geometric laws they follow are the same; they occupy completely different spaces – and yet they are in communication at this single point. I find

that the more that I sit quietly with simple forms, the more they unfold meanings to me. I always delight to hear what meanings they suggest to the people who come to see them, too.” DeLong is the child of two mathematicians, but it was only in college at BYU, studying with Wulf Barsch, that her interest sparked in geometry.This led her to books and experts, including Hugh Nibley, who shared with her information on sacred geometry. Later, she landed at the Prince’s Foundation School of Traditional Arts in London, where the study of geometry, including Islamic geometric design, is part of the curriculum. 21 years, multiple books, internal classes and travel, and notable exhibitions later, DeLong has just moved back to the States from London. Looking forward to talking with audiences, she writes, “I love the creative alchemy that emerges from sharing a body of work in a public setting. I always have so many fascinating conversations with people who come to see it. Sometimes a visitor will pull me aside to share a sacred moment and personal connection that they had with a specific painting. Sometimes they are simply delighted at the mathematics at play. It is a great privilege to hear these insights, and the engagement with people who come to see my work always leaves me filled with a creative fire for the next batch of work.” (Celestial Navigation opens February 3rd and runs through the 25th at Writ & Vision in Provo, Utah.)

A COUPLE OF BANDS YOU SHOULD KNOW Even though they are a contemporary band, there is something very nostalgic about The Moss. For those who were around during the early days of Seattle grunge and who then graduated to One Republic and Keane, The Moss will make you long for flannel shirts as you drive alone on the highway remembering your high school crush. Originally from Hawaii, these four guys started making music just for fun, and that hobby turned into a ca-

reer.Their next stop was Salt Lake City where like most indie bands, they developed a following.Very much in the vein of the “little engine that could” they did everything themselves, even mixing their own albums because without a major label, they had no choice. But humble beginnings haven’t hindered their music nor their style. If anything, it’s only added more depth and more flavor because it’s coming from a place of earnestness and sincerity. Sing like no one is listening and pretty soon, people will. In addition to a multi-city tour (which is quickly selling out) their current EP, Insomnia is available on all streaming platforms. Another group drawing from days gone by is alternative bluegrass group, The Barefoot Movement. Led by Noah Wall and Tommy Morris, the two met in high school and have been making a melting pot of bluegrass, folk, and country music ever since. Noah, who is the lead singer (and also plays multiple string instruments) has the powerful yet soothing vocal qualities of Alison Krauss and Linda Rondstadt. In addition to their multiple albums, touring engagements, and awards, during the pandemic they released a series of singles under the umbrella,“Covers for the Cause.” The songs which were originally only on their Youtube channel can now be streamed on all platforms with proceeds going to Soles4Souls. – Joël René Scoville (For information on tour venues for The Moss and The Barefoot Movement, see The Listings.)

PROPER ROMANCES Shadow Mountain Publishing, an imprint of Deseret Book Company, has trademarked a subgenre: Proper Romance®. What is it? I learned last summer on a roadtrip when my mum played an audiobook: thoughtful description of the construction of the bodice, but no ripping of said bodice. My not-LDS sister decided to download the book because she declared it not too much, a real Goldilocks moment. While searching, she discovered that it was from a “Mormon publishing company”

and she teased that we infiltrate cleverly. A discussion ensued. Perhaps the charm is that this subgenre offers something that has become a bit sparse: thoughtful restraint. When done right, restraint can be powerful, hilarious, alluring…. Why else would there be so many Anglophiles? Maybe the solid collection of romance books written by Latter-day Saint authors can somewhat be attributed to the restraint inherent to some points of doctrine? On February 5, a new Proper Romance® will be released: Miss Newbury’s List, by Megan Walker. Set in 1820, England, readers will meet Rosalind Newbury who has a list of ten things she wants to do before she marries a duke. For those interested in history mixed with their romance, but prefer the Cold War variety, Covenant Communications (also a division of Deseret Book), will be releasing a new book by Traci Hunter Abramson (best seller; author of over 30 books)–Worlds Collide–the third book in the Dream’s Edge series.The plot includes the additional restraint found in the discipline of being Olympic athletes (in this case, ice skating partners who have fallen in love) as well as navigating the KGB. Hunter Abramson worked for the CIA and uses experiences gained to inform her writing. Its publication date is Valentine’s Day, the day the LDS brand of restraint perhaps slides a half-hitch when confronted with chocolates and conversation hearts. – Ena Fowles.

SUMA: THE HOUSE THAT JIMMIE BUILT Jimmie Jones is a well-known artist in Southern Utah, born in Cedar City to an LDS family in 1933 during the Great Depression. When expressing his desire to pursue art as a career his parents were very supportive. He studied art in Los Angeles and then transferred to the University of Utah to complete a master’s degree. He never ended up completing it, after being offered his own show by a gallery owner in Tuscan, Arizona. Jimmie’s early

years were spent on figure painting, but as his life progressed, he became fascinated with landscapes and wanted to paint his home, Zion National Park. After many paintings of Zion, he fell in love with the Grand Canyon. He stated,“The Grand Canyon is my passion now. It’s like a lover you cannot get enough of. It’s my odyssey.” When Jones passed away in 2009, he donated his Rockville home and his complete collection of artwork, including his own work and other artists he had collected over the years, to Southern Utah University for their permanent collection, and from that generous donation, Southern Utah Museum of Art (SUMA) was created. One particular piece of art by Jimmie Jones being displayed in the Jim Jones Gallery until March 17th, 2023 is a giant group of canvases that encase the view of the Grand Canyon. Each of the canvases is a different size, but connected together you feel like you are given the whole spectacle of this wonder of the world. The attention to detail is incredible with even the trees having beautiful texture. In the museum gift shop there is a section dedicated to Jimmie Jones including a book written about his life that contains many of his artworks. Since SUMA has all of Jimmie Jones’ artwork in their permanent collection, many are rotated over time and curated to share Jones’ spirit and love of art with us all. —Jessica Nelson (Jimmie Jones: My Passion, My Odyssey continues at the Southern Utah Museum of Art through March 17.)

THE CARL ARRINGTON ARCHIVE It was not like a church confessional, exactly, but for almost forty years, the musicians and artists who would become the biggest stars in the world— Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Madonna, Elton John, Bob Seger, Iggy Pop, Linda Ronstadt, Tina Turner, Stevie Nicks, Ozzy Osbourne, Marvin Gaye, Stephen King, Gilda Radner, Stevie Wonder, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, and a multitude of others—sat down

with Carl Arrington, who was born and raised in Logan, Utah, and spilled their hopes, dreams, and secrets. Arrington was a freelance writer for Time magazine, Rolling Stone, Circus magazine, CBS Radio, the New York Post, Detroit Press Press, and People magazine. After all this time, now retired, he is at last doling out highlights of this vast trove of interviews as The Carl Arrington Archive. Interviewing an interviewer on the topic of the interview is perilous, but Carl shared some insights recently with The Season, looking back on his career. “Listening to interviews done decades ago is surprising because I often talked to them at the beginning of their careers. Now they are icons. Also amazing is how much time I got with them to talk. Often many hours in their homes. Or on tour with them in their travel bus. Also it is clear now it was a golden era in the music business when it wasn’t as atomized as it is now in the digital age.” Arrington was able to get his subjects to open up to a remarkable degree. A landmark example is Tina Turner’s 1981 confession of her husband’s violence, rape, and abuse, which she revealed to Arrington for the first time. “I think my main ‘trick’ getting revealing interviews with the famous was to make it as much like a regular conversation as I could. I read up on the people but never went in with a set of questions. Eventually since performers are by nature extroverted they would end up telling me their life stories. Also, I always taped the interviews so I would never lose eye contact with them trying to write notes. Then I would transcribe the tapes myself and write the story from that. If there were any controversial subjects to be covered, I always asked them at the very end.” Listening to these 10- to 25-minute excerpts now is engrossing because the artists reveal their raw hopes and ambitions. They speak about the mechanics of their professional world and the collaborators behind them. Arrington revealed himself, as well. He was well informed and knew the business. Mostly, he was curious about his subjects, their music, and their lives. He told me once that

he would sometimes talk about religion—his own and theirs—to begin an interview to find common ground and to put them at ease. He said, “I think I also got good interviews because I got to choose personalities who fascinated me or whose music I loved. I was a true fan in many cases. And since I am a bit shy with zero musical talent, I was never envious.” (The first ten episodes of The Carl Arrington Archive are available now on the podcast network of jasoncharles.net)

VIRTUALLY ME In a way, all books are time capsules. A purpose of a time capsule is to make an offering to the future, via specific daily snapshots, with the hope that those opening it will have their perspectives expanded. Consider: the Samuel Adams-Paul Revere Time Capsule–containing such things as colonial coins and newspapers (1795); the France Opera Vault–wax records of arias, etc. (1907); the World’s Fair Time Capsule–a kewpie doll and textiles (1938). By the time Virtually Me, by the husband and wife team, Chad Morris and Shelly Brown, comes out on February 7, 2023, we will be almost three years from when COVID first tilted our world. Daily details in the book capture pandemic life, so for those looking for ways to shape the narrative around the experience with sensitivity and delight, this sounds like a time capsule worth opening. Marketed for the middle grade reader (ages 8-12), Virtually Me is a story about three students who enroll in a virtual middle school during the pandemic where students create an avatar to represent themselves.The protagonists’ choices about their identities reflect their individual motives while capturing the universal pathos of being in middle school. The targeted audience is ideal: old enough to understand the pandemic and young enough to be shaped by the affirmation that there are intrinsic aspects to humanity–connectivity, authenticity, repair–that can be consistent anchors no matter how the world tilts. As we continue navigating COVID and its fall-

out, being reminded of what we’ve gained during the experience–increased resilience, expanded creativity, deepened compassion–feels inspiring for audiences of all ages. – Ena Fowles (Virtually Me will be published by Shadow Mountain February 7).

mySUNDAY K DAWN

K Dawn is a mixed-media and abstract artist originally from Emporia, Kansas who currently lives in Pleasant Grove, Utah with her husband, their 12 year old daughter, and, she notes, an extra needy golden retriever. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Art History and Curatorial Studies from BYU ‘07 and a diploma in Residential Planning from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh ‘09. She writes, “I actually never planned to be an artist. My plan was to be an interior designer.That plan changed when I survived a stroke soon after finishing school. I lost a lot of memories, including things about myself like my favorite color. I was really confused and started searching for who I was. Thankfully writing and art still felt familiar, so I dove into them. I stuck with writing for a while, and then one day felt an urge to express some pent up feelings through a collage piece (that was in 2018), and I’ve just kept going.” She continues, “I helped design our modern house nestled next to the mountain. Even though I have neighbors, the placement of the house gives me a sense of the openness of Kansas. My favorite part of my house is my studio, it has the best view in the entire house and the space feels sacred to me.” Photograph courtesy of K Dawn.

Moving slowly. I am not a morning person on any day of the week, and Sundays are no exception. I move as slow as I possibly can on Sundays, so slow that I don’t usually eat breakfast. As I get ready for the day I listen to contemporary gospel music (which is a little piece of home for me). I usually get ready for church Sunday mornings, but it entirely depends on my physical and mental health. Sunday is a pretty solitary day for my family; we each retreat into our own worlds for some rest and realignment. My ward. I go to church a few streets over from where I live, and I’ve never really had a congregation like the one I have now. For the most part people are really open-hearted and eager to learn. They’ve been really accepting of my family. This is the only ward that I’ve been in that I feel is really committed to my growth as a person, however that may look for me. It’s also the only ward I’ve been in that doesn’t make me feel like I have to be something or someone other than what/who I am. Strengthening. The rest of the day is usually pretty quiet. My husband and I take turns on who cooks, so if I’m not cooking I’m napping. We eat dinner in the late afternoon most Sundays and talk about our upcoming goals and the week ahead. I really believe in community and family, and I’m committed to strengthening those relationships, so some of my Sundays are dedicated to that strengthening. Depending on what project I’m working on, I may venture into my studio, but creativity wise I like to take a break from work. I like to plan for my upcoming week by going over the meals I’ll be cooking and planning what work I’ll do on which days. Sunday evenings I usually call my mom and my aunt. For whatever reason, Sunday check-ins have become part of my family tradition. I also like to watch some of my favorite shows on Sunday evening: The Vicar of Dibley, Star Trek: TNG, Living Single, The Golden Girls, or Antiques Roadshow.

Rest and realignment. For me, Sundays are about rest and realignment. It’s a day that I desperately need in order to keep my focus during the week. It’s meaningful for me to have a whole day dedicated to rest and realignment as I am not great at setting aside that kind of time during the week.

ONtheLIST K DAWN FOLLOWS

Here is my list of artists I think everyone should be following. - K Dawn @kdawncreates

Marlena Wilding @marlenawildart

Kyeisha Selway @kyeishacreates

Ruth Gonzalez-Muhlestein @ruthievon

Elizabeth Sanchez @elizabeth_sanchez_art

Michelle Thorley @florafamiliar

Jalynne Geddes @nehiyanahk_creations

Tyrone Whitehorse @whitehorsearts Melissa Kamba @tshikamba

Victoria-Riza Hyde @victoria_riza

FURTHERMORE MY MOTHER, A LIVING LEGEND by KWANI POVI WINDER

Cliff Dwelling photo: My mom is in the blue shiny cape on the ladder of the cliff dwelling image. Courtesy Kwani Povi Winder.

My history with Living Legends goes back to the very beginning, before I was even born, when the performance group started out as Lamanite Generation. Even though I have never been a part of the group, I have always felt a sense of pride and connection to them. Matter of fact, I’m not even sure I would be the person I am today without it. My mom was one of the very first performing members, and both of my parents helped as the group was just getting up and running. The group came about through several different people and avenues. Dale Tingey, then mission president of the Southwest Indian Mission, asked for a group from Brigham Young University to come tour and perform in the mission after having witnessed the previous impact that performing missionaries and youth missionaries had in the mission. My mother, Ima, was a part of Brown Sounds, a singing group that was part of the initial groups gathered. Under the direction of Janie Thompson, founder of BYU’s Young Ambassadors, Lamanite Generations took to the road for their first official tour performing in the Southwest Indian Mission. Janie was so invested in the group, that she even lifted the feet of the performers to help them feel the beats of the music. This initial group consisted of mostly Native American performers with a couple Polynesians and one Latino (who became one of my mother’s best friends). The shows for Lamanite Generation included a lot of contemporary songs, plus original compositions, and a few traditional pieces. The main song used was, “Go My Son,” written by Arliene Nofchissey and Carnes Burson, which has a beautiful history to how it came to be written and is still used today. The initial performers played instruments, sang, and danced; they truly did it all themselves. Their purpose: to be missionaries through sharing their talents and to touch and inspire the youth. To show everyone that are special, and that they are a Child of God who loves them. Lamanite Generation wanted to be an example to the Native youth and inspire them to dream big.

This initial group did this all as volunteers, accomplished everything outside of their classes in early mornings and late nights, and they didn’t receive any college credit. Their dedication and sacrifices laid the foundation 52 years ago for Living Legends that is well known today. The name of the group changed from Laminate Generation to Living Legends in the 1990s. As my mom shared, each of those in the beginning have countless stories of things that were able to just fall into place. Help that was given when it was needed. There were many miracles that brought the group together while they were touring. My mom shared that while they were in Canada during the second leg of their first ever tour, it was raining incredibly hard. They were going to be performing in a metal barn and the rain was so intense that they had to shout and even then, they could barely hear each other over the hammering drops. Then the electricity went out, so no microphones. They all gathered together and prayed, and were asked to continue with a prayer in their hearts as the performance time drew closer. And then, 15-20 minutes before they were to take the stage, the lights came on and the rain stopped, and they were able to perform. The whole time they were touring that first year, my mom said it was like that, “Any time we had concerns, the Lord would lead someone to the group that would fill that need. A lot of prayers were answered along the whole way and allowed the group to go forth.” Before they went to Canada, the group stopped for a week at BYU. They had just finished touring the Southwest Indian Mission for the first time. Because of their success, the Northwest Indian Mission asked Lamanite Generation to come to their mission, and so they extend their tour. While there at BYU, the group wasn’t sure how they would be able to go on. They were without a chauffeur to drive them and left without someone to manage the lights and sound. While recording and practicing, they prayed for an answer to their need. My dad heard the group practicing from the

hallway and stopped in to say hello (he was roommates and friends with some of the performers in the group). Janie, the director, got upset with at him for interrupting practice and told my dad to leave unless he had a chauffeur license or knew how to do lights/sound. My dad sheepishly said he could do both. He was an answer to their prayer. He was able to drive them on the second leg of their tour that first summer and was the light and sound guy for the next four years while my parents were in the group. Through Lamanite Generation, my parents were able to get to know each other better, started dating, and were even married during the last year that they participated in the group. My life has been greatly influenced by my parent’s participation in Lamanite Generation. Their stories and experiences strengthen me and help me to see and recognize the small miracles and guidance in my own life. I’ve been blessed to learn from and get to know many of the lifelong friends my mom has made from being a part of the group and community. It truly is a family that continues to touch many generations. For my mom, it was the first time she didn’t feel like she was out there alone. Here were others of similar cultures and experiences who were trying to live the gospel. She came into her own, over-

coming shyness. She attributes her strong confidence to her time with the group. She spent her career teaching kindergarten and second grade and feels very strongly that Lamanite Generation allowed her to break out of her shell and be able to share herself, her culture, and her light more openly with her students and community. She said that it has helped her to feel proud of who she is and share with others throughout her life. Her story and experiences have inspired others to connect with the group, one such friend is Gabriel. He’s performing on his very first tour with Living Legends right now. I know Gabriel through my mother, but he’s become family to me. How Gabriel came to find himself in the group is multi-faceted, but it started with his father. His dad saw Lamanite Generation perform when he was an 8–10-year little boy in the Philippines and was amazed! It was his dad’s first exposure to BYU and played a role in his father going on to attend BYU-Hawaii, where he met Gabriel’s mother. Gabriel was even born in Hawaii! Gabriel wanted to join Living Legends because he was drawn to the great missionary spirit that the group carries. Learning more about the group through elders in the Indigenous community, like my mom, Gabriel’s desire to be part of a group grew. His sisters’ interest in Living Legends also

Images above, left to right: Gabriel Eagle dancing, photo courtesy of Gabriel Abello; photo of my parents (and others) at Alcatraz, my mom and dad are on the far right, courtesy of Kwani Povi Winder; Lamanite Generation cover: photo courtesy of Jessica Hill. My mom is on the far right.

played a big role in his desire to try out for the group himself. He worked long and hard to prepare for his audition and it was so exciting for me and my mother to hear the amazing news that he had made it into the group! I asked Gabriel what it feels like for him now that he’s in Living Legends and what hopes he has for himself as part of the group. Gabriel responded that he has loved the spiritual growth that he’s experienced through the new avenues and opportunities Living Legends has already given him. And the “…new ways I can be an instrument in His hands.” Gabriel went on to share his testimony that, “This is the greatest work on Earth [that] we can engage in and sharing it in the unique ways that we can share it is the best way we can help touch the hearts of others. While being kind, empathetic, and charitable, we can be unapologetic about who we are, our testimonies of truth and sharing our cultures because of how [they can] connect us to God in beautiful ways.” Lamanite Generation started with humble beginnings yet went on to do great things. Those first few years forged a family through sacrifice; those spiritual experiences bonded them.And since then, that family has only continued to grow, reaching across cultures, generations, and continents.While today’s Living Legends bears little resemblance to the variety show of its Lamanite Generation beginnings, it still holds the main goal and focus of sharing the light of Christ through culture, connection, and love. It has been a great honor to me to have a mother who was one of the initial members of a group that has gone on to touch and inspire so many. I couldn’t say it better than how Gabriel put it, “I hope that life long service and finding unique ways to engage in the Lord’s work becomes an integral part of my life even more than what I am experiencing now. It is a constant search to help better the work and share the light of the gospel and testimony of Christ in powerful ways that meet the needs of each individual, God’s children, my brothers and sisters.”

LETTERSto theEDITOR I enjoyed reading Benjamin Taylor’s recent article on prominent video game composers in the greater LDS community. Not only was it a fascinating introduction to a creative world that is increasingly relevant, but it went a long way toward demonstrating the continuity between more traditional forms of art music and the art that is so apparent

in these immersive and entertaining digital worlds. As a teacher of younger composers, it’s increasingly clear to me why so many of them are entranced by this music. Ethan Wickman San Antonio, Texas

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS TED BUSHMAN

GLEN NELSON

Ted Bushman is a composer and writer currently based in the Hudson Valley. He is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, and his fiction has been published in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Metaphorosis, and Inscape.

Glen Nelson is a bookbinder with approximately 500 volumes to his credit. In 1999 he created Mormon Artists Group, which produced 29 original projects–most of them limited edition books– with some 85 LDS artists.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY

JESSICA NELSON

Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

Jessica Nelson is a full-time student at Utah Tech University in St. George, Utah, majoring in Spanish with a minor in Music. She also works front desk at the St. George Art Museum.

ENA FOWLES

JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE

Ena Fowles enjoys volunteering for worthwhile organizations–a favorite being the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. She lives in New York City where she and her husband had the good fortune to raise their children.

Joël René Scoville is an actress, writer, and lyricist. Her work includes musicals, an upcoming comic book, and her web series, Crazy with a K! She is a member of the prestigious BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop as both a librettist and lyricist. She lives in Spanish Harlem, NY with her husband and they have three sons

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ Gabriel González is a professor of Translation and a writer. He has published ten children’s books, two poetry collections, and a short story collection.

BLAKE LOOSLI Blake Loosli is an illustrator/designer at Blake Loosli Illustration. He lives in West Jordan, Utah.

KWANI POVI WINDER Kwani Povi Winder is an oil painter based in Utah and an enrolled member of the Santa Clara Pueblo. She’s an inspired mother, pianist, hiker, camper, who loves reading, painting and living life.

theSEASON MARCH2023

inMIND SISTER MARGUERITE, OUR DARLING by BRIGHAM BARNES

Illustration by Brent Croxton, commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

In late August 2022, a certain very small corner of the internet was all worked up over the breaking news that the release of a new edition of late poet/ historian/novelist Marguerite Young’s 1200-page novel Miss MacIntosh, My Darling, had been postponed from “imminent” to “sometime next year.”

Last printed in 1993, to many this was the perfect opportunity to acquire the book without having to hunt down, and pay a premium for, an older edition. I counted myself among those grumbling over the delay, having fairly recently learned about Miss MacIntosh, My Darling and its author.

Well-received by critics and readers alike upon its initial publication in 1965, look up Miss MacIntosh, My Darling on the internet now and you’ll find articles with titles like “The Most Unread Book Ever Acclaimed” (Paris Review), “Forgotten Masterpiece? Marguerite Young’s Miss MacIntosh My Darling” (The Antioch Review), or “Sick of Streaming? Try This Really Long Cult Novel” (Jstor Daily). For me the most tempting type of novel is a long one. More so if the novel has a reputation for being difficult. Even more so still if the book is known, if known at all, for having only a small and particular following. The book itself was tempting on its own, but then I started to learn about its author. Ask a Marguerite Young aficionado for a quick, interesting fact about this quintessential Greenwich Village eccentric and you may be told something like: “Marguerite was born in Indianapolis and identified as a Midwesterner all her life, though she spent most of her years in a small apartment crammed full of books and dolls on Bleecker Street.” “She studied at the University of Chicago, taught at the University of Iowa’s writer’s workshop, Fordham University, and the New School…but get this, she also taught Kurt Vonnegut’s homeroom class in high school!” ”It took Marguerite 18 years to write Miss MacIntosh, My Darling, though she thought it would only take her 2. She wrote a lot of it sitting at diners in the Village, between bites of tuna fish salad sandwiches.” “Marguerite knew, and dropped the names of, nearly every relevant literary figure of her day— Richard Wright, Anaïs Nin,Truman Capote,Thornton Wilder, and Flannery O’Connor, to name a few. Capote called Young ‘the one who taught us all’ and O’Connor called Marguerite ‘the greatest grand mere,’ so that’s some reverse name dropping right there.”

But one factoid that Marguerite Young fans can rarely resist bringing up (check many an early paragraph in internet articles or undergraduate theses about her to see for yourself) is that Marguerite was a collateral descendant of Brigham Young, the second president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A challenging, 1200-page novel that took longer to write than Finnegans Wake which has dwindled to near obscurity over the past sixty years? Written by a beloved eccentric descended from Brigham Young? For me, an enthusiast of meganovels and not just a Latter-day Saint but a Brigham myself, I was quite intrigued! I quickly gave up on waiting for the arrival of my 2023 edition of Miss MacIntosh, My Darling and sprung for a copy from the 70s and proceeded to dig in, first for the joy of the undertaking and second to see if there were any evidences of Marguerite Young’s distant Latter-day Saint heritage to be discovered in it. What I learned was perhaps as confounding as Miss MacIntosh, My Darling itself. When Miss MacIntosh, My Darling begins, we find our narrator, Vera Cartwheel, on a bus traveling through the Midwest, hoping to find her mysteriously disappeared childhood nursemaid, the titular Miss (Georgia) MacIntosh. We remain with Vera on that bus only briefly before the book becomes a grand tour of Vera’s life and the lives of the people who make up the book’s expansive supporting cast, all united in their difficulty of discerning reality from illusion and illusion from reality. Miss MacIntosh, My Darling is often compared to novels such as Ulysses or Remembrance of Things Past, but I feel the most apt comparison would be to The Life and Opinion of Tristram Shandy in the way that both books absolutely refuse to stick to the story you thought you were going to read and cannot resist frequent digression. For Young in particular it seems there is no digression or aside not worth making and no length too long for one of these narrative detours, the most spectacular

totaling roughly 400 pages right in the middle of the height of the novel’s most intriguing point. Previously mentioned narrator Vera Cartwheel grew up in an enormous New England seaside mansion (“I did not dream I lived in marble halls, for I lived in marble halls” [Miss MacIntosh, My Darling, 71]), effectively abandoned by her mother, Catherine Cartwheel, an opium addict who spends her days and nights lying in bed “heavily laden with jewels like a Greek corpse” and hosting hallucinatory visitors, the unreal having become more real than the real to her. These guest leave her bedroom “as filled with visitors as Grand Central Station” and include “some from the shores of Hades, voices of the dead, faded movie stars, imaginary telephone operators, spirits like long-nosed bird dogs, drowned pearl-divers, old kings, old queens, figures older than Oedipus or Troy, New England spinsters…jockeys riding the skeletons of dead horses, angelic birds” as well as “centaurs with lilies in their mouths, cherubim spouting fountains, great frogs with jewels in their foreheads.” (MM, 11) This list of visitors is characteristic of the text, which overflows, overabounds with lists, repetitions, and poetically embellished details and language. There is just so much in these 1200 pages and each sentence seems like the product of both a compulsion for artistic perfection and a completely natural, effortless flow.At times reading the book felt to me like drawing my finger across the deep, rich frosting of a deeply, richly frosted cake and at other times I wondered, if I could wring the book like a sponge, how much of its words would fall out and what would I be left holding afterwards? Hailing from humble What Cheer, Iowa, Miss Georgia MacIntosh stands in contrast with the East Coast decadence of Vera’s mother as the one stable and trustworthy presence in Vera’s life, the lone person that Vera knows who is grounded in reality and certainty. At one point, Vera pays this tribute to her:

This flat-footed Middle Westerner, Miss MacIntosh, my darling, so plain, so unadorned, and very far from feminine or fickle, a woman utterly unlike my sleeping mother, a woman completely without affectation or exaggeration, as she seemed then in my eyes, was far too simple, far too clear to be seduced by the soporific luxury which she could not even care to understand, the Oriental magnificence of dreaming mandarins and ivory and jade pagodas, the monstrous enormity of that old New England sea-coast house.… (MM, 46) Whatever connection there is in the novel to Mormonism, I’ll argue that it is to be found through Miss MacIntosh herself. But at this point I will make my own digression to look at where else Mormonism appears in Marguerite Young’s works and interviews. The earliest occurrence of a statement by Young concerning Mormons occurs in an interview with Vogue magazine in 1946, where she says: As for the American myth, it is fabulous, too—I don’t know why we should ever been considered a plain people; our heads are in the clouds. Lately, I’ve been reading Fawn M. Brodie’s ‘No Man Knows My History’, the brilliant biography of that wildeyed Joseph Smith who, looking for lost treasures in the ground, stumbled onto the writing of an American angel, and founded, as a result of the encounter, the Mormon Church. No, America is not dull, and I’m tired of all the neat little books which describe it as dull. Incongruously, in 1945, The Nation published “Joseph Smith, Mormon Prophet,” a review by Young of No Man Knows My History, a year before Marguerite tells Vogue that she’s been reading Brodie’s book. At no point in her review does Young reveal or even suggest that she has something of a connection to the subject of the biography—and Young doesn’t have much to say directly about Brodie’s book, either, except that Brodie “recaptured

the spirit of a man whose history remains, just as he said, unknown, unknowable” from “court records…newspaper articles, memoirs, letters, and the dossiers of the women who were successively sealed to the prophet.” Instead, the topic of Brodie’s book serves as a jumping off point for Young to write her a two-page history of Joseph Smith in her own style. Perhaps by design, the publication of Young’s review of No Man Knows My History in 1945 coincided with the release of her first prose book, Angel in the Forest, a history of two utopian communities that made their homes, one after the other, in New Harmony, Indiana. Utopian communities were one of Marguerite’s key interests, she herself remarking: I believe that all my work explores the human desire or obsession for utopia, and the structure of all my works is the search for utopias lost and rediscovered…All my writing is about the recognition that there is no single reality. But the beauty of it is that you nevertheless go on, walking towards utopia, which may not exist, on a bridge which might end before you reach the other side. (Harp Song for a Radical, ix). Young draws connections between the Harmonists (or Rappites), the first of the two groups to live in New Harmony, and the early Mormons several times during the book. The Rappites, under the direction of leader George Rapp, founded New Harmony, Indiana in 1814 after abandoning their first utopian effort in the “old” harmony, Harmony, Pennsylvania. A Latter-day Saint’s attention might be caught by this fact as Harmony is of historical significance to their church as well, being the location associated with the restoration of the Aaronic priesthood. The Rappites, founded by and perhaps best remembered for their practice of celibacy, which Young contrasts with Mormons who would found Nauvoo, Illinois “not an eagle’s flight from Harmo-

ny” (Nauvoo is actually 330 miles from Harmony) where “an angel named Moroni, would, within a few years” (the Rappites leave New Harmony in 1824, the Mormons found Nauvoo 15 years later), “bless polygamy in the temples” (or temple) “of Nauvoo.” (Angel in the Forest, 63). Factual precision in this statement gives way to Young’s lyrical inclinations and also an inclination to attribute all of the revelations within Mormonism to the angel Moroni. Young draws comparisons between George Rapp and Joseph Smith and the respective orders with which they were associated, describing Rapp as: …not so adventuresome in fact as Hebraic Joseph Smith…He was the arch-conservative, the savior of the sacred few…While Father Rapp pursued the even tenor of his days, Joseph Smith, the head of the polygamists, was murdered at Carthage, and its temples and schools were burned to the ground.While Father Rapp continued as he had been, Brigham Young, new head of the Mormons, led a remnant people through the untrammeled wilderness, to a desert hemmed in by something more than metaphorical mountains. There, they would be saved from extinction by God’s sea gulls who ate God’s locusts. Gabriel and Moroni, at times no more than a crow’s flight apart, were angels with separate versions of God’s word. Gabriel, the Rappite, was abstemious. Moroni, the Mormon, emitted spores as big as those of the octopus, like purple grapes in autumn. He was productive in the grand, archaic manner. (AF, 64) After these early examples of Marguerite speaking on Mormonism, interviews, articles, and reviews are quiet regarding the church or any connection she might have to it until 1975. Then, in an autobiographical sketch Marguerite provided for John Wakeman’s World Authors, 1950-1970, she plainly states: “I am a collateral descendant upon my father’s side of Brigham Young.” Apparently this was

a point of pride that had eluded publication up until then. Pride over her relation to Brigham Young is just how author Steven Moore characterizes Marguerite’s view of her relation to the prophet. Having met with Young in the early 1990’s to arrange a republication of Miss MacIntosh, My Darling, Moore recalls that “The ‘business’ part of our conversation lasted about five minutes, but she spent an hour talking about everything else under the sun, especially people she knew and who admired her work (She was rather vain in this regard; she made sure I knew she was descended from Brigham Young, relayed her “dear friend” Saul Bellows’ opinion of her work to me, etc. etc.) Marguerite would finally write extensively on Brigham Young in her last major book, Harp Song for a Radical, which was published in 1999, four years after her death. Harp Song represents a portion of what was meant to be a biography of Eugene Victor Debs, the father of the modern American labor movement. In telling Debs’ tale, Young’s strategy “was to use historical figures of the times as the focus for discussing the crucial political events and thereby create a palpable sense of the cultural climate in which Debs developed.” (HS, xi). And this focus leaves Marguerite with much to write about Mormonism—from the early life of Joseph Smith, the foundation of the church, the flight of the early Saints from the east coast to Ohio and then to Illinois—and the emergence of Brigham Young in the history of the movement. I cannot help but sense a certain fondness for Brigham Young in Marguerite’s writing. She introduces him as “a man who could not spell the word “millennium” but with the spirit of reform on him could speak in bird tongues, angel tongues, foreign tongues, tongues of prehistoric peoples” (HS, 31) Marguerite describes Brigham as “seeing nothing but truth” in the Book of Mormon when he first reads it, assured that “this truth was the pure gold of the spirit of God and not the gold of a fool.” (HS, 121). In her telling, Brigham was “smitten

by the spirit of prophecy” and “able to talk with bird voices to feathered angel bird men and saints long dead who came to his call” by the time of his conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (HS, 121). So, yes, she keeps repeating that he can speak with bird tongues. When Brigham Young enters the action of her account of the murder of Joseph Smith, Marguerite brings up Brigham’s difficulty with spelling again right away: Brigham Young, who had been on a complex missionary journey in America trying to arouse sympathy for the besieged head of the Mormon “harts,” as he spelled “hearts,” had been weary but happy in his calling which he spelled ‘cauling’....” (HS, 36). Returning from this mission, Brigham Young is chosen as Smith’s successor when: …the murdered prophet’s suddenly refulgent, resurrected spirit had seemed to all but the black-garbed widow and her small party to descend upon Brigham Young, upon whose stalwart back with its excellent melon head it had been placed. (HS, 36-37). As Harp Song for a Radical weaves through the 19th century and its attention is brought to Salt Lake City, Brigham Young reappears as “the man who had made the Dead Sea to flower”(HS, 140). Brigham’s success in creating a city and community that could fall under her definition of “Utopian” most likely impressed and instilled more pride in Marguerite. For her descriptions of Young and Salt Lake, Marguerite relies much on Mark Twain’s account of the same from his Roughing It, which Marguerite criticizes for being an “elaboration and extension of [Twain’s] original notes” that occurred during the ten years between Twain’s trip and the book’s publication. Young portrays Twain as being out of his depth when coming into contact with he “who was called the Golden Lion of the Tribe

of Zion” (HS, 139), “the very thought of [Brigham Young] filled Mark Twain’s somewhat porous brain with awe.” She faults Twain for staying with “the Gentile acting territorial power in the Salt Lake House” who “regaled [him] with all kinds of strange tales regarding the Mormons” (HS, 14142) instead of staying amongst the Mormons of Salt Lake and learning about them firsthand. She also takes issue with the fact that “[Twain’s] stay in the Mormon paradise had been only about two days and three nights, scarcely time for the unwrapping and solving of all the mysteries of what was called the Mormon question (HS, 140-41).” In a 1988 interview conducted by Miriam Fuchs and Ellen G. Friedman, eighty year-old Marguerite remarks, on the topic of her influences and favorite authors: “Theological, historical, philosophical—I’m as much influenced by Joseph Smith and the Mormons as I am, more so, than by [TS] Eliot. Actually, I’m much more influenced by the poetry of the Mormons.” The statement strikes the seeker of a connection between Young’s works and Mormonism as just what they may have been looking for. Here it is, plainly stated, the claim by Marguerite herself that her work is much more influenced by Joseph Smith and the Mormons than certain modernist predecessors. It seems now is the perfect time to return to Miss MacIntosh, My Darling and see how that influence manifests itself there. Well, as it turns out, in the whole book, the word “Mormon” appears just once—by far the fewest number of appearances in any of Marguerite’s three main works—when we find a Mormon among the traveling salesmen known to Esther Longtree, a perpetually pregnant waitress at a small town Indiana diner: The men, the men, all like moths in a storm, the traveling salesmen passing through, the General Electric representative, the man who was on his way to the Cumberland

Gap and thought he had reached it, the man who was on his way to salty Utah, the Mormon, the soap salesman, the toy salesman, the bird-shooters, the bridge-menders, the butterfly catchers, the W.P.A., the men, the men, she could not count them, all so puny, sterile, unsatisfied…. (MM, 1022-23) Given the amount of Mormons and Mormonism included in her two other major works and the importance attributed to the religion by Marguerite in her interview with Fuchs and Friedman, this lone use of “Mormon” is definitely fewer references than I expected. But the search doesn’t end with looking for occurrences of the word “Mormon” in the book. A reader of Miss MacIntosh, My Darling, will come across various details or statements that may seem familiar to a reader familiar with Latter-day Saint beliefs and practices. From Miss MacIntosh, young Vera learns “the light which came from within was the only light by which to steer our way” (MM, 46)—similar to the Latter-day Saint doctrine of every human being being born with “the light of Christ” within them, to help them make correct decisions in their lives. It “behooved us at all times to be simple and direct with our minds made up and our conscience clear and our shoulders to the wheel, helping those who were not the children of fortune” (MM, 46)—putting one’s shoulder to the wheel being a popular Latter-day Saint expression and the title of a popular Latter-day Saint hymn. Miss MacIntosh’s explains a purpose to life to Vera that bears a resemblance to the Latter-day Saint doctrine of the Plan of Salvation: “we were put here to be tested…This earth was the testing ground, and there was nothing but the test, so far as could be realized” and God “had wished to leave man free, and also, it was the testing ground for man with all his fleshly weaknesses about him, all those temptations which he must ignore, for he must develop his strength and character.” (MM, 51) “Life, she was sure, was intended to be a chal-

lenge and not a bed of roses, and we were given our opponent in order that we might struggle with him and overpower the darkness or else go down in it.” (MM, 50) “We were to be proved, and the truth was better than the lie, even should the lie seem truer then the truth, every lie containing a seed of truth in it, no doubt, but ours was the freedom to make a choice between the truth and the lie and the truth and the truth, to do what was good and right, leaving no uncertainty (MM, 51)” Miss MacIntosh “thought very little” of “anything that did not bear on use, for this world was a harsh place, a Slough of Despond, and we were put here to be tested, yet though all should fail the test.” (MM, 57). Other instructions of Miss MacIntosh’s bear a resemblance to Latter-day Saint scriptures. In life, “Every shining moment must be filled with action, ideally for the good of someone other than ourselves” (MM, 51) and “We must prepare ourselves to live in the service of others, the cold, the starving, the poor, the maimed, the crippled, for the opium paradise was never God’s way of life.” (MM, 51) bring to mind Mosiah 2:17, “when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.” Vera describes Miss MacIntosh as having the “profound conviction that one soul was as worth saving as another” (MM, 53), which resembles the Latter-day Saint belief in the value of all souls, as expressed in Doctrine and Covenants 18:10 “Remember the worth of souls is great in the eyes of God.” Miss MacIntosh was suspicious of man’s inclination to corrupt Holy Scripture for his benefit. Instead of scripture, her favorite books were those “good for the growing soul, such as Pilgrim’s Progress which she preferred to even the Word of God, for the Word of God was that which should be taken with a grain of salt and was that which could be subjected to so many contradictory interpretations and laid over with so many human exaggerations” (MM, 56) To her, the Kings James Version of the Bible “was not to be trusted because [it was] made for the vanity of earthly kings and for the

unification of the British Empire” (MM, 268). Intentionally or not, Miss MacIntosh has a neighbor in the Latter-day Saint stance on the translation of the Bible, as stated in the eighth Article of faith: “We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly”, this belief reflected in a revelation from the Book of Mormon that states that, over the course of history, “there are many plain and precious things taken away from the book, which is the Book of the Lamb of God.” (1 Nephi 13:28). Miss MacIntosh’s particular religious beliefs are never named beyond “Christian”, “she being the youngest of a large Christian family” (MM, 167), and perhaps Miss MacIntosh thought herself nothing more than a follower of what had been established by Christ. We know she was not Catholic, for “in her plain opinion” Rome was “a heathen and monstrous city idealizing the dead…a place which good Christians should flee from as from a plague, a place of cinders, one where she would not be seen” (MM, 59). Vera describes Miss MacIntosh as having “originated in Iowa among the primitive Christians of great works and little faith, not of great faith and little works.” (MM, 59). From its origins, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints identified with the primitive Christian church, the lengthy name of the church indicating that the origins and originator of the two were the same, all that separates them being their epoch.The connection is probably best known for being stated in the church’s sixth Article of Faith: “We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth.” And some view the belief system of the Church of Jesus Christ as prioritizing works over faith in the pursuit of salvation, or at least as requiring works as a manifestation of faith. I’ll also note that “The Primitive Church of Jesus Christ” was also the name of one of an offshoots of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, splintering from the William Bickerton sect of followers who did not accept the leadership of

Brigham Young after the martyrdom of Joseph Smith. Miss MacIntosh’s “own dear brother” Richard “had gone out as a primitive Christian bishop from Iowa to convert the heathen of the Easter Islands and had never returned” (MM, 62). During a directionless period between her youth and maturity, Miss MacIntosh “thought of going to look for her dear brother Richard among the Polynesian head-hunters, where he was still preaching the old religion” this, it is explained, “was before Richard’s disappearance, which had so long baffled the elders of the church.” (MM, 923). Richard MacIntosh’s departure to preach in Polynesia brings to mind Latter-day Saint missionary efforts in those same islands, the church having first sent missionaries “unto the islands of the sea” in 1843. Richard’s departure, and subsequent disappearance, brings to mind the story of Hagoth from the Book of Mormon, who set out by sea to the west and was never heard from again (Alma 63:5-8) and who is also sometimes attributed with having brought Nephite blood to the Pacific Islands. Marguerite’s missing brother also brings to mind the account by Amaleki in the Book of Mormon, who with his closing words tells of his brother who left for the wilderness, his fate and whereabouts unknown for the rest of Amalki’s days (Omni 1:30). And it also seems worth noting that the organizational structure of the primitive Christian church of What Cheer, Iowa appears to have included “bishops” and “elders”—well known roles in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in spite of not being named in the sixth Article of Faith (apparently they fall under the “and so forth” category). Like Latter-day Saints, the Christians of What Cheer baptized by immersion, but in What Cheer “baptisms were total immersion in a cold or icebound stream, a great hole being chopped in the ice, and sometimes the baptized were drowned” (MM, 59) — later in the novel we learn that young Georgia MacIntosh was among those that nearly

drowned at their What Cheer baptisms (MM, 888). Moving away from Georgia MacIntosh and What Cheer, some additional possible allusions: When Vera Cartwheel introduces herself to the reader, she does so with language bearing a resemblance to the opening lines of the Book of Mormon: “I, Vera Cartwheel, I, the imploring daughter of a mother under the sway of opium, a mother more beautiful than angels of light, I, Vera Cartwheel, had wandered through the streets of great, mysterious harbor cities… (and then she continues with a long description of the great, mysterious harbor cities and the spectral faces and forms encountered therein) while Nephi writes in the first lines of 1 Nephi 1:1: “I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days….” Both authors begin by introducing themselves in an “I, (name)” form, then describe their parent(s), what the parent may or may not have provided for them, and then move on to summarize the journey of their life so far. Another parallel between the narrators of these two works: On the night of Vera’s 14th birthday, after a dreary and lonely party that Vera suspects Miss MacIntosh may have sabotaged (turns out she did), Vera lets herself into Miss MacIntosh’s private quarters without permission, resulting in consequences that may have lead to the possible death of Miss MacIntosh—or I should say, from the first chapter it is clear from Vera’s narration that Miss MacIntosh is dead, but it is not clear if Vera accepts that she is dead, her odyssey to find Miss MacIntosh in the Midwest suggests that Vera believes she lives on. Reflecting back on the incident as she narrates it, questioning if the fateful intrusion had been God’s will, and if so, was she absolved of guilty for it? Vera asks “Was it murder of the key turning

of itself in the lock? Whose hand at the door knob? Was it God’s hand, and if it was God’s hand, was it still murder?” (MM, 166). These words bring to mind the experience of Nephi being directed by the Spirit of the Lord to slay Laban early in the Book of Mormon, Nephi being absolved of guilt because the death of Laban was God’s will—”Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands; Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes.” (1 Nephi 4:12-13). Estimates of Nephi’s age at the beginning of the Book of Mormon put him at 14-17 years of age, so he and Vera cross a similar threshold at a similar age, a threshold which would lead into their adulthood and journeys to the west in search of that which their homes couldn’t offer them anymore (even if Nephi’s journey to the west may have required him to travel east to get there). And speaking of Nephi’s journey to America, a question by Miss MacIntosh to Vera suggest she may be aware of his family’s journey to the Americas: “When, Vera Carthweel, did the first Viking land upon this bleak New England shore?” she would intrude upon my delicate thoughts which were so personal. “Let us waste not our spirits speaking of Christopher Columbus, for he was but the second or fourth explorer to arrive here in this new world.” (MM, 168) A knowledge of others arriving in the new world ahead of Columbus or the vikings could imply a belief in, or awareness of, the opening books of the Book of Mormon. A connection between ancient Israelites (the Lost Tribes, in particular) and the Americas also appears in a dream Vera has while she is a child, a priest in the dream asking her “Where, my dearest heart, is Issachar? Where is Nepthalin? Where is Reuben who begot a horde? Where is Manasses? Where is Kansas? Where is Iowa?” (MM, 181). Miss MacIntosh teaches Vera of an age of accountability for children, though MacIntosh sets the

age at 12, not 8 like Latter-day Saints: “My twelfth birthday, Miss MacIntosh said, was the dividing between my irresponsibility and my responsibility, for I had reached the age of wisdom in both the eyes of God and in the eyes of man. She had always promised that after I was twelve, I was to make my own decisions, for she should not be responsible and held to account in the book of life.” (MM, 172-73) This sentiment of Miss MacIntosh resembles the Latter-day Saint belief that parents bear the responsibility for a child’s decisions after the age of 8 if the child is not baptized (Doctrine and Covenants 68:25). I also may as well note that Georgia MacIntosh is not a smoker of cigarettes/user of nicotine or tobacco (MM, 171) and, unlike Vera’s mother, is not mentioned serving or drinking wine. Among her visions, Catharine Carthweel is described as dreaming of “great cities of minarets and phaetons in lands which had been unpopulated, where only the raven had spoken? The raven had flown with a golden book in its hands.” (MM, 450-51) And while it’s just one small detail of a hallucination of Catharine’s among so many, the mention of a golden book will likely always cause a reader with thoughts directed towards Mormons to at least take notice and perhaps raise an eyebrow, if even only slightly. But, in spite of these possible references and connections, weaving references to Mormon beliefs, practices, scripture and history into a reading of Miss MacIntosh, My Darling could very well be asking too much of Miss MacIntosh, My Darling. We have found bullet holes, but not a smoking gun, and many of these references I’ve cited are not uniquely meaningful to Latter-day Saints. Unlike authors such as James Joyce who left behind copious notes that account for the origin of nearly every word and line of Finnegans Wake, Marguerite Young left behind no almanac to trace the sources of her ideas and who specifically they may have been borrowed from or if they came direct-

ly from her own imagination, flavored, perhaps, by things she had heard and read. Just as Miss MacIntosh, My Darling does not burst with the overt references to Mormonism I had hoped to find, I have also discovered that it’s difficult to determine exactly how Marguerite was related to Brigham Young. With the helpful help of the volunteers at my local FamilySearch library, I found that Marguerite’s genealogy on the Young side tracks fairly easily back to her great grandfather, Peter H Young, who was born in “Ohio” in 1833 and died in Decatur, Indiana in 1899. The trail of Marguerite’s ancestors trail stops cold with Peter. With no parent listed, it’s up to conjecture as to how Peter Young might have been related to Brigham Young. With his 1833 birthdate, Peter could have conceivably been a son of one of Brigham Young’s brothers (or even a grandson of his oldest brother, John Young Jr.) and Peter’s birth in Ohio in 1833 does match up with the migration of the Saints to Kirtland, Ohio in 1831. The problem is none of Brigham’s brothers are listed as having a son named Peter, and while it’s possible a son could be missing from their records, it also seems doubtful, as the immediate progeny of the Young brothers appears to have been thoroughly accounted for by their descendants. If there is a connection between Marguerite and Brigham, it seems likely it would have to be further up her family tree, which would leave Marguerite collaterally related to Brigham Young, but not descended, as she had described herself. So, just as it seems that if Miss MacIntosh, My Darling was influenced by Mormonism, it was in ways more distant than expected, it also seems that if Marguerite Young was related to Brigham Young, it was also in ways more distant than expected. With what we have seen, I am inclined to say that Marguerite was interested in Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, the Angel Moroni, and Mormonism for how they connected to her interests in angels, the interplay of the seemingly real and seemingly un-

real, and the religious utopian communities of the nineteenth century. Brigham Young’s embodiment of the utopian spirit—first in leading the Saints from Nauvoo to Utah, then in the development of Salt Lake City—must have appealed to her and her perceived personal connection to him creating an additional bond to the work and community. What Young learned of Mormonism from learning about Brigham Young and Joseph Smith may prove to have provided character details for her stalwart Miss Georgia MacIntosh, whose Midwestern character stood in contrast with east coast decadence in the same way the early Latter-day Saints stood apart from the world around them.

Sources and Additional Reading: Moore, Steven, 16 March 1999, from “Comments New and Historical” 16 March 1999 Friedman, Ellen; Fuchs, Miriam “A Conversation with Marguerite Young” Neville, Susan, “Sailing the Inland Sea”, 2007, Indiana University Press Email correspondence with Steven Moore Email correspondence with Professor Ellen G. Friedman, College of New Jersey Email correspondence with Professor Susan S. Neville, Butler University

Works by Marguerite Young: Miss MacIntosh, My Darling (MM), 1965, cited from 1976 Harvest/HJB Edition Angel in the Forest (AF), 1945, cited from 1994 Dalkey Archive Press Edition Harp Song for a Radical (HS), 1999, Knopf Inviting the Muses: Stories, Essays, Reviews, 1994, Dalkey Archive Press

The new printing of Miss MacIntosh, My Darling by the Dalkey Archive Press is currently scheduled for release on June 6, 2023 and is available for pre-order here.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

OUTandABOUT BRANDON FLOWERS: STORIES AND SONGS In 2019, two of the founders of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts, Richard and Claudia Bushman, were in the Salt Lake City International Airport when they met beloved frontman of The Killers, Brandon Flowers. Their recollection of the encounter is a proper meet cute. According to Richard Bushman, he and Claudia were preparing to board their plane for New York City when Claudia realized she’d left her handbag in the terminal restroom. Gratefully, an airline attendant helped Claudia reclaim her bag, but as they were standing outside the restroom awaiting the retrieval, Richard was approached by Flowers who was on his way to Italy. Bushman and Flowers have been admirers of one another’s work; Bushman a fan of Flowers’s “plaintive, haunting” songwriting, Flowers a fan of Rough Stone Rolling. In fact, the airport encounter was not their first meeting, having met prior at a Manhattan fireside for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Bushman describes the fireside, “packed to the rafters,” with a Lincoln Center audience anxiously waiting to hear Flowers speak in a devotional setting. (After the fireside, Flowers rushed off to speak to an even larger audience as the lauded guest of the Seth Meyers Late Night show). Because they met in Manhattan, Flowers recognized the Bushmans in the Salt Lake airport searching, as it were, for a purse. He approached them to say “hello.” Richard recollects: “Always the bold one, Claudia asked him if he would be willing to perform for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts in New York, sometime.”

Now, on March 18th, Flowers will take to the stage to share an unplugged evening of stories and songs. A benefit evening supporting the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts, Flowers will share his personal insights as one of the most influential singer-songwriters of his generation. He will finish the evening on his guitar, accompanied by bandmates, Robbie Connolly and Jake Blanton. Popular solo artists Bri Ray and Ashley Hess will open for Flowers, sharing the stage in a writers’ round setting. They will be joined by the multicultural, all-denominational musical group, the KING will come, to which they both belong. –Emily Larsen Doxford (Brandon Flowers: Stories and Songs is a benefit for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. Both the evening and the featured artists highlight the goals of the NYC-based nonprofit, which is to explore the intersection between cultural relevance and divine creativity.) CHRIS BACON If you’re looking for Mormon musical summit meetings, consider all those Sundays when Kurt Bestor and I home taught the Bacon family in the early ‘90s: prolific media composer Kurt joining university music professor me on monthly visits to a large, disciplined gaggle of musical wunderkinds on strings, winds, voice, and keyboards, all parented by a pair of ace musicians whose commercial-meets-classical instincts—not to mention home recording studio—raised the bar for Provo, Utah. We didn’t need to talk music much. It was deep in the pulse of every sentence. At BYU Christian Bacon quickly earned a top saxophone spot in the jazz program as he veered more and more into composition. But commer-

cial music or concert music—which program? I helped woo him into the latter and kept pushing him to wrap up the degree and go to USC, since he wanted to write great film soundtracks and had more knack for that than any of his colleagues. The musicality was inbred, but its flowering awaited the rigor of tough coursework and pro-level networking. Tying up his diplomas with ribbons of pioneer work ethic, he’s gone on to make his mark. A deep but elegant one. A sheaf of major release films and award-winning television series in his portfolio, Chris composes to order in a nimble amalgam of old-school craftsmanship and new school spontaneity—that knack I spoke of. Few film composers create scores that stand on their own so well amidst the brimming sonic landscape of latter-day America. Opening March 10, Chris’ latest collaboration with Danny Elfman (following Netflix’s Wednesday series) undergirds the Sam Raimi-produced scifi/dinosaur movie 65 (starring Adam Driver). In what appear to be the most raucous yet grandiose horror scenarios he’s yet undertaken, Bacon widens his sonic palette even further. —Michael Hicks (65 opens in theaters March 10.) DEMOCRACY, RELIGIONS, AND COMMERCE Mormon Studies scholars Kathleen Flake and Nathan B. Oman have spent their careers exploring the political history of religion, mapping the contours of Mormonism in the unique landscape of the United States. In their upcoming volume in Routledge’s Law and Religion series, they join forces as editors, building off their work as they use economic analysis as a lens to understand the religious and political worlds we inhabit. In Democracy, Religion, and Commerce, the authors unveil the invisible hand of the market like a magic trick, illuminating how commerce developed as a dominant and often unconsidered force in religious life. The

editors introduce U.S religious institutions made in the image of a capitalist system—detached from government and legislative oversight and highly individualistic. Beyond this central theme, the slate of authors contribute chapters as wide-ranging as the financial motives of religious universities and the government regulations of contraceptive coverage in healthcare. A couple of chapters will be of particular interest to The Season’s readers. Samuel D. Brunson’s contribution uses the public battles over the LDS church’s finances as a case study on how tax law becomes the central arena for the public to express resentment toward religion, and Oman ends the collection with a paradigm-shifting and potentially controversial chapter explicating that religious identity (as a performative enactment) could be protected under the same anti-discrimination laws as gender expression. In the public square, where religious and political forces convene, the market muscles in—complicating easy assumptions and revealing entanglements of law, money, and deeply held beliefs. Readers gripped by the recent IRS investigations and leaks of church finances will find this challenging volume worth the investment. —Kristin Perkins (Democracy, Religion, and Commerce will be published by Routledge March 12). JOSEPH, THE ORATORIO Acclaimed composer Dan Montez is preparing to debut his 8th oratorio titled, Joseph on March 25, 2023 at 3pm at Holy Name of Mary Catholic Church in Croton, New York. Taconic Opera is presenting the work with full orchestra, professional soloists, and opera chorus. The oratorio is based on the well-known scriptural figure, Jacob’s son with the coat of many colors. Montez writes in the program note, “Joseph is seen throughout Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as a prophet. He is a major figure in all three faiths, ultimately saving Israel. The theme of familial forgiveness, accompanied by Joseph’s love for his brothers, in spite of their behavior, is a hallmark of the sto-

ry.” It has been nearly three hundred years since a composer has set this sacred narrative as an oratorio. Montez credits his musical influence from Ravel, Debussy, Rachmaninoff, and Puccini and as such employs impressionistic textures and quartal harmonies to portray the emotions of the story. Joseph builds on Montez’s prior experience having composed seven oratorios with titles such as Esther, David, Job, Jonah, and Enoch. —Benjamin Taylor (Learn more about the upcoming premiere and purchase tickets at taconicopera.org) JUST ONE MORE It is a truth universally acknowledged that Latter-day Saints excel at writing speculative fiction, both for adults and for younger readers. How refreshing it is, then, when a writer bushwhacks a trail toward national success in an entirely different genre. Annette Lyon is just such a pioneer. She’s won a whopping nine Best of [Utah] State fiction medals (for contemporary fiction and romance) as well as a Whitney Award (for contemporary women’s fiction) and has been a USA Today bestseller. But a few years ago, Lyon set her sights on moving beyond regional publication and has never looked back. Her psychological thriller Just One More, due out from Scarlet Suspense (an imprint of Penzler Publishers) on March 21st, is the result. “A librarian investigates her husband’s dark past and winds up dead. Now it’s up to her best friend to uncover the truth.” Two points of view—that of librarian Jenn and her best friend Becca—and two different timelines alternate in a twisty story full of rabbit holes and false trails.Though the novel is not at all overtly LDS, Lyon’s faith shines through the dark story, with themes of justice, motherhood, friendship, and marriage giving the page-turner of a plot depth and heft. —Luisa Perkins THE FICTION KITCHEN TRIO COOKBOOK

C.S. Lewis wrote, “Eating and reading are pleasures that combine admirably.” So, it would seem, are cooking and reading. From The Green Eggs and Ham Cookbook to Dinner with Mr. Darcy, literary recipe collections are nothing new. However, established fiction writers Traci Hunter Abramson, Sian Ann Bessey, and Sarah M. Eden have created a new twist on the sub-genre—a compilation of recipes for dishes found in their own books—The Fiction Kitchen Trio Cookbook: Novel Recipes from Your Favorite Novels. Between them, Abramson, Bessey, and Eden have written dozens of titles in a variety of categories from historical romance to contemporary suspense, many of them best sellers and award winners. No matter the genre, describing imaginary meals for readers can be an immersive world-building tool, so why shouldn’t a clever writer—or three—turn things around? The cookbook itself is an inspired and successful piece of cross-promotion. But the Trio have taken the collaboration even further, sponsoring fun, delicious-looking British Bake Off-style showdowns to engage their significant combined fan base on social media platforms. After over two years in development, The Fiction Kitchen Trio Cookbook contains more than 100 recipes. Each offering has ties to a particular novel by one of the three co-authors and features a pertinent quote. The collection ranges from baked goods like The Duke of Kelbrook’s Chelsea Buns, to appetizers like Saint Squad Sliders, to desserts like Lucas’s Peppermint Ice Cream. —Luisa Perkins (Forthcoming from Covenant Communications on March 14.) THE BRILLIANT DARKNESS! People who love Contemporary Art believe, in theory, in its ability to impact the world. Call it the relevance factor. Something extraordinary is happening right now in

Vietnam that is a testament to this social premise of art’s power to change society. LDS filmmakers Aaron Toronto and Nha Uyen Ly Nguyen released their film, The Brilliant Darkness! in 2022, and it went on to win the highest awards, The Golden Kite, which are Vietnamese equivalent of an Oscar, in September. Toronto and Nha co-wrote the screenplay;Toronto directed (his first feature film), and Nha starred (her first film role). The dramatic film is about a family imploding, precipitated by the death of a wealthy grandfather and his son’s gambling debts that imperil his life and his family’s future. The main themes of the film are the abusive relationships of families over multiple generations that are tacitly condoned in Vietnamese culture and their toll on its populations’ physical and mental health, something that is autobiographical for Nha Uyen. Recent studies show that 2/3 of Vietnamese children suffer physical abuse at the hands of family members.The rap-

turous reception of the film—its appearance tragically coincided with the deaths of three different family’s young children as victims of abuse at the hands of their parents—has started an important, national conversation and prompted the enactment of new protective laws, as well as a more open discussion on mental health. During a recent interview on The Center’s Studio Podcast, Aaron noted that it is the goal of LDS artists to improve the world, and he said that he and Uyen felt guided by their Heavenly Father to make the movie, which, given the political complexities of filmmaking in Vietnam and the potential firestorm of controversy that could have resulted in this theme, which is a broad indictment of the society, its appearance and tremendous success is a miracle. —Glen Nelson (The Brilliant Darkness! Is newly available for at-home rental in the United States on Amazon Prime Video.)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

mySUNDAY NEYLAN MCBAINE

Photo: Chelsie Starley

Neylan McBaine has explored many interests over the course of her career, including brand marketing, women’s advocacy, historical writing, personal writing, non-profit management and educational technology. As the founder of the Mormon Women Project (now Latter-day Saint Women Project) and author of Women at Church: Magnifying LDS Women’s Local Impact, Neylan was at the forefront of women’s expanded opportunities in church administration over the past decade. As the founder of Better Days 2020, Neylan highlighted Utah as the first place an American woman voted under an equal suffrage law, celebrating the 150th anniversary of that first vote in 2020 with a state-wide campaign and authored book, Pioneering the Vote: The Untold Story of Suffrage

in Utah and the West. In 2020, among other awards, she was named Women of the Year by the YWCA of Utah. Neylan is currently the CEO of Duet Partner, a software that provides studio management tools to independent music teachers. She’s the mother of three daughters—one in college and two in high school— and lives in Salt Lake City. Photograph by Chelsie Starley courtesy of Neylan McBaine. Actually relaxing. With my children now older and a calling that doesn’t require attending ward council, I find that I’ve returned to a place where Sunday can actually be relaxing. It’s been a while! So that means that Sundays now start as late as possible. In my youth, that meant half way through the day. These days, I feel like a champ if I sleep till 8am. Even better is waking up at 7:30am and having a half hour to just lie in bed. That is definitely the right way to start a day of rest. On the organ. Because my husband is the organist in our ward, and because we have a retired chapel organ console in our house, getting dressed on Sunday morning is inevitably accompanied by Elliot practicing the hymns for Sacrament meeting. He has headphones, as it’s an electric console, but on Sunday mornings he lets his playing permeate the whole house. He practices his pedal sostenutos, or transposing the tenor line up to the top – little things he can do to perk up the congregation as they sing hymns they’ve sung a million times. His music helps wake up my daughters and set the tone for our departure to church. Grazing and chatting. Everyone is famished when we return home from church. We’ve inevitably been too rushed to eat before church. I used to try to make a nice breakfast on Sunday mornings—crepes, pancakes—but no one ever ate it and I felt underappreciated. So, I now keep it simple. I scramble to get a crudité type spread out after we get home: cheese and berries and salami and crackers and everyone grazes and chats about their lessons. Sometimes there are tears: sensitive topics have not been addressed in a nuanced way, kids in Sunday School have been disrespectful to

the teacher, a doctrinal point feels uncomfortable and has to be wrestled with. Oftentimes we marvel at the kindness and insightfulness and dedication of our ward members. Dinner. Favorite Sundays are when my motherin-law invites the whole family over for dinner.The kids rush to get their homework and practicing done after church so they can linger at Grandma’s. If there’s no invitation, there are naps and walks for the grownups. If the kids get their work done, we watch an episode of The Chosen. Dinner might be popcorn, or I might have gotten ambitious and tried a new recipe from Ottolenghi’s Jerusalem cookbook and a chocolate cake for dessert. I’m very unpredictable in that way. Change. As the owner of a small business, working mom and someone who thrives on productivity, the stretch of Sunday afternoon is completely unique in my week. Those few hours—when the emails stop and I’m not expected to respond to anyone or get ahead on anything—give me permission to work on a personal writing project, playing the piano, reading, or cooking. The “rest” part of the day of rest doesn’t mean I don’t do anything, just different things. But, as my grandmother always used to say, “a change is as good as a rest.” So thank goodness for the day of change.

takeNOTE CLASSICAL MUSIC BY NEYLAN MCBAINE As a Metropolitan Opera soloist and an obsessive classical music audience member, my mom and dad organically created a bubble in which I—as their only child—grew up breathing their favorite art form. Music was the olive branch in their otherwise tumultuous relationship, and with our apartment situated right across the street from Lincoln Center where I danced at the School of American Ballet, sang in the Metropolitan Opera Children’s Chorus and studied piano at the Juilliard Pre-College, it was easy for me to be totally immersed too. While in college at Yale, I studied solo piano, piano accompanying, vocal coaching, co-founded the Yale College Opera Company, wrote about music for the Yale Daily News and toured the country accompanying my mother’s vocal performances. Summers took me to Italy where I studied piano in Rome while living in a rectory. I was of such a romantic nature that I thought I would spend my days writing about opera on a hillside in Tuscany, so this course of events perfectly suited me. Alas, the real world called. I finished school, moved to San Francisco where my new husband had a job, and ended up working at a tech company when my efforts to work in arts administration proved fruitless. Fortunately, I had enough other interests and talents to craft a fulfilling career in marketing and management, but the dream of working with musicians never fully died. Here’s a confession. Since leaving the world of art

music, I am endlessly baffled how people maneuver through the endurance test that is life without its sustaining power. I couldn’t survive without it. Sometimes I’ll go a while without turning on the radio or a playlist in the car or pulling up a YouTube video of a concert, and when I return to those sounds, it feels like I am taking my first full breath in days. Listening is the only surefire way I have for witnessing the world’s transcendent beauty, for rising above myself as a fallen being and stretching for something beyond our clay baseness. These days, I’ve managed my career so that I can now work with music teachers to help them run their music studios as efficient small businesses. It’s only taken me 25 years to get back to the community that I love, and I feel very fortunate to be able to do something to raise the profile of and respect for professionals who put 10,000 hours into their craft before they even officially attend school! I have the credentials to hold my own among the music teachers I meet, but they truly are my heroes as they prepare the next generation of musicians. I’ve been asked to share several of my favorite pieces. While there are endless musical works that are striking for their beauty or interest or fun or emotive energy, I have selected works that are personally meaningful to me, that are grounded in specific memories. This is, I find, the only way I can parse through the vast landscape that is my “favorites.”

It’s a very traditional list. I do love new works— Andrew Norman’s works are a recent new discovery—and I have been deliberate about championing the works of women like Ethyl Smyth and Amy Beach. But I find that we often deem the historical favorites uncool, like we always need to find the new and exciting to prove our authority. I find comfort in knowing that generations before me and hopefully generations after me have experienced the same audible moments in time. These sounds are like a time machine taking me backwards and forwards to people who appreciate them as I do. 1. Enigma Variations – Edward Elgar One of the most recognizable melodies in the classical repertoire is famous for a reason.With its simple short-short-long-long rhythm and stepping major thirds, the Nimrod Variation is heard in movie scores and celebrations of the British monarchy, among other places. For Christmas a few years ago, I gifted my husband organ lessons. Now, with an organ in our home, the organ arrangement of Nimrod reverberates on repeat, and I love it. The Utah Symphony recently programmed the whole piece and hearing it live—with Nimrod in context of the other harmonically imaginative variations— solidified the whole piece as sublime. 2. Don Giovanni – Mozart - Sextet from Act II In 1996, I had met my husband Elliot at Yale in Connecticut and introduced him to opera. He was a quick study, and we took the train into New York to hear Cecilia Bartoli sing Don Giovanni at the Met Opera. Seated high in the Dress Circle, the tight harmonies in the sextet made me feel like I was in heaven. Amidst the silliness of the opera’s story, everything stopped, as it does for Salieri in the movie Amadeus. The perfect ensemble coming out of the context of so much buffoonery is part of its magic. 3. Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1

Arizona was a special place for my dad, who had grown up going to the Biltmore Hotel with his grandparents. In the maroon Cadillac Sedan de Ville my parents rented each summer driving through the barren desert landscape, I nestled into the footwell of the backseat (pre seat belt) with my Walkman and a blanket. I had three tapes: the soundtrack from Annie, an album of Cabbage Patch Kids songs, and Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 played by Van Cliburn. I later got to meet Van Cliburn when accompanying my mom at President Clinton’s National Prayer Breakfast where he also performed, and all I could think of when I met him was those huge hands playing those audacious opening chords that span the length of the piano. Being alone with that piece in the back of the car was sheer joy. 4. Chopin Etude Op. 10 No. 3 As an amateur pianist, this was “my piece.” I won a competition with it, played it for an encore after my senior college recital, played it at my grandfather’s funeral, and whipped it out for many a sacrament meeting or church talent show. It has a spectacular melody with a showy technical part in the middle. It is perfect. The night my mother died, I sat down at the dining room table with my step-father for the first quiet moment of the day after she had died in my arms. The coroners had just removed her body from the apartment, and it dawned on us that we were hungry. Life was moving on. At that moment, the radio station my step-father always listened to started playing this piece. It was my final goodbye to my mom. 5. Bist du bei Mir – Bach after Stolzel As my mother’s “accompanist in residence,” I was mostly engaged to play for her in church settings. She had the real pros for vocal coaching and operatic concertizing. But some of her staple repertoire made it into our own collaborations: the Segudilla and Habanera from Bizet’s Carmen, Ombra Mai Fu from Handel’s Orpheus and Euridice. But my very favorite piece to play for my mom was a

simple arrangement by Bach of a melody originally composed by Gottfried Heinrich Stolzel for his opera Diomedes. “If you are with me, I go with joy,” the song says. I love pulling out the music, all these years later, and just playing it when I’m alone at the piano with her memory. 6. Mendelssohn Octet It always drives me nuts when people refer to classical music as “calming” or “relaxing.” Admittedly, there are few Adagio second movements where I may doze off, but for the most part I find it exhilarating and the ultimate expression of vitality. The Mendelssohn Octet leaves me breathless at the end. And considering I’ve only heard student groups do it live (with my kids performing), I can imagine someone would have to pick me up from off the floor if I was in the audience for a professional group. 7. Handel/Halvorsen Passacaglia One of the great joys of mothering for me has been introducing my children to art music.They’ve been compliant to my tiger mothering for the most part: I have an accomplished violinist, an accomplished cellist and an accomplished… equestrian, who is also a wonderful choral singer! During my violinist’s senior year of high school, her cellist sister was in 8th grade and the school music director arranged for the two of them to perform the Handel/Halvorsen Passacaglia at several school concerts. Aside from being a spectacular piece, the duet offered my girls the opportunity to make music together at the highest level. And to allow their mom to beam with pride from the audience. 8. Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata In 2015, with three school aged children at home and a full-time job, I escaped to New York to hear Evgeny Kissin perform a solo recital at Carnegie Hall. There was some Bach and some Schumann and one or two of his own compositions, but the Beethoven was a revelation, as if I was hearing the Hammerklavier for the first time. He played the last

movement of the sonata faster than I’d ever heard it, and even from my seat in the balcony, the solitary piano created an entire world of sound. The harmonic progression of the percussive chords at the end of the third movement feels utopian. The piece puts the world into order. Plus, I waited at the stage door for his autograph so it was a perfect night.

FURTHERMORE PREJUDICIAL RESTRAINT by GLEN NELSON

Illustration by Glen Nelson

If you had asked me even six months ago to respond to the ways The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints appears in American pop culture, I would have sighed and pointed to McKay Coppins’ June 2022 essay in The Atlantic, “Under the Banner of Hulu,” in which he writes, among many insightful responses from a believer, “…they

are there to serve as a stereotype, to exoticize a people and flatten their faith tradition.” At the time, there seemed to be no end to the stereotyped depictions of the faith and its people—the cheap jokes, and the mocking generalizations and unveiled attacks—on film, television, and in literature. However, I am noticing some curious excep-

tions in entertainment media more recently that point to a different, evolving approach, and moreover, I think the resulting artworks are stronger and more effective because of it. Below are three examples of high-profile projects that replace what an audience might have expected to be a stereotyped Mormon depiction or reference with something more nuanced. One example is a well-known play that removed its LDS characters when it was rewritten as a screenplay. A second is a language-sensitive joke about the name of the Church in a tv series. And the third is a novel that is very LDS in content but demures from saying so. I do not suggest that these works reflect a new trend or a wholesale reversal of long-standing prejudice, but their restraint is notable, nonetheless.

The Whale The first example is the 2022 film, The Whale, directed by Darren Aronofsky with a screenplay by Samuel D. Hunter, adapted from his 2012 stage play of the same title. After its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival in early September and its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival a week later, the film was released shortly before Christmas 2022 to a lot of insider buzz and was nominated for many awards from various organizations, including three Academy Awards—one for Brendan Fraser, its star. The actor has already won Best Actor awards for the role from the Hollywood Critics Association Awards, Critics Choice Awards, among others, and Hong Chau has won The New York Circle Critics Online award for Best Supporting Actress. She is also nominated for an Oscar. In the film, Charlie is a man eating himself to death. He makes a late-life attempt to reconcile with his teenage daughter, Ellie, to undo the damage caused when he fell in love with a younger, male college student and divorced his wife, Mary—she gained

full custody of their young daughter. Set in the present in Northern Idaho, the only other characters in the film are a friend named Liz, who is also a nurse, a pizza delivery man, Dan, and Thomas, a Christian missionary. Redemption and guilt are the major themes of the film. Charlie’s deceased lover, Alan, committed suicide following a cascade of religious guilt, which triggered Charlie to his situation as a nearly 600-pound man, a prisoner in his small apartment and large body. Liz is Alan’s sister and Charlie’s only friend. She is the adopted daughter of a pastor of the New Life Church, which is also the church that Thomas represents as a missionary. Thomas wants to save Charlie. Liz wants to protect Charlie from himself and the missionary. Mary wants to safeguard Ellie. Ellie doesn’t entirely know what she wants, and Charlie wants to atone for it all. I hope you do not infer from the plot summary above that the film is anti-faith or that the screenwriter is some kind of hatchet man. The opposite is true. Samuel D. Hunter is one of the few living playwrights whose plays I will drop everything to see. He is a MacArthur Foundation (“genius”) fellow (2014), he has had 17 plays produced although he is only 42 years old. All of his plays are set in Idaho, where he was born and raised, and many of them contain nuanced explorations of the role of religion in contemporary American life. In many ways, I feel that he is speaking directly to me in his work. The experience of seeing his latest play last Spring, A Case for the Existence of God (2022) was one of the most profound theatrical nights of my life, and I saw a tremendous revival of his A Bright New Boise (2010) just last week at the Signature Theater in New York, where he is playwright in residence. It absolutely knocked me out. The thing about his screen adaptation of The Whale that so interests me is the reassignment of religion. In the play, Mormonism is everywhere, and in the film it is nowhere. In the play, Alan is LDS, a returned missionary. And his sister Liz was also raised in the faith, their father is a bish-

op. Thomas is “Elder Thomas” an LDS missionary from the Midwest who leaves his mission in Oregon because he assaulted his slacker companion and felt he was having insufficient spiritual impact. He flees to Idaho, goes to church and swipes a missionary name tag. He remains a believer even if he preaches solo, without a companion. He wants to bring the light of Christ to Charlie, whom he meets and physically rescues by accident. One of the mysteries of the play, which is different from the film, is the catalyst for Alan’s decline. His father had convinced him to come back to church just one more time, but his sermon on Jonah and the whale has the opposite effect of saving him; instead, Alan stops eating, wastes away, and dies. The reason Charlie entertains Elder Thomas (in the play) is because he wants to discover what happened that day in church. Charlie himself is well versed in the gospel. He has read The Book of Mormon multiple times, and he has informed opinions about it and the Church. That is to say that the playwright, whether I fully agree with him or not, is writing from a base of knowledge.

an equal number of sources for the decisions to reconsider it. I do not have access to any information regarding them. To my mind, the film is stronger for it because the villain of the works (play and film) is homophobia propagated by Christian faiths and its lethal consequences. Removing the specifics of a particular faith—numerous congregations have some variation of “New Life” in their name— gives the audience the latitude to examine a more general, even universal religious response to sexual orientation. It encourages self-examination: How do I judge people, rather than How do Mormons judge? The other changes in the adaptation likewise invite the viewer to experience the world as Charlie does, even if it is uncomfortable. Finally, the addition of the pizza delivery boy is marvelous and haunting, and the appearance of his zoom-class students and their eventual discovery of what their teacher looks like is devastating beyond description.

The redemption that Charlie seeks with his daughter in The Whale (the play) comes after she digs into Elder Thomas’ past, finds out his real name, takes a photograph of him breaking missionary rules, sends it to the mission, and ultimately to his parents. They, instead of rejecting the boy, reach out to him with love. Elder Thomas says to her in their final exchange, “I thought my parents were going to disown me, and you know what they said? They said they loved me and cared about me, and they wanted me to come home. How awful is that?” This saving act, even though Elder Thomas condemns Charlie and confesses in a cathartic outburst that he is revolted by him, cements in Charlie’s mind the hope that parents and children can forgive each other, and the play ends, as does the movie, probably with Charlie’s death but with transcendence.

A second example of shifting depictions of the Church in entertainment media comes from television. I like tv; I still have a cable subscription, much to my adult children’s chagrin. My ears prick up whenever a reference to my faith tradition appears on tv, even though I assume that what will come next will be a demeaning or mocking joke at my expense. I have been conditioned to this sad expectation after years and years of endless Mormon “jokes.” I sometimes imagine these innumerable video clips strung together and playing on an endless loop. If viewed that way, I don’t think anybody anywhere who despises hate speech would find them funny.

What to make of the shift, the replacement of Mormonism in Samuel D. Hunter’s screenplay adaptation? There could be hundreds of reasons and

So Help Me Todd

It was only a brief bit of dialogue, but I found myself surprised at an entirely different kind of Mormon joke on tv recently—different because it didn’t use the word “Mormon,” at all. Nobody would say that the new legal drama on television, So Help Me Todd, is high art, but I’ve liked

the CBS series ever since it premiered September 29, 2022. The network claims it as a hit and notes it is the highest rated series premiere on network television this season, and it now averages 6.3 million viewers per episode. The series has already been renewed for a second season. In it, a bumbling but effective young private investigator is forced to work for his mother, a high-powered attorney. Together they solve mysteries and gradually come to tolerate, even to love each other, despite their considerable emotional baggage. It was created by Scott Prendergast, and it has the good fortune of starring two very good leading actors, Marcia Gay Harden and Skylar Astin, who portray characters with complex family chemistry to burn. I don’t know much about Prendergast. He was born (1970) and raised in Portland, Oregon, where So Help Me Todd is set. He went to school at Columbia University and now lives with his family in Los Angeles. The IMDB lists a smattering of writing and acting projects for him, including the film, Kabluey (2007), which he wrote and directed. This new TV series appears to be his biggest success to date.

Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and to the best of my knowledge, it’s never mentioned in any other episode, either. Still, I snapped to attention on my couch at the scene. Wait. What was that? Did I just hear a tv character correcting another on the proper usage of the name of the Church? How random! And why not just say “Mormon” in the first place? I also had a weird flashback to the original Broadway production of Angels in America (1993) when the same actress, Marcia Gay Harden, played an LDS housewife addicted to Valium. So here was Harden, also a producer of So Help Me Todd, delivering these corrective lines about the Church. (End credits of the episode list staff writers Nicole French and Stefanie Woodburn.)

Todd: Let’s just say we’re Jehovah Witnesses or church of ladder day saints or something.

This is a relatively inconsequential example of shifting views to the Church. It certainly had nothing to do with the plot of the tv episode. And yet there was something subtly corrective going on. The maternal figure who constantly reinforces her intellectual superiority over her son’s street smarts is tapping into the Church’s newfound sensitivity to its own name. But the son is hip enough to know that the usage of “Mormon” is out of date, and instead he properly uses “Latter-day” even if he’s not quite right about its specifics or what it means. But that is also on brand for their characters, too. I found its matter-of-factness interesting, even reassuring. It was still a joke, but hey, I can take a joke.

Margaret: Ok, what? Did you just say “ladder day, ladder day saints?” It’s Latter-day, with a T. Latter.

Corinne

In episode 10, “The Devil You Know,” mom Margaret and son Todd are going to surprise a suspect and interview him outside his house. Here is the full exchange:

Todd: No it’s not… Margaret:Yes it is. Todd: …It’s a celebration of the ladder they use to climb up…. Interrupted, the characters get to their destination and the detective story continues. There is no earlier nor further reference to The Church of

The third example of a newfound response to the Church in entertainment is quite different from the previous two, in some ways, but it is particularly interesting because it comes from inside the Church culture itself. It is a novel published July 12, 2022, titled Corrine. The book received some mildly favorable notices (Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, Glamour) but largely faded quickly, despite the fact that it was written by a New York Times bestselling

author, had a front cover blurb by Jodi Picoult, “It’s a modern-day Romeo and Juliet, and you’ll whip through pages to hope for the impossible,” and was published by one of the largest English-language imprints in the world, St. Martin’s Press. It would have escaped my attention, too, except that a friend pointed out to me an August 6, 2022 Reddit post by Dread_Pirate_Jack suggesting that Rebecca Morrow—the book jacket reads, “Rebecca Morrow is a pseudonym for a New York Times bestselling author”—is, in fact, Stephenie Meyer. The short post went viral, and it currently has 12,300 conspiracy theory-like comments and has spawned podcast episodes and YouTube videos making their cases for and against the theory. I am probably going to disappoint readers for failing to state here whether I think the novel is written by any specific LDS author, but I want to explore the LDS content of the novel itself, nonetheless, despite the author’s placement of the story in another unnamed religion, and note why I think the choices or non-identification are important. Very briefly, the plot follows a teenager Corrine, who despite her conservative religious background, falls in love with Enoch Miller and has sex with him. He confesses to the church. She is cast out, moves away, and only returns years later having gained an education. Meanwhile, Enoch has married and divorced, and when Corrine comes back to her community to care for her mother, they circle each other until they inevitably, sensually, begin their forbidden relationship again. The Library of Congress category description of the novel lists: “Erotic fiction/ Romance fiction/ Novels.” It is indeed erotic, although compared to the novels of Colleen Hoover, who currently has five of the top ten bestselling novels on the Times’ Combined Print and E-Book Fiction list, Corrine is tame—that said, I don’t recommend it to readers who avoid graphic sex in books and movies. I’m usually one of them. So, when I got my copy of Corrine, I decided to take a pencil as I read to underline ideas, phrases,

and descriptions that seemed to me drawn directly from LDS culture. Well, I needed a big pencil. These knowing references are everywhere in Corrine. Hundreds of them. Any single one of them isn’t a smoking gun—I suppose other cultures jokingly love Jell-O, too—but taken together, they are absolutely from someone intimately conversant with Mountain West LDS doctrine and culture. The book jacket mentions the characters’ “fundamentalist church,” but that vocabulary never appears in the novel itself. Although the setting is certainly in a conservative community and a strict church, it is not an LDS church. It is also fascinating that as years pass, the characters frequently acknowledge the loosening of the church’s conservativeness. The author adds some details and exaggerations that are not part of LDS life. However, the overflowing of allusions to elders and brothers and sisters and missionaries and their figures of speech, board games they play, food they eat, references to commandments, behaviors, and attitudes—all of it—adds up to a very LDS-ish allusion-heavy experience. I think that anyone who was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a spidey sense about entertainment portrayals of the faith that are close but not exactly right. Corrine is quite LDS, and whenever I was tempted to think the text suggested otherwise, I reconsidered my doubts and imagined that the author was simply helping a reader understand that religious strictness can come from anywhere. It is certainly not specific to LDS doctrine. The author does not want to comment on LDS life, per se, and certainly is not out to embarrass the Church and its beliefs and people.That is my take on it. Further, it feels significant as an evolution regarding representation in media because it feels like a statement of artistic independence coming from within the culture, and that is interesting to me, too. There is a passage in Chapter 38 (of 95 chapters) that struck me as significant and telling. In the plot, Corrine has returned home, and she and Enoch are navigating how to treat each other now that

time has passed and their lives have been forever altered by their earlier physical relationship. “I know you think of what we did as a sin and a mistake,” she said. “And maybe we’ll do other things that’ll feel like sin to you. But I’m not a sin. I’m not a temptation. I’m a person. And if you love me, you’ll treat me that way.You’ll treat me like a blessing.” Corrine’s voice was breaking… “Like I’m more precious than rubies. Like I do you good, not harm.” (page 161) I feel uncomfortable advocating for the book because I’m not the audience for it, its frank sexual content is problematic, it’s not the kind of work I find appealing, and in many ways, and for most people, its sole element of interest now is its mysterious authorship, which is less fascinating to me. But regarding the author’s choice to leave the Church out of the story while retaining the culture it sometimes represents, I felt as I read Corrine that here was an author wrestling with the limits of what can be written and published when you are a believing Christian and you think of immorality as wrong but live in a world that finds compelling narrative tension and literary integrity in documenting that chasm of moral conflict. That is, there is more to life than spiritual uplift. Can its depiction be valuable, nonetheless? Can a sympathetic description of forbidden love, for example, be worthy of reading…and writing? I am aware that I am opening a discussion that is much bigger than representation by invoking the challenges of LDS creative artists’ struggle with sensitive content. It is a topic that deserves articles and books of their own. So above are three recent examples of not-Mormon-ness in current film, theater, television, and fiction, although all of them might have otherwise laid it on thick with Mormon references. In a way, I might have more readily expected it. More than that, the changes in the writing had positive benefits for the overall success of the works. They

became stronger because of it. In The Whale, the screenplay’s replacement of Mormon characters and references made the film more universal and self-reflective than the play. In So Help Me Todd, the two characters showed a surprising awareness of an evolving identity of the Church which reinforced their characters views of themselves and others, and in Corrine, the unknown author, steeped in LDS culture from what I imagine is his or her own experience, both expands what can be written by and about the Church and shields the faith from readers who would likely respond to overt mention of the Church with hostility. There’s an old saying, “Two’s a coincidence; three’s a trend.” In this case, I would not say these three media examples constitute a trend, but for a culture that sometimes feels embattled, it is a curiosity worth noting.

LETTERSto theEDITOR I was very moved by Kwani Povi Winder’s beautiful essay “My Mother, a Living Legend.” I’d never heard of Living Legends, but I was vividly transported into the history and experience of this wonderful initiative. I was especially touched by this line: “Janie was so invested in the group, that she even lifted the feet of the performers to help them feel the beats of the music.” May all of us be so invested in one another’s flourishing. Ethan Wickman San Antonio, Texas

In the February issue of The Season, I thought the profile on Ryan Hamilton by Ted Bushman was simply excellent. It was so well-written, I loved the pacing and tone, and there was a fantastic array of information and insight that felt perfectly condensed. Outside of the content of the article, I would love to see some other things from The Season and its contributing writers, especially on the magazine’s online platform: hyperlinks to Ryan’s standup routines or performances, where I could buy tickets to his upcoming performances, social media accounts, and so on. Since running a google search is such a complicated matter, being able to click on a link from the article I just read that could take me directly to the page I wanted to go to would save an entire millisecond. I would also not mind a description or writer’s bio about Ted, since he is the author of the piece. Is he a one-time contributor to The Season or a regular writer? Where can I see a list of other articles he has written for The Season or other outside creative projects he has done? And, of course, his social media and website platforms as well.

I am new follower of The Season, but if the magazine’s future pieces are just as nuanced, interesting, and curated as this piece, I’m sure to be a devoted one! Kat Nelson-Sayers Roanoke,VA

I send my thanks to Ted Bushman for the fine article about Ryan Hamilton in the January installment of The Season. Bushman wrote, “Hamilton understands, in ways that most Wasatch Front artists fail to grasp, the caustic, polarizing effect of active church membership in the coastal world.” I would add only that the “caustic, polarizing effect” isn’t limited to the coastal world; it’s widespread in smoggy old “Zion” too. In a Church that doesn’t even have roadshows anymore, it seems like we have conceded that Church “culture” is a product to be officially designed and tinkered with by the PR department. If we play into that idea, we artists risk making art that is more evangelical than true, persuasion without argument. Ryan Hamilton wins twice because, first, he’s side-splittingly funny, which is to say he has mastered his art, and, second, because he’s not a missionary at all, which is to say he keeps his Church membership where it belongs. He isn’t carrying a banner for the PR department or wearing a name tag—both of which, like bad art, are signals to the world, coastal or otherwise, that people have transactional value as future converts rather than fundamental value as human beings. Great art, including great comedy, pulls back the curtain on the cosmos just a little—not to convince or persuade, but to let the cosmos do some

talking. And the best bits of LDS culture do that too, inviting us into a fresh view of the cosmos and “without compulsory means,” certainly without “caustic, polarizing” nonsense, give us ways of drawing toward the good and the true. I’ll continue taking cues for my own creative work from folks like Ryan Hamilton and continue wishing I was even half as clever. My ongoing thanks to the Center for all of its worthy work in every Season. Andrew Maxfield Provo, UT

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS BRIGHAM BARNES

MICHAEL HICKS

Brigham Barnes is an attorney and former Greenwich Village resident living in New York City.

Michael Hicks is a retired professor of Music from Brigham Young University. His most recent book is Wineskine: Freakin’ Jesus in the ‘60s and ‘70s.

He will be speaking on references to Mormonism in Finnegans Wake at the 2023 Mormon Scholars in the Humanities and Mormon History Association conferences.

BRENT CROXTON Brent Croxton received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Brigham Young University and has worked as a designer, art director or creative director in Dallas, Newport Beach, Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco, and Salt Lake City. His work has been featured in a number of design publications as well as regional, national and international design competitions

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD Emily Larsen Doxford is the marketing and communications director for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. A writer and communications professional, she received her MA in American and English Literature from NYU.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

NEYLAN MCBAINE Neylan McBaine is currently the CEO of Duet Partner, a software that provides studio management tools to independent music teachers. She’s the mother of three daughters–one in college and two in high school–and lives in Salt Lake City.

GLEN NELSON Glen Nelson, along with Neylan McBaine, established The Ariel Bybee Endowment at the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts in 2021. The 2023 Prize will go to a visual artwork that is inspired by music, receive a cash prize, and be exhibited in a group exhibition in a New York art gallery, Sargent’s Daughters.

KRISTIN PERKINS Kristin Perkins is a writer and researcher at the intersection of queer studies, theatre, and Mormonism, whose work has been published in Ecumenica, Theatre Topics, and SFRA. She currently works at a library and lives in a rectory in upstate New York.

LUISA PERKINS Luisa Perkins’s 2017 novella, Prayers in Bath, was recently named to the 100 Significant Mormon

Literary Works list by the Association for Mormon Letters. Her latest work is her second cookbook, Comfortably Yum.

BENJAMIN DEAN TAYLOR Benjamin Dean Taylor is a composer of contemporary concert music. He has received professional commissions from individuals and ensembles all over the world and is one of the few living composers today making his primary income from writing and self-publishing his music.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

theSEASON

APRIL2023

inMIND STORIES AND SONGS

by MYKAL URBINA (IN COLLABORATION WITH EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD)

Brandon Flowers in conversation with Stanley Hainsworth. Photo: Chris Phelps @chrisphelps)

On Friday, March 17, the Killers took the stage at Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut, greeted by 10,000 screaming fans. On Monday, March 19, the same scene at Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh. On the setlist: “Mr. Brightside,” “Smile Like You Mean It,” “All These Things That I’ve Done.” Laser lights, fog machines, confetti, jumbotrons.

Rock ‘n roll furor at its finest. Yet in the midst of the make-up shows leg of a global tour, Saturday, March 18 found Killers’ frontman Brandon Flowers in New York City, seated in an old-school director’s chair. Handheld mic. Exposed brick wall. Acoustic guitars. An intimate

gathering of 600 attentive fans, seated, awed, listening. Stories First, a conversation between design & branding legend Stanley Hainsworth and Brandon about the intersection of art and faith. A pacing Brandon in the wings (paraphrased: talking about things like this usually means I’ve prepared a sacrament meeting talk or a testimony! What am I going to say?!). Followed by thirty minutes of vulnerable, honest discussions of childhood in the lights of Vegas, universal messages from individual experiences in rural Utah, family, faith, and compassion. Stanley Hainsworth shares his perspectives from their conversation: How would it feel to live your religion on stage in front of the world? The night of Stories and Songs with Brandon Flowers of The Killers gave us a window into that life. Living under a double microscope of faith and celebrity, Brandon shared with us stories about the grounding he receives through family—both from his parents growing up, as well currently through his wife and children. And how both songwriting and faith is an ongoing process that share a common trait; you have to do it to find it. And Songs The setlist that followed: “Terrible Thing” (acoustic) “Lord, I Would Follow Thee” (acoustic, Latter-day Saint hymn) “Be Still” (acoustic) “Read My Mind (acoustic) If the Killers’ fan base (a.k.a. The Victims) are to be believed—and I trust them—this was the premiere of an unplugged version of “Terrible Thing,” and I can vouch for the fact that the evening’s clos-

ing song, “Read My Mind,” was a post-sound check, feeling-it-in-the-moment addition, rehearsed only in the Green Room. Door closed, plastic chairs, with Jake and Robbie on guitar. In between, a soulful rendition of a beloved Latter-day Saint Hymn, a musical prayer pleading for compassion, strength to serve, and acceptance of others. There were other stories and songs shared that night, too. Like our host, Stanley Hainsworth, I wanted to hear from other individuals who participated in the evening.We’d come to learn more about Brandon Flowers and were rewarded in that effort. In a way that only a once-in-a-generation frontman could, Brandon shared humorous anecdotes about his hometown while sagely discussing his belief amidst his rock-and-roll world. But what would others say if I asked them for their own “story” about the evening. Bri Ray, a popular singer-songwriter shares this about the event: Performing as part of the Stories and Songs event was really special. The event created a unique opportunity to connect on the commonalities of the vulnerability, joy, hurt, spirituality, and love that we all experience throughout our individual lives. The event offered a much needed space for art to be expressed in its most raw and authentic form—Straight from the artist. As musicians and performing artists, we often don’t get the chance to share the inspiration behind the music. What the Stories and Songs event reestablished is the relevance and importance of sharing the origins of our stories, beliefs and art, so that we might connect on the intimacy and intricacies of our experience on earth together as humans. Emily Larsen Doxford, the Center’s communication and marketing director, also shares a few behind-the-scenes moments:

Bri Ray at Stories and Songs (photo: Samantha Zauscher)

The story I will continue to share about the March 18th event is the story of community. Alongside my colleagues, I spent ample hours preparing for the evening; and the day of the benefit was no exception. Our small staff had been racing around the venue and the Upper West Side for days, securing last minute items and ensuring artists had what they needed for a successful run of show. Meanwhile, new and old friends struck up planned meetings and impromptu conversations over chips and salsa in the Green Room backstage. We were a hive of activity. But there were moments of stillness, too. The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts explores the intersection of cultural rele-

vance and divine creativity. This is where we pause to build community. As the Center’s marketing and communications director, I was able to spend a good part of the event day with a truly tremendous photographer, Samantha Zauscher. Sam had the near impossible task of photographing portions of the show while also capturing assets for upcoming Center projects—in a single day. At one point in the late afternoon, I went to assist her while she photographed the openers, Bri Ray and Ashley. Walking into the small, makeshift studio in the basement of Symphony Space, I felt it: stillness, magic, purpose. Call it what you will. It’s the gravity and space that comes when artists meet at the intersection of relevance and creativity. On this day, it transpired when three creatives shared an immedi-

ate, mutual respect for one another and became the instant and enthusiastic witnesses of one another’s talents: performer to lens, stage to audience, artist to human. Behind the viewing screen, I observed Sam uncovering the layers of depth and dynamism in Bri and Ashley through her still images. And for a few moments, I learned something about them all. With these kinds of thoughts circling my mind, I entered the theater: Brandon, Robbie, and Jake were practicing “Lord, I Would Follow Thee” during their soundcheck. Few others were listening or even focused on the stage at that point. But, once again, I felt it: stillness, magic, purpose. The most talented musicians of my generation were

singing words I knew by heart, felt to my core, memorized in childhood, and sang in my adulthood. It wasn’t about the words of the hymn or that any one faith tradition prevailed in thought or praxis that night, though. It was that another trio of voices carved another avenue for belonging. It’s not surprising that when the multifaith, multicultural collective, the KING will come, took to the stage that night, I was able to landmark what I was feeling. Together, they performed Ashley Hess’s soon-to-be-released single, “Yet.” In three minutes they captured all the stillness, magic, and purpose. As a community that night, we shared the sense of yet.

Ashley Hess, Brandon Flowers and Bri Ray, photo: Chris Phelps

OUTandABOUT BRANDON SANDERSON “I’ve been lying to you,” Brandon Sanderson declared last year in a viral YouTube video, “and it’s time to admit the truth.” Loyal fans of the best-selling LDS author didn’t know at first what to expect from this sudden confession, but the tone of the video quickly turned gleeful, even comedic: Sanderson, a known workhorse of the fantasy scene, revealed that he wrote multiple novels in secret to cope with the pandemic lockdowns. Since he wrote them outside of his usual editorial contracts, he could independently publish these novels through his own company, Dragonsteel Books, and ship them to readers months before they hit conventional bookstores.The “Year of the Sanderson” Kickstarter, which allowed fans to order premium editions of these books and other themed goodies straight to their doorstep over the course of 2023, shattered online pledge fund records with a whopping 41 million dollars. The first of these four novels, Tress of the Emerald Sea, released to backers in January. The story follows a girl living on a fantastical planet where the oceans are made not of water, but rather magical technicolor spores. When the love of her life goes missing abroad, young Tress sets out to find him, facing pirates, dragons, and dangerous magic along the way. While this novel can be read as a standalone work, longtime fans can enjoy many winking references to Sanderson’s wider Cosmere fantasy universe. Brandon Sanderson’s family loved The Princess Bride, but they were frustrated by the passivity of its heroine. In response, Sanderson wrote Tress, flipping the gender dynamics on their head while still emulating the whimsical narration of the original novel. The result? Some of the best prose and

laugh-out-loud gags of his career to date. —Peter Bushman (The commercial edition of Tress of Emerald Sea, published by Tor Books, releases in April.) DARLENE YOUNG Years before her first poetry collection, Homespun and Angel Feathers, published in 2019, Darlene Young was already one of my favorite Mormon poets. She’s wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove: a poet who offers simple moments packed with seismic insight. Her poem “Kintsukuroi for Joseph Smith,” which was featured in the Center Gallery’s exhibit Great Awakening, should be required reading for Latter-day Saints in the information age. But her most-circulated piece, passed around at ward activities (and apparently also among temple workers between shifts), is probably “Angels of Mercy,” a narrative poem about Relief Society leaders discussing whether to offer meals to a sister and her family as she recovers from surgery. “It seems precedent was vague,” the poem notes. “No one was sure whether ‘boob job’ qualified as a legitimate call for aid.” Thanks to The Season, I got an advance copy of Young’s forthcoming second collection, Here. In the book’s opening poem, “Investigative Journalism,” Young vows to seek God in the small things, like “in the sunrise of this morning, and in the hallelujahs of the dang magpies waking me to it.” Recurring motifs of Adam and Eve entering the lone and dreary world and Young teaching her sons to shovel neighbors’ snow in their suburban Salt Lake ward give a sense of narrative shape and forward momentum to the volume. The range of her gifts is once again on display as she speaks as mother and mystic, soccer mom and saint. In an

echo of Moroni, she leaves a record of what she has seen and what she awaits.We couldn’t ask for a better chronicler: I’m glad Darlene Young decided to write in our language and for our people. — James Goldberg (Here by Darlene Young debuts on April 4.) GODSPELL Ask director Tim Threlfall what concept drives all aspects of the BYU Department of Theatre and Media Arts production of Godspell and he will simply say, “The Jesus of Godspell is my friend.” The pop rock musical, originally a project by drama students at Carnegie Mellon University that moved to open off-Broadway in 1971, went on to become a long-running success, adapted to film, and performed world-wide. Threlfall’s show, the 2012 revision based on the 2011 Broadway revival, recently closed its nearly 3-week run in the BYU West Campus Mainstage Theatre. The performance drew the audience into a contemporary experience with the four gospels, full of youthful enthusiasm, brilliant sound, exuberant choreography, and familiar characters, all of whom full-heartedly sang and danced the good news of the gospel. The show was over a year from proposal to audition to performance. Perhaps not as familiar a telling of the parables contained in Matthew, Godspell gives the viewer the gift of experiencing a beloved narrative in a fully sensate way. Tim’s production objective for Godspell was “to facilitate the maximum number of audience members having an uplifting and potentially spiritual experience during the performance of Godspell.” And he knew that many potential audience members might be challenged to experience a fully human Jesus on the stage. In proposing the production of Godspell, Tim invited the production team/cast “to explore and present the Book of Matthew story in such a way that nothing in our presentation will so alienate audi-

ence members that the beauty and the celebration of Godspell would be lost to them. While achieving this goal 100% is truly impossible…I want us all to strive for this objective in every way we can. For our Latter-day Saint audience, we need an additional measure of ‘respect’ for the character of Jesus…especially in Act One. Eliminating the traditional Superman T-Shirt and clown makeup will take us a significant way in that direction.The Jesus we meet in Act One is the more ‘human’ Jesus. He is playful and warm with his disciples as he creates a ‘family’ and a community among them. He laughs with them a great deal in Act One. THE JESUS OF GODSPELL IS MY FRIEND!” He continued, “In Act Two, we see perhaps a more ‘familiar’ Jesus as his ministry is coming to a close and he is more direct and even firm at times with his disciples. The Act Two Jesus is, the Savior of the world. Act Two is far less playful as the gravitas of the betrayal, the last supper and the crucifixion are anticipated and enacted. The more ‘human’ Jesus of Act One gives way to the Savior as a member of the Godhead in Act Two.” Three Biblical scriptures informed Threlfall’s directorial perspective: Psalms 98:4: “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.” The 2011 Broadway revival at Circle in the Square debuted an updated libretto including current events as well as updated vocal arrangements that give the original hit-melodies robust and more challenging mix/belt/rock sounds and featured solos. The BYU cast’s ensemble sound was strong and well-blended although it must be noted that the female vocalists were a force enough to “knock you in the aisles” (thanks Fred Astaire.) Providing the musical through line of the show, the 5 musicians housed upstage in a run-down school structure with windows facing the stage, wove a matrix of joyous noise with acoustic and electric guitar, keyboard, mandolin, bells, guiro, maracas and sakers, siren and slide whistle, tambourine, triangle and wood block. As an audience member I

was drawn in and fully embraced the embodied praise singing and dancing. But then, full disclosure, my Jesus is a dancing Jesus.

his long and illustrious career, “What are the levels the show must function on?” For Godspell he identified the following five levels:

The production set reflected the second scriptural frame, Matthew 18:3: “Verily I say unto you, except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.” The thrust stage was transformed into an abandoned, gritty, crumbling graffiti-covered inner-city school and its playground. The foremost part of the set was a playground, framed with chain-link fence and barbed wire, with swings, slides, merry-go-round, a Jungle Jim and other play equipment that, through stage magic, appeared to be in danger of falling apart. According to Threlfall, “this setting represents the fallen ‘world’ in which the Savior often functioned. He took the gospel to the poor and the poor in spirit. He was not afraid to get his hands dirty. He associated with Samaritans, publicans and sinners.” Interactions between the characters were often child-like and playful, full of innocence and enthusiasm. According to Threlfall, such youthful ebullience is central to Godspell.

1. ROCK CONCERT MUSICAL first and foremost: The music is the message. The music must completely surround and envelope the audience at all times.

1 John 4:14 provided the final and consummate scriptural context: “And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.” In his production proposal,Threlfall noted: “Lack of redemption/resurrection in Godspell I believe is one of just a few issues that has made it less appealing to LDS audiences when it really should be right up there with Joseph, Fiddler and Les Mis. However, not written into the show is the resurrection of Christ. It ends with the crucifixion.” He further noted, “Stephen Schwartz mentions this fact but does not shut the door on adding a resurrection scene without adding words or music…and that is exactly what I intend to do.” The resurrection scene he added offered the hope of redemption and gave the narrative a faith-filled landing while remaining true to the script. To provide integrity and resonance to the production, Threlfall asked himself, as he has done with countless other productions he has directed over

2. CELEBRATION MUSICAL: At the risk of ‘content-free enthusiasm’ the piece is celebratory a great deal, especially in Act One. The “good news” of Christ’s message that upended the world must always be the impetus for the celebratory expression. 3. DANCE MUSICAL secondarily: Godspell is a dance musical not only for the actors but for the audience as well.The audience should feel like getting up and dancing through much of the show. And we hope to give them a bit of opportunity to do just that. Also, finding moments to highlight every kind of dance possible from Breakdancing to Modern to Stepping, Ballroom, Jazz, Ballet, Tap, Soft shoe, Urban, etc. with the idea that everyone is welcome. All while GIVING A NOD TO TRADITIONAL DANCE OF DIFFERENT NATIONS. 4. FAMILY MUSICAL: Not only is the show suitable for families, the notion of ‘family’ is expanded and the disciples form a community or family with one another that is strong and abiding as well as diverse and inclusive. 5. VAUDEVILLEAN/AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION MUSICAL: In keeping with the “become as little children” theme, the show must be playful, filled with variety, always entertaining and INVOLVING THE AUDIENCE frequently. Godspell is the last musical Tim Threlfall will direct at BYU as he recently announced his retirement. He has mentored many BYU Music Dance Theater students who have gone on to major roles in Broadway and touring productions. Pat Debenham, longtime colleague and friend of Tim shared the following thoughts about Tim’s legacy at BYU.

“Transformation has been a hallmark of Tim’s contribution to the Music Dance Theatre program at BYU. As a fledging faculty member, with vision and acuity, along with colleagues Randy Boothe, Gayle Lockwood and Pat Debenham he helped move an already nationally recognized program into one that was competitive with the finest university programs in the nation. His continued ongoing professional work as a director and actor outside the university gave Tim access to actors, directors and casting agents that he brought to campus to mentor students. This provided a window to the world beyond the campus and allowed them to see what was available to them once they graduated. Tim opened doors for students to walk through. Under his direction students were featured with their best work in New York City in a showcase designed specifically for agents. Most years agents offered representation to between five and ten students as a result of the showcase. This resulted in as many as fifteen students working professionally on Broadway, in regional theatres and in the entertainment industry at any given time. A tireless drive for professionalism has motivated Tim’s career at BYU, both for the students and for himself. A gifted, challenging and serious teacher/ director/artist, Tim has led countless students to dig deep within themselves to find not only the essence of a role that they were enacting but to discover for themselves the essence of who they had the potential to become as people of faith who were entering an emotionally and spiritually challenging profession. With sensitivity and care,Tim carefully guided students to develop skill that moved them beyond taking the direction he gave them to making it their own and fully embodying a character with honesty and clarity. “ Debenham concluded his reflection by saying, “Tim has never been nonchalant about the power of theatre to change people’s lives, either for ac-

tors or for audience members. His students know it and his directorial work both on and off campus attest to his commitment to theatre as an active verb not a noun. It’s rare in academia to find a professor who is both artist and teacher—Tim is incomparably both/and. His intellect and passion have driven him. His many attributes and skills, though not irreplaceable, in combination will be difficult to replicate. Programs come and go, leadership, direction and visions change. For decades under Tim’s direction the BYU Music Dance Theatre program enjoyed what could be considered “Camelot” years.Tim, once he does retire, will still continue to do whatever he pursues with intensity and vision. BYU was blessed to have his heart and soul for a season.” — Kathie Debenham LEBRON When a new biography about basketball megastar LeBron James takes 250-ish pages just to get our hero to the NBA, you know the writer has a different kind of story in mind. That’s where prolific author Jeff Benedict (Tiger, The Dynasty, etc.) thrives as a storyteller. Taking us well beyond the glittering court where championships and scoring records were won, LeBron is a portrait of not just overcoming the odds, but impacting culture in various ways. The polished product dubbed “King James” by the sports media has certainly lived up to the fanfare. With a business empire that encompasses Hollywood films, television shows, and jaw-dropping endorsements, LeBron knows how to attract and move his 100+ million social media followers. Like any great story, however, it’s never been a straight line to the top. All the more reason to appreciate Benedict’s carefully constructed telling of LeBron’s early life, which so easily could have—and probably should have—derailed at various stages of his upbringing. Born to a sixteenyear-old mother, he grew up in the public housing projects of Akron, Ohio with no father and no money. How a frightened and lonely young boy gradually evolves into a high school player courted

by the NBA is a thrilling white-knuckle ride of its own. Though we know how LeBron’s professional career plays out, the ongoing arc of his personal purpose shines even brighter. Transformed via his journey, he is now a powerful voice for social activism and visionary philanthropy. Benedict proves his chops yet again, though LeBron’s full story is far from over. —Mike Denison (LeBron is available April 11.) POP CULTURE ON THE APRICOT TREE There are any number of LDS podcasts out there, but Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree is different. Most LDS podcasts focus on LDS topics and concerns (e.g., gospel scholarship). This one takes a different approach and addresses things that are not LDS. It focuses on pop culture products, specifically movies, TV series, and the occasional book, but discusses them from an LDS perspective. The resulting conversations are dynamic, interesting, and imbued with an LDS sensitivity. The show is hosted by Liz Busby and Carl Cranney, who bring along different guests for each show. Busby tells The Season that these are very positive conversations: “Sometimes, I have no idea what we’re going to find to talk about, and then one of the guests helps me see the film in a different way than I did before. I’ve learned to find gospel principles in almost everything we watch, and I think it’s made me a better movie viewer.” The discussions that Busby, Cranney, and the others engage in are certainly enlightening. A particularly interesting aspect about them comes at the end, when shows are rated based on content, artistic merit, and gospel connections. The podcast started in 2022 and included discussions that ranged from Encanto to Midnight Mass, from Hamilton to Howl’s Moving Castle. Season 2 has just been launched, and listeners can look forward to what Busby considers “some really fascinating episodes coming up.” These include discussions

on Black Mirror,The Chosen, Arrival, the Pinocchio remakes, Where the Crawdads Sing, Bluey, a Mother’s Day special episode, and much more. So, if you’ve watched popular movies or tv shows and are a Latter-day Saint, make sure to give Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree a listen. You will no doubt enjoy it! –Gabriel González (new podcast episodes appear twice a month.) SCHMIGADOON! Musicals have been ripe for parody since their inception and maturation in the early 20th century. There’s something about their rich oleo of artistic elements—music, singing, dance, writing, and design—suggesting that each of these elements should be simplified in order to blend properly with the others. The melodies and singing should be unadorned. The colors should be plain, and bright. The stories should be coherent with unambiguous conclusions. All entertaining and fun and easily digestible. And this simplification, which was very complex to achieve, seems to be the thing that many people complained about musicals, that they seemed puerile and mostly for kids, not adults. Hence, the endless spoofs and parodies. And recently, we’ve had a wave of these parodies, Something Rotten on stage, My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend streaming, and now Schmigadoon!. But Schmigadoon! is something more than a parody. It’s an homage, using the writing style of some familiar musicals to make a very modern point about how to build a relationship. The crafting and presentation of the “parody” songs is of the highest quality, comparable to the quality of the originals. It’s bright, funny, pointed, and perfectly appropriate for the adults we all pretend to be. The series, written, composed and developed by Cinco Paul, appeared to my delight in 2021, and now there’s to be Season 2, Schmicago, which promises a sexier (and perhaps darker) approach.

Cinco Paul has joined my ward, the Riverside Park Ward, in NYC. Here’s my conversation with him last Sunday: D.: So, Schmicago. CP:Yes! D.: When’s it happening? CP: April 5, AppleTV+ D:Will there be another season after that? CP: I’m not at liberty to say. But I have moved here, if that tells you anything. (Smiles.) It tells me, there’s great stuff ahead. – David Fletcher (Schmigadoon! season one is currently on AppleTV+, and season two premieres on the same streaming platform, April 5.) SIMPLY THREE Simply Three is a group made up of a trio of string players that performs chamber music arrangements of a range of popular music, including some works of a religious nature. Comprised of Glen McDaniel on violin, Nick Villalobos on bass, and Zack Clark on cello, the group has become hugely popular, with 1.5 million followers on YouTube, and they are preparing for a tour this spring. Part of their success is due to the inventive videos presented on YouTube, where they play these original crossover arrangements in often breathtaking settings. Per the biography on their official website, Simply Three is acclaimed as “having what it takes” (Boston Philharmonic) and “highly imaginative and well played” (Maine Today). The biography goes on to say: “Simply Three continues to receive praise for their ability to impress listeners with a multitude of genres that span from artists and composers such as Adele, Gershwin, Coldplay, Twenty One

Pilots, Ed Sheeran, and Michael Jackson. By reshaping convention through this style of genre-hopping, the trio continues to seek the true essence of classical crossover with original works as well as innovative arrangements that showcase their technical virtuosity and heartfelt musicality.” Clark and Villalobos are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Villalobos is a former member of the Orchestra at Temple Square. —David Fletcher (information about the ensemble including links to videos and touring dates can be found on their website.) WIT AND VISION Currently on display at the Brigham Young University Museum of Art, Wit and Vision: The Creative Collaboration of McRay Magleby and Norm Darais gives an engaging and entertaining overview of the work produced by a partnership of genius. Beginning in 1978 and lasting for nearly two decades, Magleby’s design and Darais’ clever writing resulted in iconic publicity images for the University’s registration department. These posters became so popular they quickly started disappearing from campus and making appearances on the bedroom walls of many students. Harkening back to well known themes, including Greek Mythology, American Folk Art traditions, nursery rhymes and more, these served as much more than information posters. Their engaging and unique quality speak to the talent of the partnership as well as their desire to increase communication among students of their shared alma mater. Through the witty language and puns of Darais, Magleby’s images were given an incredible purpose. Their work resulted in transforming previously mundane information into an interactive visual experience. Disseminating details about deadlines and other various campus announcements was elevated to the status of high art. This imaginative approach continues to captivate audiences all these years later.

The show includes a large array of work spanning the breadth of their entire partnership, as well as the inclusion of some of Magleby’s most recognizable designs from his personal career. Regardless of life status, visitors will be captivated by the wonder, intelligence and captivating nature of these works in addition to a desire to register for fall semester on time. Make sure to pay a visit to the BYU MOA before mid-August to revel in the inspiring and delightful work which makes up this exhibition. —Caroline Johnson (Wit and Vision: The Creative Collaboration of McRay Magleby and Norm Darais continues at the Brigham Young University Museum of Art through August 26.) ZIONS INDIE FILM FESTIVAL 2023 After 21 years as the LDS Film Festival, the festival has a new name: Zions Indie Film Festival. This name change, say the new owners and directors, Michelle and Marshall Moore, is to communicate that the festival explores more than LDS themes. The 2023 festival ran from March 15-18 in Orem, Utah, with over 85 full-length, short and documentary films. The opening night featured the world premiere of His Only Son, the story of Abraham and Isaac from Angel Studios, producers of The Chosen, which opened on almost 1,800 screens across the nation the following weekend. Breaking into Beautiful, a documentary about Kim White, who shared her six-year battle with cancer on Instagram, sold out its screening and won Best Documentary. The 2015 short, Court of Conscience, starring Jon Voight and the late Anton Yelchin, and written and directed by Voight’s son, James Haven about a cardinal and a priest and abuse in the Catholic church had surprise appearances from both Voight and Haven. A new program was Friday night’s “Reality Benders” consisting of all horror short films. Luis Puente’s short, I Have No Tears, and I Must Cry, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, was just one of a number of films by international filmmakers.

Among the many presentations were “Christ over Career” with evangelical filmmakers Cameron and BJ Arnett, which argued for putting Christ at the helm of one’s career in cinema, and filmmaker Barrett Burgin’s “Five Pillars for a New Wave of Latter-day Saint Cinema” that explored the potential compelling future for a new kind Latter-day Saint film movement. There was even a reading of an unproduced script: Marshal Davis’s El Misioñero, an action-thriller-spiritual story about three LDS missionaries serving in Mexico who are caught in a violent drug cartell’s attack on a small town. With nearly 6,000 people in attendance, Zions Indie Film Festival looks like it will continue the LDS Film Festival’s legacy of exploring intersections of faith and film far into the future. —Jeff Parkin CALL CENTER: THE MUSICAL The proscenium of Kyle Fackrell’s theatrical venue is about 4 inches tall—the size of a YouTube video. Kyle Fackrell holds a Bachelors in Music Composition from Brigham Young University, a Masters in the same from James Madison University, and is a graduate of the BMI Musical Theater Writers Workshop in NYC. He’s worked on numerous musicals with many collaborators in venues in NYC and elsewhere, but his most recent ventures are short-form video musicals. His thumbnail opus, Space Race, began during summer 2020, and showed all the hallmarks of pandemic—six Fackrells in black boxes, playing different characters, sing enthusiastically as members of a spaceship crew undertaking a manned mission to the stars. His latest work, Call Center:The Musical, premiered last month. Mostly composed of shots in a single room and video from Google maps, it tells the story of a put-upon call center employee who goes above and beyond to try and help a caller who’s far from home and trying to make friends in a new place.

If you’re thinking that Fackrell’s DIY, anyone-canmake-art-anywhere approach has big high school teacher energy, you’d be spot on. He’s a longtime music teacher in Staten Island, running a music program for John W. Lavelle Preparatory Charter School. Nested amid the thumbnails of silly costumes on his channel is an impassioned video co-written with his students about gun violence in schools. While the students sing and rap, Fackrell conducts and plays percussion, clearly feeling the music deeply. For all his personal ingenuity, Fackrell’s work shines most when others make it into

the frame. —Ted Bushman (Call Center:The Musical can be viewed on YouTube.)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

ONtheLIST LEVI PETERSON BY ANDREW HALL

Photograph of Levi S. Peterson from the Mormon Literature & Creative Arts database, Brigham Young University

This year marks the 90th birthday of Levi S. Peterson, widely recognized as the most significant author of Mormon literature of the last half-century. From 1978 to 2021, Peterson produced two novels, three short fiction collections, a memoir, a biography, and dozens of personal essays, all fully

imbued with Mormon experience, theology, guilt, faith, and humor. Perhaps most memorably, he is the creator of “Cowboy Jesus,” a vision which diverts the protagonist of his novel The Backslider away from obsessive guilt and a hatred of God and towards an acceptance of divine and familial love.

In honor of Peterson’s 90th year, I sat down for a long Zoom call to talk about his life and career. Based on what I learned from that call, I prepared this summary of his career, and provide a recommendation guide to his publications. Peterson was born in December 1933 in the Northern Arizona town of Snowflake, a rural town settled by Mormon pioneers. He was the youngest of 13 children in his parents’ blended family. Educators and farmers, his parents were devoted members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While the Church was a major influence on his character, so was the cowboy life of the frontier, a duality he references in the title of his memoir, A Rascal by Nature, A Christian by Yearning. Peterson describes himself in the memoir as hounded by religious doubts and temperamentally unwilling to follow all of the expected behaviors, but also full of a desire for God’s grace and highly valuing his membership in the Church. He served as a missionary in France and Belgium from 1954 to 1957, and studied literature at Brigham Young University and the University of Utah. He then began a career teaching English at Weber State in Ogden, Utah, where he remained until his retirement in 2000. He turned seriously to writing literature in 1974, at the relatively advanced age of forty-two. Modern Mormon literature was only a few years into its “Faithful Realism” stage then, with authors like Donald Marshall and Douglas Thayer producing challenging stories which explored the inner lives of Mormons struggling in the modern world.

of women and children, the suppression of minorities, and the general malice of human nature. Guilty characters come naturally to my fiction.” For my Zoom conversation, Peterson attended from Issaquah, Washington, where he and his wife have retired, to be close to his daughter’s family. Peterson remains lively and engaged, willing to talk about all aspects of his writing and the state of the world. We were joined by John Bennion, a close friend of Peterson’s, and himself a leading figure in Mormon literary circles. Bennion commented, “Levi Peterson was one of my most essential writing mentors. Levi’s characters speak from the edge of Mormonism. They surprised me with their rich texture, detailed awareness of human complexity, grotesque characters and situations, and beautiful language. Levi taught me that as a writer I needed to fear nothing and that I could write about anything—drunken and sober visions, violent acts borne out of piety, sexuality in its multiflorous variety, rural people with all their oddities and strengths.” Peterson has received awards from the Association for Mormon Letters eight times: three times for short fiction, once for novel, once for anthology editing, and once for biography, as well as two career awards for outstanding achievement. Required Reading Luckily three of his best books to start with are all in print. The Backslider. Signature Books, 1986.

Peterson’s short stories and novels are largely populated by young, rural Mormon males, swimming in their hormones, making mistakes, feeling guilty, and then striving to bring themselves back in harmony with their loved ones and community. Peterson observed in his memoir, “Guilt has been one of my gifts. I excel in it. I feel guilty for all the ills of our time: for the extinction of species, the exhaustion of natural resources, the abuse

The Backslider is perhaps the most celebrated Mormon novel of the late 20th century. The Signature Books blurb reads, “A young ranch hand, Frank Windham, conceives of God as an implacable enemy of human appetite. He is a dedicated sinner until family tragedy catapults him into an arcane form of penitence preached among frontier Mormons. He is saved by an epiphany that

has proved both popular and controversial among some readers, either interpreting it as an extreme impiety or celebrating it as a moving and plausible rendering of a biblical theme in a Western setting. Along the way Frank encounters a closeted secular humanist, a polygamist prophet, a psychiatrist, a Mason, government employees, college professors, lawyers, and entrepreneurs—all drawn with heightened realism reminiscent of Charles Dickens or the grotesque forms of William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor. The story engages readers as it alternates almost imperceptibly between Frank’s naïve consciousness and the more informed awareness of its narrator. It can be read as a love story, a satiric comedy, or a dark and sobering study of self-mutilation. It builds suspense and elicits complex emotions, among them a profound sense of compassion. More joyous than cynical, it sympathizes deeply with the plight of all of God’s backsliders.” Richard J. Cummings commented in Dialogue, “In Levi Peterson, the backwaters of Utah . . . [have] found their very own John Steinbeck. In a sense, The Backslider is the first instance of a new genre which combines in broad strokes with subtle touches caricature, humor, theology, folklore, and plain old everyday horse sense in a way which readers will either admire or detest, but which must be approached on its own terms.” Juanita Books: The Life Story of a Courageous Historian of the Mountain Meadows Massacre. University of Utah Press, 1988. (Originally titled Juanita Brooks: Mormon Woman Historian.) AML Award Citation: “Peterson’s study of Mormonism’s first modern and most heroically selfmade historian . . . [is a] richly enthralling, highly readable story of the life of a great woman, a fiercely loving and fearlessly critical maverick riding the edge of the herd. In its breadth and depth of research, and its sky-wide, canyon-deep, na-

tive-born sympathy for Brooks and for the native earth that nourished her and the implanted Mormon community whose history and dynamics she used her life to comprehend, Peterson honors his subject by emulation, and raises the bar a sizeable notch higher for all who will yet write.” Losing a Bit of Eden: Recent Stories. Signature Books, 2021. All three of Peterson’s short story collections are excellent, but Losing a Bit of Eden, a collection of his stories written in the 21st century, is the only one still in print. The Signature Books blurb reads, “His subject remains Latter-day Saints caught between the polarities of conscience and passion. Among the stories are sober tellings of rape and misogyny, defiant statements of ascendant feminism and the worship of Heavenly Mother, and— most abundantly—narratives about impermissible love that sometimes lead to heartbreak and other times forges unexpected couplings destined to last a lifetime.” Further Reading These books are out of print, but finding them would be well worth the effort. The Canyons of Grace. University of Illinois Press, 1982 (later republished by Signature Books). His first, and probably his best, short fiction collection. One of the stories, “The Christianizing of Colburn Heights,” is one of Mormonism’s most hilarious (and heartbreaking) tales. Geoff Wichert has written, “Peterson captures the Southwestern experience with a vivid specificity few authors can match, striving to reconfigure the Mythical West by revealing the reality of life as it was on the frontier, and still is in its sparse remains. He presents a candid panorama of Mormon life that, while it may discomfort some readers, offers a much richer picture of his people’s unique, yet essentially human qualities.

Greening Wheat: Fifteen Mormon Short Stories. Signature Press, 1983. Peterson edited this groundbreaking multi-author anthology, which includes “The Gift,” an excellent story about an American missionary serving in the Belgian city of Liège. Night Soil. Signature Books, 1990. Peterson’s second short fiction collection. Eugene England wrote in his review, “His new collection has all the theological sophistication and seriousness of Canyons of Grace and the rich, healing humor and sense of how redemption works of The Backslider. But it has something more; it is suffused with heart-breaking mortal tenderness.” Aspen Marooney. Signature Books, 1995. His second novel. Signature’s book blurb reads, “In this quietly seductive novel—Peterson’s latest foray into the ever-intriguing topics of memory, regret, and sin--a suspenseful ambiance is created from the backdrop of a rural high school reunion. While acquaintances interact tentatively at first, then more freely, Aspen confronts a particularly dark secret from her past. But there is also hilarity here. Despite everyone’s best attempts to impress former classmates, they gradually reveal their true selves; lapsing into old habits, they demonstrate how little has changed.This makes for a particularly satisfying reunion and, for readers, a compelling vicarious experience.” A Rascal by Nature, A Christian by Yearning: A Mormon Autobiography. University of Utah Press, 2006. Peterson also wrote over a dozen personal essays on Mormonism, published in Dialogue (which he edited in 2004-2008) and Sunstone, which deserve to be brought together in a collection. The essays called for a transformation of Mormonism into a more tolerant and loving community, while encouraging fellow dissidents to remain in the community whenever possible. Levi Peterson presented Mormonism with a new voice, a gifted, ironic, irreverent, and gentle voice that probed, analyzed, and and demythologized

conventional Mormon attitudes. He found grace in unlikely places and in unlikely people, places the Lord would be, but where the self-respecting Mormon would be less likely to find herself. He was not about to affirm the propriety of Mormon complacency: instead, he was defiantly out to find the grace that touches all of us. Happy Birthday, Levi.Your life’s work is a true gift to the Latter-day Saints, for which I offer my gratitude.

mySUNDAY TIMOTHY THRELFALL

Photograph courtesy of Timothy Threlfall

Timothy Threlfall has been a faculty member in the nationally-recognized BFA Music Dance Theatre (MDT) program at Brigham Young University for 27 years. (When COVID hit in 2020, 16 MDT alumni were on Broadway and in Broadway national tours.) Tim directed a stage production of the musical Godspell, which is currently running at BYU and will be his final show at the university before his retirement.Tim also directs regularly at Tuacahn Center for the Arts in St. George, Utah were he will be directing his 15th production this season, a re-mount of his 2016 The Hunchback of Notre Dame.Tim is also active as an actor appearing in numerous Church films and voice over roles as well as LDS market films such as One Good Man and Once I Was Engaged. He spent time on the island of Moorea in French Polynesia this past summer working on a film entitled, Treasures of the Heart. Although The Season in general doesn’t cover educational performances, Godspell is notable as the final presentation at BYU directed by Tim Threlfall, whose tenure at BYU’s Music Dance Theatre program has lasted more than 27 years and will end next year. In a church culture deeply enamoured of musicals,Threlfall’s pragmatic, business-focused approach centered on making BYU students into versatile, marketable, and professional cast members. This strategy has proved its worth through graduates like Tony nominee Will Swenson, as well as current headliners like Oyoyo Joi Bonner taking the final bow weekly in Moulin Rouge—as well as, he points out, professionals beyond Broadway in markets all across the industry. Threlfall, known for a self-deprecating and acerbic sense of humor, would be the first to admit how ephemeral and double-edged legacy can be, but is proud of his successes.When asked to discuss his achievements he primarily focuses on pulling BYU out of isolation and into contact with the broader world, connecting the program with the National Alliance for Musical Theater, workshopping new works, and maintaining his own professional career so as to remain relevant and grounded in current practice.The landscape has changed drastically in the last 27 years, and although he isn’t Trey Parker or Matt Stone,Tim Threlfall may be equally responsible for putting more Mormons on our stages. —Ted Bushman.

The Season asked Tim to describe what an average Sunday is like. Here are his responses. An empty nest. We are empty nesters now, so Sunday mornings are quiet except for rushing to complete preparing for Priesthood lessons that are to be taught on certain Sundays. Two of our three children and their families moved back to Utah totally unexpectedly following Covid and now work from home. So most Sunday afternoons are spent with the family gathering for dinner… most often at our house. Live church. I think my wife and I were both glad to return to “live” church meetings. We are both teachers and spent a lot of time on daily Zoom classes during Covid. Teaching acting via Zoom was something of a challenge and not one I would be anxious to return to. My wife teaches middle school science, so hers was a bit more conducive to the Zoom format. Not a day of rest. We mostly spend time with family. That means four young children at our house on Sundays…so it really is not a day of “rest.” We get to rest from the work world, but not from being with very active youngsters—and we would not want it to be any other way! We purchased a product called Portal TV during the start of Covid when all three of our children and their families lived on the East and West Coast. It allowed us to talk to all three families at the same time and provided a wide-angle view of each families’ home. It was a real blessing and made us feel much closer to the grandkids. We now have one still in Boston, but the other two are here in Utah County with us. Widening view. Usually a day of rest depending upon your Church calling really. There are some callings that really don’t allow for rest on the Sabbath. We always went to church with our family, even when we were traveling. The kids usually begged not to go to Sunday School when we were in other wards, but we almost always made it to Sacrament Meeting. Now, we often spend some

time outdoors on Sundays when the weather allows. That is not something we did earlier in our lives, but we do now. Kind of a change of attitude that for us has widened our view of what “works” for us on the Sabbath.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

takeNOTE MUSICKING IN AND OUT OF MORMONISM: THE MAKING OF HEAVY MUSIC MOTHERS: EXTREME IDENTITIES, NARRATIVE DISRUPTIONS BY JULIE TURLEY

Illustration by Shelley Turley, commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

Researching rock moms for what eventually became our forthcoming book Heavy Music Mothers—an exploration of women and heavy music and the ways in which women have engaged with musicking as mothers—was not my idea. Credit goes to fellow librarian and co-author, Joan Jocson-Singh, whose involvement in extreme metal became her anthropology thesis. Many of the

women she interviewed during her thesis research worried that future children would disrupt their heavy music participation, which was crucial to self care and identity. Noting their concerns, Joan decided to narrow the focus to mothers for a subsequent study. Pregnant with her second daughter, Joan was introduced to me—mother of two—at a New York City library conference, and

she asked if I would assist her with this research. Saying “yes” was easy. Did a more interesting topic exist? Five years later, I still don’t think so. Our research started as an academic social science-y online survey, collecting demographic and related information on mothers’ music participation, their particular role, their connection, and history. We then reached out to some of these moms for one-on-one interviews.We wanted their complex, nuanced heavy music stories, how they’d found music and how it had shaped them. Joan and I were merely hoping to publish a peer-reviewed paper of this research.We continued to gather data and present at a variety of academic conferences, from the Museum of Motherhood conference in Manhattan to our dream conference: the Modern Heavy Metal Music (MHMM) conference held in Helsinki, Finland in June of 2019. When the world locked down for Covid, we appeared in Zoom conferences. An editor from Rowman Littlefield, an academic press, was in one of them. Eventually, we were offered a book contract. A book! And from what we know, as of its writing, it’s the first (soon-to-be) published academic monograph on mothers and heavy music. While primary, original research is the heart of our book, we have depended upon the research of theorists and musicologists, most notably Christopher Small’s 1998 book Musicking: The Meaning of Performing and Listening gives us a key term for navigation. “Musicking” covers a range of active participation: from singing in a church choir to performing a thunderous drum solo on stage at Madison Square Garden, to swaying to a Spotify track on the subway platform, to physically responding to a musical performance on YouTube or on Instagram live. The heavy music mothers we interviewed embody this range. In our book are stories from under-the-radar rock musicians, to a rock writer/music doc producer, a deejay, and many, many listeners and lovers of music. Identity is key. All of the mothers in our study claim a public facing music identity that they assert is just as crucial as their mothering one. This shuttling be-

tween and among identities is one that all working mothers negotiate. Like my sister’s luminous illustration that accompanies this article, Joan and I were interested in the conjunction or conflation of extreme identities: the “softness” that has conventionally characterized “motherhood” and the hardness of rock, realized at times in inhospitable, abrasive, child-unfriendly spaces where music takes place, rule-breaking and ear-splitting to rampant sexism and misogyny. The interviews are valuable in that they are documents of this extreme identity negotiation. Like in Joan’s thesis, our book’s mothers are largely in agreement: maintaining some kind of authentic connection to music is crucial to their self care. And when musicking takes the form of a high profile music career, the dynamics are more intense. Our chapter on what we’ve called the “Rock Mom Memoir” spotlights the musicking journeys of famous female rockers, most often huge stars: Tina Turner, Pat Benatar, Belinda Carlisle, to name a few. From our point of view, what’s most interesting about these rock ‘n’ roll narratives is how motherhood complicates and disrupts it. These narratives aren’t presented as mothering stories. These aren’t Anne Lamott-esque accounts of caring for an infant: motherhood is the surprise Easter egg in each. Despite their privilege, access to nannies, the song remains the same: mothering is hard, more intense than a six-string F chord and with more sustain. In these high profile contexts, when a rocker becomes a mother a lot of the people making money off her are deeply annoyed: “Mothers aren’t sexy,” Pat Benatar’s record company told her when she announced her first pregnancy. The rock machine resists being held up for diaper changes and feedings. But we discovered that the mothers who got off the machine or who detached from this music identity felt incomplete. And there was an overwhelming impulse to return to it, an often difficult journey, back to that identity. Our book is built from both an ethnographic practice in its one-on-one interviews and at the same time one of autoethnography—that is, Joan

and I open the book with an analysis of our own respective motherhood and musicking stories. How do we as the authors fit within our subject of study? For me, born into Mormonism, motherhood takes on a peculiar resonance. In the book’s introduction, I write that motherhood is an identity that was handed to me, part of a system I’m born into and one that was presented as an imperative: one day I will marry and birth children in order to achieve the highest degree of celestial glory. At least that’s the plan, not one I had a hand in, but one with promised blessings in store. Divine motherhood was an essential part of ‘70s and ‘80s era Beehive-through-Laurel lesson manuals. And I absorbed that messaging. My patriarchal blessing confirmed it: I would be a mother. Having a life map handed to you can be comforting, especially when one’s own mother, diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum in 2012, troubles the ide-

al. I write about that, too. Mormonism umbrellas my musicking journey, as well. It’s not a secret that Mormons musick—like motherhood, it’s almost a divine imperative. But it’s not until I get out of my then isolated low desert town and into Brigham Young University in Provo that I discover alternative music scenes: new wave and punk. My first punk show was with a group of actively musicking and practicing Mormons from Deseret Towers. From then on, hard music would be an integral part of my front facing Mormon girl identity. No doubt it kept me from finding a husband on campus by graduation unlike many of my girlfriends. As art often does, it revised the map. Marriage outside of Mormonism descended. Then daughters. The marriage ended. Music and daughters endure. We hope this book, the result of a lifetime of gestation and a year of labor, will inspire other scholars. Mother work is never done.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

FURTHERMORE WHAT I AM SEEING RIGHT NOW by WARREN WINEGAR

Warren Winegar, above. All photographs for this article were taken by Warren Winegar, used with his permission

I get to see a lot of art: paintings, sculpture, works on paper and everything in between. As a professional Art Advisor, I am lucky enough to attend art fairs all around the world each year. I am often on the road going to franchises such as Art Basel’s

fairs in Switzerland, Paris, Miami Beach, and Hong Kong; Frieze’s editions in London, Los Angeles, and New York; stand alone fairs like Untitled in Miami Beach, Expo Chicago, and ARCO Madrid; and many others. Indeed, the prevalence of art fairs

translates into at least one major global fair happening every month, and often it is more.

rary painting today.

In my work with The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts, we frequently discuss the many niches and areas that constitute the current art market. I am often asked, “What are you seeing right now?” My answer is never straightforward and often changes to adapt to the audience I am addressing. I was asked by The Season’s Editorial Board this exact question and therefore will share some of what I am seeing in the context of readers of this publication. I have chosen to focus on three areas that are dominant in Contemporary Art: the figure, surrealism, and textiles and fiber. Some of the ideas I am sharing have been in play for several years. Some are not earth-shattering. Some might be brand new. I could have chosen any number of artists to illustrate these areas; I just happened to choose these. Through it all, this is one perspective that reflects how I am connecting the dots.

Figure 1. Jennifer Packer

The Figure One could argue that the human figure is among the oldest subjects of paintings and drawings in art history. The past several years have brought a lot of new faces and voices to canvases, depicting figures and telling a broader range of stories. This has been building over more than a decade and has become more mainstream particularly in the past five years. This movement is being led by many artists of color coming from various parts of the world. Interestingly, the wide use of the color wheel in depicting skin tone, light and shading that many artists are employing right now is helping us to see the human form in different ways. Reminiscent of Matisse’s portraits from the early 20th century, with subjects’ faces striped with green, red, and a myriad of other colors, these emerging painters cause viewers to really look at the structures anew. Those audacious moves of the early 20th century helped set the stage for contempo-

The Body Has Memory, 2020 Medium and dimensions not disclosed

The artist Jennifer Packer [see Figure 1] is a great example of this. She had show at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York that closed in April 2022 that I encouraged everyone I knew to go and see. Its title was The Eye Is Not Satisfied with Seeing and it was such a gorgeous assemblage of paintings. Packer uses a range of colors, often reds and pinks, to depict her sitters in soft, soulful and solitary moments. Her brush is heavy in gesture but light in its depiction.

Figure 2. Robert Peterson All My Life, 2022 Oil on canvas, 48 x 72 inches

I saw Oklahoma-based Robert Peterson’s All My Life [Figure 2] at Untitled Miami Beach in 2021 and the image has stayed with me. Peterson brings in such a range of blues and grays to accentuate the skin and muscle tone of his subject. For me, this recalls certain Impressionist paintings by the likes of Manet and Renoir, where close inspection reveals a multitude of colors in the skin tones.The subjects could not be more different between these two camps, each a symbol of its own time and place, yet both share the shades of blue to be complete. While I cannot say what might have been his inspiration for this painting, Peterson is certainly among those showing new, interesting, and innovative ways of interpreting skin.

Figure 3. Derrick Adams Figure in the Urban Landscape 36, 2019 Acrylic, graphite, ink, fabric collage, grip tape and model cars on wood panel, 60 x 60 inches

One of my favorite artists working today is Derrick Adams. Adams is truly a bright light in the arts orbit at the moment. Across his work, his unique style evokes joy amidst dense storytelling. One of his signature stylistic elements are faces composed of facets, each employing individual colors or tones. He also incorporates a wide use of collage through photography, textiles, or other materials. In Figure in the Urban Landscape 36 [Figure 3], Adams has attached small toy cars as a mechanism of storytelling for this series of paintings about traveling using the Greenbook. His most recent show closed a few weeks ago at The FLAG Art Foundation in New York and is wholly worth seeing online.

Surrealism

Figure 4. Anna Weyant Summertime, 2020 (detail) Oil on canvas, 30 x 40 inches

Within the realm of figuration is work that crosses between another area for discussion, which is a revived interest in the art of the surreal. Summertime [Figure 4], by California-based Anna Weyant, sold at Christie’s auction house last year and is representative of this other strand of detailed, realistic painting. At first glance these paintings seem almost traditional, but upon further inspection the mysterious elements begin to emerge. They beg questions. They incite responses.

Figure 5. Dorothea Tanning Title not provided, circa 1960 Oil on canvas, approximately 40 x 49 inches

There is not always a clear path to understanding why some trends or movements start, but they typically happen organically or are event driven. In art history in particular, all things build upon each other. As artists look at each other’s work, they bring their own new addition or perspective to what they see. Many will follow on or expand in their own vein. Much of art’s historical cannon has been revisited over the past twenty years by academics and others, and this has brought in fresh eyes to look at makers and movements. Two seminal events took place in 2022 that solidify the moment for Surrealism of the past and its continuation in the present. First was the 2022 Venice Biennale titled Milk of Dreams, which brought the past and the present

together in a compelling presentation. Second was an amazingly comprehensive exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Art called Surrealism Beyond Borders, which brought a survey view of the movement to fruition on the broadest scale. Along the way, artists such as Dorothea Tanning [see Figure 5], whose talents were largely overlooked in their lifetimes, are now seeing a lot of excitement and inclusion back into the dialogue. Certainly their influence is contributing to artists working today. However, there are key differences in work that is being created today as opposed to times past. One of those differences is more practical than philosophical: technology. The ways that many artist’s work today with all sorts of computer programs and digital capacities allows them to play with the morphing of objects and backgrounds in ways never before attainable. It is less about philosophy, as with the first Surrealists, and more about the range of abstraction and the influences that technology has on our world today. Surrealism 2.0, if you like, seems fit for our times. Can anyone really say that the changes to our world during the pandemic were not surreal? While these ideas have been developing for several years they have caught on with makers today. Artists–who inherently see the world differently from most people–grappled with how to interpret what was going on around them, creating works that might not make sense on the surface, but that make a whole lot of sense in practice. Aspects of Surrealism also lend themselves to elements of creation and leaning into a dreamlike state where the transit of ideas and inspirations can pass and flow.

Figure 6. Annie Lapin A. A Lie A Truth A., 2022 Oil, acrylic and charcoal on linen, 30 x40 inches

Looking at the work of a young Los Angeles-based painter Annie Lapin [Figure 6] gives us glimpses of the liminal space in between the known and an unknown world. Vivid colors and ethereal light contribute to the desire to mentally go further into this landscape.

Textiles and Fiber

Figure 7.

Figure 8.

Firelei Baez,

Sheila Hicks

Painted in 2021

Lianes, 2021

oil on canvas, dimensions not disclosed

94 x 72 x 4 inches

The same could be said for Firelei Baez of the Dominican Republic [Figure 7], whose fiery bodies and range of forms, both known and highly stylized, hover in spaces that are not always clearly defined.

Historically speaking, sewing, needlepoint, weaving, and anything having to do with fabrics and fibers have been considered women’s work. Much of it was not considered a high art form until well into the latter half of the 20th century. While this article is not seeking to relitigate or defend past pretenses, it is clear by the sheer volume of artists across genders that are working in these mediums that a new classification is due. Pioneers in this field such as Paris-based Sheila Hicks are finally getting the attention and prominence they deserve. At 88 years old, Hicks is busier than ever with so much demand for her work amongst public institutions and private collectors. Her Lianes [Figure 8] is a composition of individual cords of wool or linen and bound with silk

threads that are grouped together and hung on a rod. As an expert colorist and great visionary blending age old techniques with modern thinking, her influence is far and wide.

Figure 10. Billie Zangewa Sweetest Devotion, 2021 Silk collage, 53.9 x 41.7 inches Figure 9. Igshaan Adams Onder die Derde Laag (under the third layer), 2021 Wood, painted wood, plastic, glass, stone and precious stone beads, polyester and nylon rope, gold and silver chain and cotton twine, 80.32 x 69.29 inches

Weaving is not exclusive to women as we see in the Cape Town, South Africa, based Igshaan Adams, who is taking aspects of the traditional weaving he grew up around and expanding the range of materials and scale—often monumental—to make objects that are very contemporary and infused with captivating new meaning [see Figure 9].

The idea that fabrics and sewing can be as flexible as paint is another new dynamic element to contemporary art. Complex compositions using a broad range of silks bring lovely, pictorial pieces that shimmer and tell intimate stories in the work of Billie Zangewa. In Sweetest Devotion [Figure 10], the artist reacts to the fabrics themselves and sometimes the shapes that she is presented with in creating her cozy glimpses of family life.

of these areas for those looking to expand their vision of the world, their own creativity and the breadth of expression that exists in the hands, hearts and heads of God’s children.

Figure 11. Hangama Amiri Still-Life with Dressing Table, 2021 Chiffon, cotton, muslin, silk, polyester, inkjet print, tie-dye fabric, Ikat print fabric, color pencil on fabric, 43 x 49 inches

Afghani born Hangama Amiri [see Figure 11] uses a wide variety of fabrics and textures along with custom printed pieces when creating her compositions, which are imbued with longing and nostalgia for another time and place. Her work is deeply feminine and the painterly planes she achieves through mixing her mediums make them very inviting and tactile.You can learn more about her work in a current exhibition at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Connecticut. This summation of a few movements in the current contemporary art world, and a fraction of the many artists whose talent and vision exemplify them, is only one person’s view. There are many more artists, including those who affiliate or identify with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose work is worthy of discovery and personal study. There is also relevance in all

I am obsessed with art and beautiful things, and that I get to look at art as a profession is a gift. While I appreciate beauty I also welcome challenging subject matter and methods for the perspective they bring and the expansion of knowledge and compassion I experience by interacting with them. Time spent looking at and investigating art and artists can make the world a better and more understanding place. Art develops curiosity and respect for varied points of view. I hate to imagine a world where we did not have artist’s brains at work, helping amalgamate and distill the complexities and confusions as well as celebrations of the world. Their creations can capture emotions that we cannot express on our own and give voice to ideas that just need a nudge. So, go on. Learn something visually new.

LETTERSto theEDITOR “Sister Marguerite, Our Darling,” was a beautifully written and informative article. I spent considerable time since you posted, trying to link her to the Brigham Young family and don’t think she’s descended from him or any of his brothers. Perhaps from one of his cousins, but it’s sure tenuous. Maybe she adopted herself in, fictionally, after reading Fawn Brodie’s No Man Knows My History. For what it’s worth, the author is mistaken about the Harmonists being from the same Harmony, Pennsylvania, as the Mormons. The Harmonists were from an entirely different Harmony, a village (now a borough) in Butler County near Pittsburgh.The Mormons, owing to the home of Emma Hale Smith and her parents, were in the Town of Harmony, in Susquehanna County, more than 300 miles east-northeast of the earlier Harmonists. On the other hand, Kirtland, Ohio, less than 100 miles northwest, may have been influenced by the Harmonists living with “all things in common.” I don’t want to detract from the wonderful article, however. Thank you for publishing it. John Hajicek Independence, MO

When I notice my group of people or things I hold sacred being joked about, it reminds me of when I have done the same, but towards what I consider “other.” How many times have I told jokes where the brunt is not my group or not my sacred thing? I hope it’s been a long time since I’ve made that mistake and only when I was young and ignorant. Aaron Jones Charlotte, NC

I just read and really appreciated your analysis of The Whale yesterday, since I only knew vague parameters of the play but you really laid out the changes for the film adaptation; I think this is another manifestation of adaptations like Advise and Consent and Thumbsucker that have removed their Mormon elements for cinematic consumption, but it’s a very different ballgame from the 1960s or even the early 2000s. Randy Astle New York, NY

I hear you on something I hold dear being the brunt of jokes and misrepresentation. I remember saying to a class of shocked graduate students (at the U of U), during a discussion on issues of othering targeted population groups, that there was a lot about the existence of a musical making fun of things I hold sacred (The Book of Mormon) I find downright offensive. I was trying to get them to see that issues of race and social class are not the only bases of prejudice and othering. I got some very surprised and thoughtful looks from the students when I said that. Sue Neimoyer Rexburg, ID

I loved reading this! So fascinating to see a “potential” shift in how we’re portrayed. And fascinating! Awesome write. Courtney Lawson Charleston, SC

Nice observations Glen! However, I wonder what it will take to start seeing more positive representation of members of the LDS church in popular culture in secular settings. A majority of depictions of “Mormons” in the mass media seem to still be mostly religious in nature, minor characters, and their faith is often either trivialized or demonized. Why can’t the spotlight ever shine on some faithful member who is achieving great things in the fields of science, business, or the arts as many members of the church are? Perhaps that is too big of an ask for now, but the examples you give do seem to correlate with possible shifts in public perception and I hope that we continue to see positive change in this regard over the next several years.

Great piece. It reminds me a bit of when Neil LaBute went from Provo to NYC, and as I read about his growing notoriety I thought, “Somebody in Provo goes to BASH, they think ‘Am I capable of being that awful?’ but somebody in New York goes to BASH and thinks ‘Are Mormons capable of being that awful?’” Also, I think you’ve touched on something broader: there seems to be a sense among a lot of folks that because the Church is rich/politically connected/etc., that any mockery of Mormons counts as “punching up.” Jeremy Grimshaw Payson, UT

Cade Roberts New York, NY

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS PETER BUSHMAN

MEGAN ECKERSLEY

Peter Bushman is a translator, editor and writer. He lives in Kansas City.

Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

TED BUSHMAN Ted Bushman is a composer and writer currently based in the Hudson Valley. He is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, and his fiction has been published in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Metaphorosis, and Inscape.

KATHIE DEBENHAM Kathie Debenham is Emeritus Professor of Dance at UVU where she founded the Dance Department and was inaugural Dean of the School of the Arts. She is a member of the CLDSA Advisory Board and The Season Editorial Board.

MIKE DENISON Mike Denison is an entrepreneur residing in South Jordan, Utah who is equally at home in the outdoors and large cities. He can usually be found playing on the floor with his granddaughters.

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD Emily Larsen Doxford is the marketing and communications director for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. A writer and communications professional, she received her MA in American and English Literature from NYU.

DAVID FLETCHER David Fletcher is a composer, arranger, pianist and organist, educated at BYU and NYU. His music may be found on 10 recordings and is published by Sonos Music. He has been an organist in the New York New York Stake for 38 years. He goes by the nickname D.

JAMES GOLDBERG James Goldberg is a poet, essayist, and novelist who specializes in Mormon literature. By day, he writes for the Church History Department.

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ Gabriel González is a native of Uruguay who has also lived in Belgium, Ecuador, and the United States. In addition, he has spent several months in Colombia, Germany, Mexico, and Spain.

ANDREW HALL Andrew Hall is an associate professor of Japanese history at Kyushu University, in Fukuoka, Japan. He is the literature book review editor at Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, and is the co-editor of The Path and the Gate, a fiction anthology forthcoming from Signature Books.

CAROLINE JOHNSON

WARREN WINEGAR

Caroline Johnson is a senior art BYU in the Art History and Curatorial Studies Program. She a former writer for Museé Magazine, serves as the BYU Art History Association President and was the 2022-2023 Miss Days of ’47 Queen.

Warren Winegar is a private Art Advisor based in New York. He was previously Head of Client Services at Sotheby’s. He currently serves as Chair of the Advisory Board for the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts as well as on several committees.

JEFF PARKIN Jeff Parkin is an award-winning filmmaker and film professor at Brigham Young University. He and his wife, artist Jana Parkin, live in Provo, Utah.

JULIE TURLEY Julie Turley is a mother, writer, old punk rocker, and faculty librarian in the City University of New York system. Her book, Heavy Music Mothers: Extreme Identities, Narrative Disruptions co-authored with Joan Jocson-Singh is forthcoming from Lexington Books in May 2023.

SHELLEY TURLEY Shelley Turley lives and works in Portland, Oregon, where the trees, rain, hippies and cults—old and new—continue to inspire her. Shelley is currently preparing for a solo show, opening in May 2023, at Portland gallery Helen’s Costume.

MYKAL URBINA Mykal Urbina is the Executive Director of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. Arizona-raised, New York-educated, Orange County transplant, current Salt Lake City resident, Mykal previously worked for the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center and Segerstrom Center for the Arts.

theSEASON

MAY2023

inMIND

COPYRIGHT FAIR USE, ANDY WARHOL, AND PRINCE. IS THE SUPREME COURT ABOUT TO DECLARE THAT THE TRANSFORMATIVE TEST’S 15 MINUTES ARE UP? by PATRICK T. PERKINS The following article has been updated since the May 18, 2023 decision and includes an addendum in light of that decision. Both the original article and the addendum are written by Patrick T. Perkins, an experienced intellectual property attorney who, most recently, was Chief IP Counsel at a major media company. Was Andy Warhol a copyright infringer? “Dearly Beloved,” in a case that’s certain to change the copyright landscape, the US Supreme Court (“the Court”) “is gathered here today” to answer this question. Before the close of this session, the Court will decide The Andy Warhol Foundation For The Visual Arts, Inc. v. Lynn Goldsmith and Lynn Goldsmith Limited, Ltd., a dispute over portraits of the late music performer Prince by Andy Warhol. This case is likely to clarify the US Copyright Act’s fair use defense and its “transformative” doctrine. What Copyright Protects and Its Fair Use Provision To understand why this case is so important, a little background is needed. The US Copyright Act protects original works of authorship that are “fixed in any tangible medium of expression.” 17 U.S.C. sec. 102(a). These works of authorship run a spectrum from literary or musical works, to pictorial or sculptural works, to audiovisual works, to architectural works, and even databases and computer code. Owners of copyright have the following exclusive rights in their works:

(a) reproduction, (b) derivative work creation (more on this later), (c) distribution, and (d) public performance or display. The mandate for copyright protection finds its roots in the US Constitution’s delegation to Congress to make laws “[t]o promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts[.]” US Const., art. I, sec. 8, cl. 8. Copyright is viewed as an engine of free expression, granting authors a monopoly over their creations, thus providing the incentive to create. However, that monopoly is not unlimited—for example, copyrights expire, ideas are not protected (only their unique expression is), and some unauthorized copying, known in the law as “fair use,” is permitted. Fair use is the central issue in this case. The fair use section of the Copyright Act is broken into two parts: an explanatory preamble and a series of factors to be weighed. The preamble states that unauthorized copying is permitted “for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom

use), scholarship or research….” In other words, fair use is designed to accommodate First Amendment concerns. The law then identifies the following four factors as among those to be weighed: (1) “the purpose and character of the use” – until 1994, this factor focused almost exclusively on whether the new use was commercial or for non-profit educational purposes, (2) “the nature of the copyrighted work” – typically, analysis of this factor centers on whether the copied work is closer to the core of copyright protection, e.g., fiction over non-fiction/fact-based works, (3) “the amount and substantiality” of the copied work used—this focuses not just on the amount of the copied work taken, but on its value (i.e., whether the copier take the “best” or “most valuable” part), and (4) “the effect of the use upon the market for or value of the copyrighted work.” Id. The Supreme Court has held that this last factor is supposed to be given the most weight. Courts are expected to examine any claim of fair use through the lens of the stated free speech purposes above and then weigh and balance each of the four listed factors and any other factors the court deems relevant in its inquiry. The fair use test remained largely unchanged until the Supreme Court issued its decision in Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. in 1994. In that case, the owner of copyright in singer-songwriter Roy Orbison’s hit “Oh, Pretty Woman,” sued hip-hop group 2 Live Crew for its unauthorized version of the song. Justice Souter for the majority held that 2 Live Crew’s version was a fair use parody. In so doing, he introduced a new element into the analysis of the “purpose and character of the use” factor. Up to that point, the factor centered on whether the unauthorized copy was either commercial (and weighed against a finding of fair use) or non-profit/educational (favoring fair use).

However, relying upon a law review article written by an influential U.S. District Judge, the Court stated that the “purpose and character” analysis should also look to whether the copied work “merely ‘supersede[s] the objects’ of the original creation…, or instead adds something new, with a further purpose or different character, altering the first with new expression, meaning, or message; it asks, in other words, whether and to what extent the new work is ‘transformative.’” The opinion goes on to state that “the more transformative the new work, the less will be the significance of other factors, like commercialism, that may weigh against a finding of fair use.” Once the Court found 2 Live Crew’s version of “Oh, Pretty Woman” to be a transformative parody, it then viewed this factor to be more important than the others, including those that weighed against a finding of fair use. The Court’s adoption of the “transformative” test has been interpreted by subsequent courts and has resulted in unintended and negative consequences. First, notwithstanding the Court’s careful discussion of its “transformative” concept—that a work could be more or less transformative and that all of the fair use factors still should be weighed— subsequent courts have reduced the inquiry to a binary Rorschach-type test that disregards the First Amendment framework in the section’s preamble and pays only lip service to the statutory factors. Indeed, a study of fair use court of appeals decisions conducted by a member of BYU’s law school faculty found that in the 152 fair use opinions between 1991 and 2017 in which the courts found the secondary uses to be transformative, 91% also found them to be fair. Clark D. Asay et al. Is Transformative Use Eating the World?, 61 B.C. L. Rev. 905, 941 (2020). Five circuits had rates of 100%. Id. Two cases from 2013 are often mentioned as emblematic of the transformative test having an outsized influence in fair use analysis. The first is a suit between artist/illustrator Derek Gray and the

pop punk band Green Day. In that case, Green Day created a video backdrop for a concert tour, with different images for each of the 32 songs on the band’s set list. For the song “East Jesus Nowhere,” Green Day included a selection of images that was dominated by a modified version of a work by Seltzer entitled “Scream Icon.” The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (California) found that Green Day’s use was transformative even though it “ma[de] few physical changes to” and “fail[ed] to comment on the original.” The fact that Seltzer’s image was used as “raw material” in the construction of the video and that

the meaning of his work was not clear to begin with, was enough to qualify Green Day’s use as fair. The second case was between photographer Patrick Cariou and appropriation artist Richard Prince. In 2000, Cariou published a book entitled Yes Rasta featuring classical portraits and landscape photos taken while he lived among Rastafarians in Jamaica. Prince discovered Cariou’s book and created works comprised of 59 photographs torn out of the book and altered in various degrees. Such alterations included painting “lozenges” over the subjects’ facial features, affixing head shots from Cariou’s photos on other appropriated images,

From left: “Scream Icon” by Derek Seltzer and Green Day Use Both images as reproduced from US Court of Appeals Decision.

and the like.The lower court found for Cariou and rejected Prince’s fair use defense, but the Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit (New York) reversed, finding that all but five of Prince’s works were fair use. The appeals court found Prince’s works to be transformative because they “incorporate[d] color, feature[d] distorted human and other forms and settings,” and were larger than the original photos they incorporated. Among other things, the court in the Cariou case did not identify any direct commentary by Prince on Cariou’s works.

art reproduction, abridgment, condensation, or any other form in which a work may be recast, transformed, or adapted….” (Emphasis added.) We confront derivative works every day in media when we see movie sequels,TV spin-offs, remakes, or adaptations of plays or books into audiovisual works. The tension posed by the transformative test with the derivative work right is that there is no clear line for when a transformed work crosses the bridge from being an infringing derivative work to being a permissible fair use.

Aside from the binary manner in which courts have treated the transformative test, the test itself presents a conflict with the law’s guarantee to copyright owners of the exclusive right to create a “derivative work.” The Copyright Act defines a derivative work as “a work based upon one or more preexisting works, such as a translation, musical arrangement, dramatization, fictionalization, motion picture version, sound recording,

With that somewhat lengthy wind-up, now to the facts of the case currently before the Court.

Richard Prince’s Canal Zone as included in the court file.

What Is the Case About? Lynn Goldsmith is a successful commercial photographer who has photographed, among other subjects, musicians and performers. Andy Warhol was, well, Andy Warhol. His works and legacy are managed by the Andy Warhol Foundation.

In 1981, on assignment from Newsweek magazine, Goldsmith photographed the performer Prince both in concert and in her New York City studio. In the studio she chose to shoot him in black and white in front of a simple white background. Goldsmith later stated that the resulting photos showed Prince as “not a comfortable person” and as a “vulnerable human being.” In 1984, in connection with a story it was running about Prince entitled “Purple Fame,” Vanity Fair licensed one of Goldsmith’s photos of Prince “for use as an artist’s reference in connection with an article….” Vanity Fair then commissioned Andy Warhol to create an illustration.Warhol created a full-color illustration of Prince that accompanied the article and went on to create the “Prince Series” comprised of 16 images of Prince, all derived from Goldsmith’s photo. Below are side by side,

Richard Prince’s Canal Zone as included in the court file.

Goldsmith’s photo and one of Warhol’s works as included in a number of court filings. Goldsmith did not discover that Warhol had created a series of works based on her photo until 2016, when, shortly after Prince’s death, Vanity Fair republished Warhol’s work in a commemorative issue. Goldsmith then contacted the Warhol Foundation and claimed copyright infringement. In response, the Warhol Foundation initiated suit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeking a declaration that Warhol’s works were not infringing and, even if they were, that they were permissible fair use. The district court, feeling largely bound by the Cariou decision discussed above, found Wahol’s works to be fair uses. The critical finding by the court was that Warhol’s works were transforma-

tive because, whereas Goldsmith’s works depicted Prince as “not a comfortable person” and a “vulnerable human being,” the court viewed Warhol’s depiction as portraying Prince as an “iconic, largerthan-life” figure. Once it held Warhol’s work to be transformative, the other fair use factors fell like dominoes and were held either as “neutral” or favoring Warhol; this notwithstanding the facts that Warhol’s use was commercial, that Goldsmith’s photo was a creative work, that Warhol used the heart of the photo, and that Goldsmith had established a secondary licensing market for her works. The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the lower court’s ruling and found that Warhol’s work was not transformative in the sense intended in the fair use analysis. Rather, to be transformative, the work needed to do more than just add a new aesthetic or expression to its source material but needed to be used for “‘fundamentally different and new’ artistic purpose and character…” and not simply impose the second artist’s style on the first artist’s work. The appeals court went on to hold that “the overarching purpose and function of the two works at issue here is identical, not merely in the broad sense that they are created as works of visual art, but also in the narrow but essential sense that they are portraits of the same person.” The court went on to find that all of the factors favored Goldsmith and that Warhol’s work was not a fair use. The Warhol foundation appealed to the Supreme Court, but solely on the question of whether Warhol’s work was transformative. The Court agreed to take the case, and briefing and argument were completed in October of last year. A decision is due imminently. Not surprisingly, in briefing, and later at oral argument, all parties paid close attention to the tension between the transformative test on the one hand and the derivative work right on the other. For example, the Warhol Foundation reads the Court’s decision in the “Oh, Pretty Woman” parody case to hold that if a second work conveys

a new expression, meaning, or message different from the original, then it is transformative. Period. Conversely, Goldsmith and certain friends of the Court point out that virtually any derivative work, traditionally created with permission from the owner of the first work, meets this test. For example, in its brief, the Motion Picture Association (“MPA”)1 explained “[i]n most instances a derivative work will alter the meaning or message of the original work….” As an example, the MPA pointed to “the 2019 film The Joker—a spinoff of the Batman franchise—[which] transformed the titular character from a campy caricature into a dark, brooding figure plagued with life-altering mental health issues, a portrait that itself was a commentary on the plight of those who experience mental illness.” The Warhol Foundation sought to resolve the tension between the transformative test and the derivative work right by arguing “[a]n adaptation of a novel into a movie is typically not considered fair use precisely because it does not change the meaning or message of the original.” At oral argument, counsel for the Warhol Foundation spent much of his allotted time responding to hypotheticals from the Justices regarding uses that would be both transformative and derivative works and would normally require permission, but seemed conceptually very similar to the current case. At one point, Justice Amy Coney Barrett asked the Foundation’s counsel why, under the test urged by the Warhol Foundation, one would have needed a license from the Tolkien estate to create the Lord of the Rings movies. The Foundation’s counsel initially responded that the films were not fundamentally different from Tolkien’s novels. When confronted with the Justice’s incredulous response, counsel backed off, confessing to not having read the books or being familiar with the films. Why the Case Is Important and What’s Likely to Happen One of the important purposes of the law is to provide predictability. The critically important fair

use defense has become less predictable as a result of the transformative test as it has evolved. In many ways, the amusing exchange mentioned above between Justice Coney Barrett and counsel for the Warhol Foundation proves this point. Do the Lord of the Rings films add a new meaning or message to the Tolkien novels or don’t they? I suppose reasonable minds can differ. Similarly, while the Warhol Prince images certainly have a different aesthetic than Goldsmith’s photos, who can definitively pronounce such changes a new meaning or message? Does the current fair use analysis force judges into being art or literary critics, and is that an appropriate role? And what about so called “appropriation artists” like Richard Prince and Warhol? Is there a fair use space for them? As evidenced by oral argument, it is clear that the Court recognizes that something needs to change, but what is likely to happen? The answer is far from clear. On the one hand, conventional wisdom is that the Supreme Court typically does not take up a case simply to affirm the lower court. However, copyright nerds point out that this is the second copyright fair use case the Court has taken up in the last couple of years, the previous case involving computer software between Oracle and Google. However, that case was not ideal to address the transformative test. Conversely, this case is an opportunity to course-correct the current test if the Court sees fit. The other reason to expect a change to the transformative test is that Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh were both clerking for Justice Anthony Kennedy when the “Oh, Pretty Woman” opinion was issued. (Judicial clerks research and often help draft opinions by Court justices.) Justice Kennedy issued a concurring opinion in that case and made a couple of important points. For example, he wrote “[i]t is not enough that the parody use the original in a humorous fashion, however creative the humor may be. The parody must target the original, and not just its general style, the genre of art to which it belongs, or society as a whole…” Some subsequent fair use cases have moved away

from the notion that a fair use must comment upon the prior work. Secondly, in his only mention of transformation in the concurrence, Justice Kennedy wrote “[i]f we allow any weak transformation to qualify as parody, however, we weaken the protection of copyright…[which] disserves the goals of copyright just as much as overprotection, by reducing the financial incentive to create.” I have always read Justice Kennedy’s concurrence as tacit criticism of the transformative test and it would not be a stretch to believe that Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh retain a similar view to that of their mentor. In sum, something is going to happen. In the event the transformative test is retired, creators (and their lawyers) will likely need to recalibrate their fair use calculators. For example, they may be required to justify their incorporation of a pre-existing work by focusing more intently on the First Amendment contours set out in the provision’s preamble and give more attention to the four factors from the text of the statute. Simply having the new work be “different” whether aesthetically or in message, will likely not be enough. On the other hand, the Court may just attempt to clarify the transformative test in order to protect creators’ exclusive right to create derivative works. Perhaps they will articulate the formula to distinguish a transformative work from a derivative work. At the end of the day, whether what the Court does will be better or worse than the current state of the law is anyone’s guess. In the meantime, if you’re considering relying on fair use in creating your own work, it would be wise to wait for this opinion to issue. Oh, and seek the advice of counsel. _________ 1 As full disclosure, in my former role at Warner Bros., I participated in the preparation of the MPA Amicus Brief referenced here.

UPDATE! Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith The Supreme Court Hands Down its Decision On May 18, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in the Case. The 7-2 majority opinion written by Justice Sotomayor, affirms the court of appeals’ decision, finding that the first fair use factor—“the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes”— favored the photographer, Lynn Goldsmith. As a result, Conde Nast’s license of one of Warhol’s Prince silkscreens for a magazine cover without Goldsmith’s permission was not fair use. Justice Sotomayor was joined by Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett, and Jackson. Justice Gorsuch also wrote a concurring opinion (an opinion that agrees with the majority but seeks to further clarify on certain points). Justice Kagan wrote a blistering dissent, in which she was joined by Chief Justice Roberts. Here are a few brief observations about this very important opinion: The Tension Between The Existing Transformative Test And The Derivative Work Right Was A Decisive Factor. – As outlined in my article, at oral argument, all parties grappled with defining when transformation crosses over from being an unauthorized derivative work to an excusable fair use. The Court rejected the Warhol Foundation’s argument that the addition of any new meaning or message made a work transformative and the use fair because, such an approach “would swallow the copyright owner’s exclusive right to prepare derivative works.” According to the Court, examples of transformative derivative works that would not be fair uses included a commercial remix of Prince’s “Purple Rain” or the musical adaptation of Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple.” (Apparently Justice Sotomayor is a fan of purple.) However,

some derivatives were identified as likely fair use, including 2Live Crew’s “Oh, Pretty Woman” (parody), “The Wind Done Gone” (a novel parody of Margaret Mitchell’s “Gone With The Wind”), and Warhol’s Soup Cans (commentary on consumerism). The Transformative Test May Not Be Dead, But It’s Gone From A Starring Role To A Cameo – As mentioned in the body of my article, in fair use cases leading up to this one, the Transformative test had become a shorthand replacement for the first fair use factor.The Warhol Foundation claimed Warhol’s work was transformative because it conveyed a different meaning or message than the original. The Court rejected this and instead returned to the language of the first factor, looking to the purpose and character of the new work. While new meaning or message in a new work may be relevant to the first factor, the Court now clarifies that, in order to be transformative, the new work must have a different purpose and character. The Court found that both Goldsmith’s and Warhol’s works had the same purpose—they were both representations of Prince and used as illustrations for magazine stories.The Court teases that a different result might be reached if the second work were merely being shown in a museum. Because the Court moves the analysis back to the broader first factor, the term “transformative” becomes obsolete as a shorthand, and I predict that while the term may continue to be paid lip service, it will no longer have the same potency and will ultimately fade away in future opinions. The Preamble Is Back On The Menu! – In explaining the meaning of the first factor, the Court explains that it “relates to the problem of substitution.” If the new work “achieve[s] a purpose that is the same as or highly similar to, that of the original work” it’s more likely to supplant it. The Court then looks to the “purposes” listed in the Pream-

ble of the fair use section: “criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching . . ., scholarship, or research.” While this list is not meant to be exhaustive, it is meant to illustrative. The Court points to the nature of uses such as criticisms to illustrate the kinds of works that do not supersede or supplant a work. One consequence of the Court’s focus on the Preamble (as well as the repeated reminder that the 2Live Crew case involved a parody) may be that it will be much harder to establish fair use if the second work’s new material cannot be perceived as commenting on the original. While Warhol’s Prince silkscreen could be viewed as imbuing the underlying image with a new meaning or message, no argument was or could be made that Warhol was commenting on Goldsmith’s creative message or choices. Why Does The Opinion Go On And On About The Warhol Campbell Soup Cans? – In its recent 2019 copyright fair use opinion regarding computer software, the Court made reference to Warhol’s Soup Cans in explaining “[a]n artistic painting might, for example, fall within the scope of fair use even though it precisely replicates a copyrighted advertising logo to make a comment about consumerism.” (Oops!) Indeed, the dissent makes much of the obvious—if Warhol’s faithful representations of the Campbell Soup Cans were fair use, then why isn’t his arguably more altered use of Goldsmith’s photographs also fair use? The majority returns to the “purpose” prong of the first factor—Warhol wasn’t using “Soup Cans” as a logo for soup whereas the two Prince images were being used for essentially the same purpose. Justices Kagan And Sotomayor Seem Unlikely To Exchange Holiday Cards Anytime Soon – One of the notable features of the majority and dissenting opinions is what can only be described as fairly nasty sniping back and forth.The dissent’s argument boils down to the view that the majority approach

is likely to stifle follow on works. However, for all of its eloquence, the dissent never really answers the question on derivative works. One cannot help but wonder whether the dissent would be as vehement (or exist at all), were the work at issue not by Andy Warhol.

OUTandABOUT ESTHER The Season’s big experiment is to catalog and present as many artworks by LDS people as we can find. Frank Zappa once quipped, “So many books, so little time.” No kidding. The many books by LDS authors appear mostly from four sources: commercial entities (books from publishing houses large and small), university presses (scholarly books from big universities in the US and abroad), self-publication (books published directly by their authors), and Church-owned or aligned publishers (books, often devotional, but not exclusively, written to an audience connected to the faith). Although all publishers would love to bridge the awareness divide between readers and authors, each of the above faces unique difficulties reaching LDS readers for their volumes. For those reasons, consider yourself deputized to spread the word about books by LDS authors. Here’s a new title for you: Esther: For Such a Time As This (Covenant Books) tells the story of the biblical queen using source material from the Bible, the writing of Josephus, and Apocryphal texts, combined into an epic told in blank verse poetry. Its author is Bruce T. Forbes. (Esther is to be released May 10.) LA GUITARRISTA If there was ever a more exuberant, delightful, exciting, and engaging picture book than Lucky Diaz and Micah Player’s Palatero Man (2021, HarperCollins), we can’t imagine it. The Latin Grammy-winning author and her celebrated Utah-based illustrator, respectively, have a new book out this month, La Guitarrista. Like the earlier story of a boy on the hunt for the perfect flavored ice in the barrio, the new title features an urban, contem-

porary character. This young girl is named Canta, and she finds a guitar in the trash. The fact that it’s busted and she doesn’t know how to play it doesn’t keep her from dreaming of rock stardom. Diaz has a gift for turning out rhymes melding English and Spanish that make any reader feel bilingual…and happy. The book comes with a link to the song that inspired it. (La Guitarrista will be released May 2.)

RETURNING TO MOUNTAIN MEADOWS On a chilly Autumn afternoon before my parents passed away, we drove from their home in Cedar City, Utah southwestward toward Enterprise. My dad was a sheep farmer and knew the local land, its water sources, and backroads as if they were his birthright. As we traveled, he told me about the Old Spanish Trail and the many springs that once provided respite along these valleys for 19th century travelers passing through. We arrived at our destination, the Mountain Meadows Massacre Memorial. My parents had been defensive about it in the car, perhaps because our settler ancestors had been there for the massacre. But once on the site, reading the historical markers and seeing the rock cairns scattered throughout the otherwise empty valley, they became quiet. I felt (and feel) shame, anger, and heartbreak for the events of September 7-11, 1857. I want to make sense of something I suspect I’ll never fully comprehend. Two new books on the subject might help. They are Vengeance Is Mine: The Mountain Meadows Massacre and Its Aftermath (Oxford University Press) by Richard E. Turley and Barbara Jones Brown and Convicting the Mormons: The Mountain Meadows Massacre in American Culture

(University of North Carolina Press) by Janiece Johnson. – Glen Nelson (Vengeance Is Mine and Convicting the Mormons are to be released on the same day, May 30.)

PROVEAU SALON The artist David Hockney once wrote, “What an artist is trying to do for people is bring them closer to something, because of course art is about sharing.You wouldn’t be an artist unless you wanted to share an experience, a thought.” Throw in a backyard potluck meal and you have an instant community. In Provo, Utah, a group of artists and friends meets quarterly to share art, nosh, and connect. It is called Proveau Salon, and the gathering takes place at the home of artist Megan Knoblock Geilman. It is organized by herself and Sariah Masterson. They write, “We are attempting to revive a centuries-old tradition of literary and cultural salons that were typically held in people’s private residences.” The next edition of the Salon is Saturday, May 6. But you don’t live near Provo, you say? Why not start your own salon? Begin small by having some friends over to your place to show or talk about art. Have any painter friends? Get them involved and make a one-night-only gallery. Own a piano? Well, suddenly you’ve got a concert hall. A big screen TV? Voila, a film screening room. Have a couch? We call that salon seating.

THE LEGACY OF ANNE PERRY (1938-2023) By Luisa Perkins “Crime must be paid for, but not all sins or mistakes need be made public and explained for everyone to examine and remember. And sometimes victims were punished doubly, once by the offense itself, and then a second and more enduring time

when others heard of it, pored over it, and imagined every intimate detail.” Writers occasionally glimpse the future as they work, prophesying on the page, whether knowingly or not. The paragraph quoted above is from Anne Perry’s novel Bluegate Fields, first published in 1984. Ten years later, the release of Peter Jackson’s film Heavenly Creatures made public a dark past that Perry had worked hard to put behind her. Perry, born Juliet Marion Hulme in London on 28 October 1938, suffered from tuberculosis as a child. At the age of 8 at the end of WWII, she was sent to the Bahamas in the hopes of improving her symptoms. At age 13, she reunited with her family, who had moved to New Zealand. However, her health struggles continued, and she divided the next two years between a convalescent hospital and Christchurch Girls’ High School. At the latter, she met Pauline Parker, a slightly older girl. The two developed an intense, exclusive friendship, bonding over the creation of intricate fantasy worlds and maintaining their connection through frequent letters whenever Juliet was hospitalized. They hoped one day to be famous novelists and move to Hollywood together. In June of 1954, the girls’ dreams took a nightmarish turn. Juliet’s parents decided to divorce and told Juliet they were sending her to live in South Africa with relatives. Desperate not to be separated, and convinced that Pauline’s mother Honorah would never let Pauline accompany Juliet out of the country, the girls came up with a plan. On 22 June, in a secluded section of Christchurch’s Victoria Park, Pauline and Juliet killed Honorah, hitting her on the head repeatedly with a brick wrapped up in a stocking. They thought a single blow would suffice to kill her; it ended up taking more than 40. Too young for the death penalty, the girls were sentenced to prison terms of indefinite length. Both served a little over five years—Juliet in Auckland’s Mount Eden women’s prison, where she

spent time both in solitary confinement and doing hard labor. Once she was released, Juliet moved to England to be with her mother, who had remarried. Juliet changed her name to Anne and took her stepfather’s surname, Perry, as her own. In her late twenties, Perry encountered the LDS Church while living in California and was baptized in 1968. She held various day jobs through the years, all the while working on her fiction. Her first novel, The Cater Street Hangman, was published in 1979 when she was 40 years old. From that point on, Perry steadily built a solid audience and a successful career, publishing two to three books—Kirkus Reviews calls them “finely wrought and entertaining mysteries”—per year. Her latest book, The Fourth Enemy (Book 6 in the Daniel Pitt series) came out 11 April, the day after she died, and The Traitor Among Us (Book 5 in the Elena Standish series) is forthcoming this September. In a starred review, Publisher’s Weekly recently wrote,“Four decades after her debut, Perry shows no signs of losing steam.”

someone mentioned Perry’s past to me. When I read all about it through the magic of the internet, I was struck by two things. First, according to our shared faith, Perry’s sins had been washed away in the waters of baptism. Second, though the Lord may remember them no more, we mortals have a hard time letting go of past griefs and scandals. In 1954—nearly seven decades ago—Perry was a young teenager in the throes of a passionate friendship; her family was on the verge of dissolution; to treat her tuberculosis, she was being administered isoniazid, a drug now known to cause psychosis; as a minor, she was not allowed to testify in court on her own behalf. In interviews in the years after the release of Heavenly Creatures, Perry repeatedly acknowledged her guilt and expressed deep regret for her crime, but also wondered whether society would continue to define her by the worst thing she’d ever done. Will we?

Indeed: in all, she wrote more than 80 novels, along with many short stories and Christmas-themed novellas. She was awarded an Edgar and the Premio de Honor Aragón Negro; none of her books has ever been out of print; she has sold more than 26 million copies worldwide. She spent many of her writing years in a remote village in northern Scotland, enjoying the company of family and a close circle of friends. In 2017, she moved to southern California, where she died on 10 April from complications following a heart attack. I met Perry almost ten years ago, after she delivered a stirring keynote speech at a 2013 writing conference. She was reserved but gracious. During a long conversation, she asked me to send her a copy of my most recently published novel.Writers can survive a long time on such kindnesses, and I was delighted to have been the recipient of her encouragement and solid advice. It wasn’t until I got home from the conference that

Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme in 1954

THE WEIGHT OF EVERYTHING Fans of the award-winning novel, Where I Belong, will be happy to know that the newest book by its author, Marcia Argueta Mickelson comes out this month. The Weight of Everything tells a story of a young girl who struggles to keep her family afloat after the death of their mother. In her grief, she undertakes a school project that causes her to learn about her mother’s Mexican and Guatemalan heritage. Publishers Weekly previews the book,

“Through Sarah’s tentative steps toward healing, Mickelson (Where I Belong) attentively showcases the mending power of tenderness, patience, and love in this moving read. Ages 12–up.” Marcia Argueta Mickelson immigrated to the US as an infant. After graduating from Brigham Young University, she has already published five novels. Meanwhile, she is a fourth grade elementary school teacher in Texas. (The Weight of Everything will be released May 2.)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

INSIDEtheART MADELINE RUPARD

Madeline Rupard (American, born 1991) Jesus Painting Painting (2023) Acrylic on panel, 9 x 12 x 1.875 inches Used with permission of the artist

The Season: This new painting reads as familiar territory for someone who has spent time in an LDS chapel, but if someone knows your work, it’s also perfectly in tune with what you’re doing in your fine art work. Tell us about this painting. Madeline Rupard: As artists we often joke that we didn’t want a 9 to 5 so we chose a 24/7. It’s true though in the sense that I’m never off the clock, and I’m always on the lookout for a new painting. Specifically places where contradictions exist, the suburban and the sublime, the miraculous and the mundane, the eternal and the ordinary both existing in the same place. So when I entered

Giovanni Paolo Panini (Italian, 1691-1795) Ancient Rome (1757) Oil on canvas, 67.75 x 90.5 inches Public domain

(late) through the foyer for sacrament meeting in my new ward in East Brooklyn and saw the Resurrected Christ painting by Harry Anderson staring at me in perfect “textures of Mormonism” form, I decided to delay myself a moment further for a photo reference. I also like paintings to be a little funny and a little beautiful at the same time which I think is true of this image. There’s something so humorously ordinary about this image to members of our faith, especially with the yellow-hued indoor lighting, textured wall padding, and ceiling vent. (We Mormons are exceptionally consistent with air conditioning, so much so that the soft low

hum of an HVAC makes me instantly feel like I’m in the Lord’s house) I also really enjoy paintings of paintings. They are not only fun to paint but self referential to art and the act of painting, and why we do it. One of my favorite places in the Metropolitan Museum of Art is in the 18th century European painting section and looking at Giovanni Paolo Panini’s opulent neoclassical hallways of paintings of paintings. The Season: That painting of Panini’s is just the wackiest thing. I also love paintings of artist’s studios, don’t you? I could move into Matisse’s The Red Studio and be totally happy forever. When you make a painting of another person’s painting, are you trying to interpret it, comment on it, or to enter a conversation with it? Madline Rupard: The Red Studio is so wonderful. I love that you referenced that piece. I remember in my first year of grad school going to the MoMA before class one day and spending an hour in front of that painting—it was the moment Matisse really clicked for me. When I’m painting another person’s painting, I see it as less of a judgment on it and more of a change in context that I hope brings forth some of its hidden potential. It also can be seen as a conversation with the present and the past. Kind of like how musicians will sample something older to give a song an added layer of dimension. Harry Anderson’s The Resurrected Jesus Christ is a painting I’ve seen most of my life in the context of going to church, serving in my calling, etc. I like the idea of zooming out and considering where these paintings are being seen and who they’re being seen by and how that affects their ultimate meaning. By the way, did you know the painter was a Seventh day-Adventist? The Season: Yes, I did. Your new painting, Jesus Painting Painting, reminds me a little of some photographs by Mark Hedengren, who created images of people in an LDS church building someplace doing things that we all recognize immediately, like member volunteers vacuuming in the foyer. LDS life is unique, don’t you agree, because our

worship environments have a sameness, almost a universal visual vocabulary? Is that something that speaks to you? Madeline Rupard: That sameness is both a comforting thing and sometimes a point of frustration if I’m being honest. But I want to explore both sides of that coin. I served my mission in Hungary in my early 20s and enjoyed the newer European styles of church buildings because they had more natural light, but ultimately I was comforted by the familiarity of the hymn books and the consistent air conditioning (which was not to be found in most Hungarian buildings!) On P-days, I would always try and persuade my companion to let us go into a Roman Catholic Church for a bit, because I do love the architecture. John Ruskin wrote about how the medieval churches were modeled after forests.Whether or not you believe the Nicene Creed, you can feel a real reverence for natural forms and light in those spaces. Sometimes I struggle with the aesthetic pragmatism of our religion, but it also makes sense for a church that is ever-expanding to keep costs low. If you are a visually-minded person, it’s very easy to dismiss the ideas taught within based on the surfaces you don’t agree with. But what I’m always hoping for in my work is that the viewer take a more generous view. By painting these things, I’m trying to show the whole picture and let the viewer take away what they will. Everything I’ve said above also mirrors my joy and struggle with America and the American West and what I’m continually exploring in my work. The Season: You shared with me another painting that has an Easter theme. Are these paintings part of a series? How do you see them fitting into your body of work? Madeline Rupard: Both this piece Jesus Painting Painting and Mormon Easter are unique to the work I’m making because they are more explicitly religious, in that they depict the ordinary spaces and scenes in which I worship. I don’t usually paint directly about my experience being a member of

Madeline Rupard (American, born 1991) Mormon Easter (2022) Acrylic on paper, 9 x 12 inches Used with permission of the artist

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I haven’t often felt called to that subject matter. But many years ago, an artist friend I really respect told me that my work was “religious.” I held this close to my heart as a true compliment, because I knew she saw straight through the surfaces of the work to the core of what it was really about. This comment became aspirational to me. I really wanted my paintings of gas stations, grocery stores, highways, and parking lots to feel like pro-

fessions of belief. Maybe I’ll make more paintings about being a person who goes to church. Maybe I won’t. But I don’t think that an artwork can truly ever escape the heart and mind of its creator. In that sense, if I really believe that God exists and that He loves us very much, every painting is an Easter painting.

Madeline Rupard (American, born 1991) Jesus Painting Painting (2023) Acrylic on panel, 9 x 12 x 1.875 inches Used with permission of the artist

INSIDEtheART GEOFF IRELAND

Photo credit: Matthew Ireland, used with permission of Geoff Ireland

Geoff Ireland (Australian, born 1948) Where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place (2021) Phosphorous bronze, 30 cms x 32 cms x 26 cms Used with permission of the artist

The Season: What has your own artistic journey been? Geoff Ireland: I think my artistic journey started as a 3–5-year-old on my father’s building sites. My mother was extremely ill most of her life, and so I was assigned happily to bricklayers’ sand, wooden offcuts, and a whole lot of exciting materials that I amused myself with for many hours in wonderful imaginings making castles, buildings, whatever! This set a wonderful base for later studio work with meditative time thinking about what to discover and making three dimensional “stuff” with my hands. I became an art teacher in a high school. This was a test artistically as I was a young married man and had a child, a mortgage, and church commitments. However, I still made work somehow! Eventually I was asked to join the staff at the National Art School in Sydney. In time I became Head of Sculpture and then finally Deputy Director/ Head of Studies. During my time at the School, I was awarded a Fellowship to go to the Johnson Atelier Institute at Princeton, New Jersey, USA (1982-3). I learned fine arts casting there, and my

technical processes in making sculpture changed. I tried casting as we had a casting foundry at the NAS. Our family of 4 travelled to Utah where I worked at the Wasatch Bronze works and became friends with Neil Hadlock, who asked me to make a commissioned work. I became aware of LDS artistic culture there, which was a culture I thought whose sensibilities seemed to be strongly aligned with artistic Romanticism. It was the Reagan years and the fall of the USSR. Culturally, I became very aware of symbols in the US, the flag particularly, and this was reinforced by a large exhibition of Jasper Johns’ work at the Whitney. Subsequently, I made many works based on flags with a political narrative which stemmed from my time in the US. I saw a wonderful show at the National Gallery in DC, of hundreds of works by David Smith and was intrigued by his use of paint on his work. This somehow revived itself in my later work. I became more aware of the possibility of narrative in sculpture, which appears in my current work. I was awarded a research grant which sent me around the world to look at the “sculptural as-

Geoff Ireland (Australian, born 1948] There is a way out (2021) Phosphorous bronze, 30 cms x 38.5 cms x 36 cms Used with permission of the artist

pects of architecture.“ The result was that my forms became architecturally based, platforms, stairs, arches, etc. The next major and perhaps the most significant turning point in my life occurred when my wife Janice and I served a full-time mission in Poland as S&I Country Coordinators. We had faculty meetings all over Europe which reinforced the image of strong architectural elements in religious settings. However, we both returned with cancer. Janice passed away 6 years later. Now during this time many very important questions began to surface, emphasized by another bout of cancer in 2018. What seemed to happen was all these artistic and moral/religious issues I had been trying to live throughout my life somehow seemed to form into a more unified whole.This was reflected in a drive to make visual statements about all these deeply felt passions. The Season: These are works whose titles draw from scripture and comments about life. As a religious person, how does your faith find its way into your art?

Geoff Ireland: When I enter my studio, I often pray for grace. The 18th Century composer, Johann Sebastian Bach had thoughts about God’s grace: “Where there is devotional music, God’s grace is always present.” I’m not sure if Bach was referring to the presence of grace in himself or his audience. But in an attempt to add some enabling ability to my making, I seek grace through prayer and strive to create visual poetry. Does it always work? No. I don’t expect the Lord to grant me “perfection,” rather to help me join with Him in the godly gift of creation. I have a shared testimony with Michelangelo who said, “I work out of love for God, and I put all my hope in (with) Him.” When I am about to make a work, I am not consciously clear about anything. I often sit and look out of my studio into the mangroves opposite. In the past decade I have been reflecting more and more on my mortality (I’ve had cancer twice in 6 years), and I am stimulated by the depth and breadth of the Plan of Salvation.This reflection has been wonderfully fruitful for the images, ideas, and deep feelings it consistently yields. I believe my religious beliefs are so embedded in my total being that inevitably they become the focus/heart of my

work. I also believe that as I have progressed in years, the different parts of my identity have become much more harmonious and centered. From an abstract and responsive beginning, each work unfolds intuitively. At the same time my mind remains occupied with the questions and ponderings of the time. The work therefore, relatively unconsciously explores the complexities of those ideas, until a central cluster of ideas becomes apparent in the work. The work’s title reflects that central focus.

Making visual art by this intuitive and reflective method ensures that the work is fundamentally connected to one’s senses and emotions, subsequently challenging the mind to unpack those responses in light of the symbols evident in the work and the title it is given. I hope that this approach opens one’s soul to the potential for personal spiritual experience.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

INSIDEtheART NEIL THORNOCK

Photo used with permission of Neil Thornock

The Season: You have a new album called Spring. It popped up—I’m avoiding saying it sprang up—after a physical injury. Can you describe how it came to be? Neil Thornock: Having spent a lot of time the last while on the bicycle and in the gym, trying to get a handle on some health challenges, I suddenly found myself with a boon of time when I broke my shoulder blade last January. The prognosis was at least three months with very little physical activity. The injury coincided with another circumstance: I changed offices at work. I normally do most of my composing in my office, but I found the office change to be a challenge, so I started doing my creative work at home. With my normal routines gutted, I was feeling down, and I was casting about for creative enterprises that I could do with very little equipment at my home desk. An album of electronic music fit the bill. Meanwhile, I fell down a couple of YouTube rabbit holes that took me to ambient music, including New Age classical piano and the ambient music of 1980s and 90s Japanese composers, atmospheric, calming stuff. Initially, I was intrigued at what made this seemingly “empty” music tick with so many people. I spent a lot of time listening and thinking–and then I got bitten. In the end, it calmed my mood during a depressing winter and simultaneously got me thinking about how the harmonic stasis inherent in this style would be a perfect fit for the tuning system I have gravitated to the last few years. So the project had the inception, rationalization, and time I needed to move forward with it. The Season: Say a bit more about your tuning system explorations. For somebody like me who likes music but doesn’t exactly understand what’s inside it, can you offer a description of your tuning and how it might differ from traditional systems? Neil Thornock: I’ve long been enchanted by alternative tuning systems, in which the pitches lie between the ones we are used to. One set of

pitches is particularly special, and that’s the overtone series. You hear the overtone series when you hear a pitch from a clarinet, a violin, someone speaking—you are actually hearing many pitches at once, but it sounds like one pitch. Our brain processes the pitches of the overtone series in a special way, fusing them into one pitch, even though many pitches are present.The tuning of this album uses pitches that all belong to one overtone series. I’m mostly sticking with familiar-sounding harmony, but there may be a note or a passage here and there in which the tuning sounds unfamiliar. But because those pitches belong to the overtone series, they cooperate with each other to make very pure sounding, stable harmonies.The more I work with this tuning, the more harmonically static my music becomes. The Season: Many composers make music targeted to public opportunities. They have a commission or a chance to be on a concert program. Your music making includes those things, but you also compose works—including ambitious, big projects—that seem unencumbered by commerce. Do you approach that spectrum of compositional motivation differently? Neil Thornock: Well, yes, which I think is unfortunate.When I compose music that will be performed by other musicians, I find myself balancing my creative impulses against the artistic preferences and technical abilities of the performers, potential venues or events, my own lack of experience with various instruments and ensembles, and the academic peer review process. Sometimes the piece I would rather write gets stifled as a result, and I’ve had a number of public performances of pieces I’m not proud of. My greatest sense of artistic liberty, of taking big risks, comes when I compose for myself to perform (or nobody, in this case). At the most fundamental level, I want to compose as a way of exploring what it means to create divinely, discovering the beauty and meaning of God’s universe, glorifying God and contributing something beautiful to the world. I find the most beauty when I take the biggest risks.

Listen to Spring on YouTube.

The Season: The title of the new album is Spring. On the bottom corner of the album cover is the name, “Happy Plant.” How are the concepts of rebirth, spring, a new beginning, and even religious interpretations of resurrection and Easter present in this music? Neil Thornock: I find this question delightful. The simplest answer is that those concepts are only present if you, the listener, decide that they are. As a deeply religious person, all the music I write is infused with my religious convictions in some way. But I’m not usually setting out to do so explicitly. I live my faith, I live my art. What happens to my art is what happens. Music is so abstract that listeners can infer meanings the composer didn’t intend. If I do my best to make something beautiful—as beautiful as I can possibly make it—someone is bound to hear things I didn’t think I put there.The way you worded this question is evidence of that. It’s one of the great beauties of music. So I’ll leave my answer fairly open-ended. This music is such a departure from the more academic stuff I normally write that I decided to

assume a stage name (or a DJ/producer name), which is Happy Plant. I did it mostly as a bit of fun. I wanted a stage name that was simple and memorable, and maybe quirky. But beyond that, plants are powerful symbols.The idea of the name Happy Plant reminds me that this is meant to be happy music, and that the music grows out of a life— my life—that is happily planted in Jesus. I’m also happily planted in my place. Provo is my promised land, at the moment, where my family is planted to grow and flourish. Importance of place is reflected in the water sounds recorded near my home, and the leaf rubbing on the cover of a leaf I picked up right here. The arc of the album is nocturnal. The tracks start with bright afternoon and then mellow toward dusk, then through night. By the end, things have brightened again, but in a confident, content, peaceful way. The last title, Mountain Dawn, might bring camping to mind for some. But I see the mountains looming over Provo every dawn, and while I don’t see sunrise, I often see spectacular displays of sky and cloud and mountain and concealed sun. The sun goes to bed, it wakes up again. The whole narrative of the album leads through nighttime to sunrise.

mySUNDAY KALANI TONGA

Photograph courtesy of Kalani Tonga

Kalani Tonga is an artist who lives in Midvale, Utah. In addition to painting and creating objects that incorporate graphic design from her Tongan heritage, she works at a nonprofit, Pacific Island Knowledge 2 Action Resources (PIC2AR) that builds community connections, provides services and resources for ethnic communities, and preserves Pacific Island cultures art forms. She is also the director of Pasifica Enriching Arts of Utah. Her design work can be viewed on her Instagram feed.

My house. At my house, I have two sons and three daughters. My boys are 18 and 12. I have twin 11-year-old girls and a 10-year old. I had four babies in two years at one point. So it was hectic there for a few years, especially when we’re talking about Sundays; that was a nightmare. But as they’ve gotten older, we’ve had different kinds of surprises. My husband passed away in 2021. And so it’s just me and my five little people.We are just plugging along. We live in Midvale, Utah. A Tongan ward. On Sunday, we have church at 12:30. That has really made a difference in our being able to get there early enough for sacrament. We have two bathrooms, and there’s either fighting over the shower the night before or the morning. But we get up, and we get ready. We also have a dog, so somebody takes the dog out so that he is good to go while we’re at church.Then we’re off. We are definitely not first row kind of people, but we straggle in, and we make it there. We go to the Midvale 14th Ward, which is a Tongan ward. So that’s probably a little bit unique. It’s really cool. I love it. I grew up in Texas, and our family was the only Tongans that I knew in the area that I lived in, outside of my grandparents and my aunt who lived with them. But I didn’t get to grow up around a lot of Pacific Islanders. You always want your kids to have the things that you didn’t get, right? And, unfortunately for them, we don’t have any more money than I had when I was growing up, but I feel like one of the things that I have been able to give them that I didn’t have is the opportunity to be around other Pacific Islanders. The Church is the same everywhere, but there’s a different spirit to it being with people who sound like my dad and who look like my family members. A cappella. Half of my family still lives in Texas, and then I live in Utah, and I have a sister and a brother who also live here. But one of the things that I really miss about all of us being together is that music was a huge part of growing up for me. And if you come to our ward, it’s surprising. It’s hard to explain to somebody who hasn’t been there before. But the music is done a little bit dif-

ferently in the Tongan ward, where the chorister starts; they sing first. So they start the music, and then everybody joins in. And that happens with every single verse. You wait for him or her to start singing. And then everybody joins in. Sometimes we have pianists and organists, and sometimes we don’t. Right now, we don’t, and this is kind of sad: our pianist and organist passed away during COVID. She was the only one in our word that had that talent. And so since then, we’ve just been singing a cappella. So they start singing a couple of notes, and you hear what to sing. And then everybody just picks a harmony and sings. It’s really cool. And it’s different than I think you would expect. Dad’s house. After church, we all go home together. Sometimes we go on Sundays up to the cemetery to see their dad. They call it “Dad’s house.” We go over to Dad’s house and hang out for a little while. Sometimes when the weather is nice, we take the dog and let him kind of run around. My kids run around, and play, and talk to our dad, and then we go home and start getting ready for whatever we have going on the next week. My mother. Mother’s Day is a little different as a single mom, but not really. For me, Mother’s Day is really about honoring my mother. My dad’s family is Tongan, and my mom’s family is Swedish. I think my mom and I are very different in a lot of ways and very similar in a lot of ways. When my husband passed away, my mom and my stepdad came, and they stayed with us for seven weeks, which is a significant amount of time to just put your whole life aside for somebody else. And she does things like that often. I had five grieving kids and all of them had different grieving styles, and some of them triggered each other. My oldest dealt with it with humor, and any time I asked him to do the dishes, he’d be like, “Wow, Mom, my dad just died, I can’t believe you’re asking that!” And we would get a laugh out of that, but then it would really upset some of my other kids. One of my kids was having a really hard time, and I didn’t know what to do because they put her on a medication

that ended up making her suicidal. And I was like, “I can’t work, and deal with four other grieving kids, and also be on suicide watch. I can’t. There’s not enough of me to go around.” And my mom came and got her and took her back with her to Texas, and she lived there for a couple of months until she got back on her feet, and everything got settled. So, yeah, for me, I think being a single mom, there are challenges. But luckily, I have a mom that is really, really kind and generous—Christ-like—in my life. On the journey. We try to make Sunday different from all the other days of the week, but we’ve had a really long road to trying to figure that out. My husband was a member, but he was not ever active. He was in and out of prison. He

was in a gang. He had lots of stuff going on. And so during the time that we were together, we weren’t super active in the Church, and then, even after he passed away, it’s taken us a while to kind of get our footing back under us. But luckily, like I said, I have an amazing ward. I have really caring leadership—all the way down from the bishop to the Relief Society president to the young women’s president—everybody has been really kind when we needed kindness. And so I think just getting to church has been something that was different for us, in a good way. Everybody’s in a different place on their journey. And that’s where we’re at right now is that we’re just trying to do the basic things, get us there, and then make sure that we are prepared for the rest of the week ahead.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

LETTERSto theEDITOR Working on The Season has been quite the trip for me. It is enriching because through it I have learned about so many people working on just so many projects, more than I ever imagined. The listings alone are mind-numbing! I feel like a small part of a Quixotic, and thus worthwhile, attempt at capturing such a wide range of creative endeavours. Kudos to the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts for having the gall to attempt this. Gabriel González Brownsville, Texas

What a great opportunity it was for me to connect with other LDS composers; many of whom I had never talked with previously. Speaking with Ron Saltmarsh on the phone, and Josh Akers on Zoom as well as reconnecting with my BYU colleagues Lance Montgomery and Jeff Broadbent, was a total thrill. I’m so proud of all of these composers and the careers they have built. It was inspiring to hear their stories and see their dedication to their art. I’m so happy to be a part of The Season and been able to contribute in this way! Benjamin Taylor Bloomington, Minnesota

CONTRIBUTORS MEGAN ECKERSLEY

MADELINE RUPARD

Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

Madeline Rupard received an MFA in Painting from Pratt Institute. Her recent paintings of the American West appeared in this years’ New American Paintings Juried-In-Print Exhibition, Issue #156.

GEOFF IRELAND

NEIL THORNOCK

Geoff Ireland is an Australian artist who has exhibited in more than 80 gallery and museum exhibitions, received published accolades from numerous critics of contemporary art, and obtained significant institutional commissions and awards in Australia, Asia and the US

Neil Thornock is a composer on the faculty at Brigham Young University. He and his wife Tammy live in Provo with their seven children.

GLEN NELSON Glen Nelson’s most recent book, John Held, Jr.’s Fiction was recently named a finalist in book-length criticism by the Association for Mormon Letters.

LUISA PERKINS Luisa Perkins’s 2017 novella, Prayers in Bath, was recently named to the 100 Significant Mormon Literary Works list by the Association for Mormon Letters. Her forthcoming work is her second cookbook, Comfortably Yum.

PATRICK T. PERKINS Patrick T. Perkins is an experienced intellectual property attorney who most recently worked as Chief Intellectual Property Counsel at a major motion picture studio.

KALANI TONGA Kalani Tonga is an artist who, in addition to painting and creating objects that incorporate graphic design from her Tongan heritage, works at a nonprofit, Pacific Island Knowledge 2 Action Resources (PIC2AR) that builds community connections, provides services and resources for ethnic communities, and preserves Pacific Island cultures art forms. She is also the director of Pasifica Enriching Arts of Utah.

SAM ZAUSCHER Sam Zauscher is a former professional ballet dancer, closeted choreographer, and editorial/ portrait photographer based in LA / San Diego (and sometimes NYC).

editorialBOARD WHAT ARE YOU READING?

CHARLIE BIRD My Lord, He Calls Me by Alice Faulkner Burch. It is a newly compiled collection of essays written by Black American Latter-day Saints. I’ve found it incredibly raw, powerful, insightful, and honest. It is simultaneously breaking my heart and giving me a renewed sense of hope in my faith community.

TED BUSHMAN Jade City by Fonda Lee, a fantasy synthesis of Hong Kong gangster and Kung Fu films.

KATHIE DEBENHAM A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds by Scott Weidensaul. I have long loved the world of birds from the time I first read The Burgess Bird Book as a young child. This solid science book follows long range migrants all over the globe to find out what the birds can tell us about the need to better care for the planet we all share. Fascinating. Did you know the bar-tailed godwit crosses more than 7,000 miles of empty Pacific Ocean from Alaska to New Zealand flying nonstop for up to 9 days?

island off the coast of Maine, a fictionalized version of the early 20th-century mixed-race fishing community, Malaga–with utterly transformational and wrenching lyricism.

BRIAN KERSHISNIK Short Stories by Jesus by AJ Lavine, a fascinating book about how Christianity has really worked hard to “domesticate” the parables away from the remarkably troubling stories that a 1st century Jew would have heard.

JEFF PARKIN Moby Dick; or, The Whale by Herman Melville. Call me ignorant, but I’ve never read it in its entirety. I’m particularly loving the humor and am inspired by the fact that although it was a failure at its initial publication, like the titular leviathan, it came back with a vengeance.

ARISAEL RIVERA “Let Me Drown With Moses” by James Goldberg. Heart wrenching and hope-filled poetry.

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ

MADELINE RUPARD

This Other Eden by Paul Harding again reimagines our Judeo-Christian origin story—here set on an

Swann’s Way: In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust is a novel written from the perspective of

an old man recalling his past life as a boy growing up in France in the 19th century. Proust is a writer uniquely obsessed with memory and place. I am reading this before a family history trip to Europe next week, thinking about my own memories and those of my ancestors.

JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE The Secret Life of the American Musical: How Broadway Shows Are Built by Jack Viertel, a comprehensive and entertaining look at how musicals are written and why the successful ones work.

BENJAMIN TAYLOR The Anatomy of Peace, from The Arbinger Institute. I am finding it very insightful and helpful in healing relational conflicts.

KWANI POVI WINDER Imperium Descent by Christopher Hopper, a sci-fi adventure that explores a society that is ableist and follows the lives of those who fight for the right for all to live.

WARREN WINEGAR Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Hughette Clark by Bill Dedman and Paul Clark Newell, Jr.The fascinating story of one of the most wealthy women in America who, despite good health, chose to live in a simple hospital room throughout most of her long life. It is eccentricity at its height.

MYKAL URBINA, publisher Elantris by Brandon Sanderson (up to pg. 154–a pass-along from a fantasy reader who hopes to convert me to the genre—pleased to report that it’s working), Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (pg. 207—a Christmas gift from my grandmother, a woman as vibrant as this one’s protagonist), and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (pg. 18—I put my name on the library’s wait list in January and it’s finally my turn!).

GLEN NELSON, editor Mr. B, the new definitive biography about choreographer George Balanchine by Jennifer Homans.

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD, communications This Other Eden by Paul Harding again reimagines our Judeo-Christian origin story—here set on an island off the coast of Maine, a fictionalized version of the early 20th-century mixed-race fishing community, Malaga—with utterly transformational and wrenching lyricism.

theSEASON

JUNE2023

SUMMERguide Gladys Knight’s 1968 pop hit had it right, “There’s magic in the air. Greet us everywhere. It’s summer.” Before Memorial Day, questions for friends build up like geysers: What are you doing for the summer? Where are you going? What are your plans? In the Northern Hemisphere at least, summer brings maximum daylight for activities. Let’s fill up the hours with adventure. Summer is the season for doing—not curling up by a fire, not hibernating and secluding yourself from others, but the opposite: gathering, traveling, exploring, sunning, and funning. Summer surprises us all at once, somehow. It is like a gate we rush through, like a race down a grassy hill. It’s a timeless sensation.The English Romantic poet John Clare wrote these lines in 1841: “I love to see the summer beaming forth / And white wool sack clouds sailing to the north….” Whatever your summer plans are, The Season has some ideas for you.Why not bring Latter-day Saint artists along? You’re going to need books to read on those vacations and campouts, food for those picnics, classes for summer learning, and audio for those long road trips. Lucky for you, we have dozens of delightful possibilities. Summer is about more than having fun. It’s also a call to explore and recalibrate where we’re headed in life. In his poem, “Song of the Open Road,” Walt Whitman turns the image of the open road into an invitation to expand the person’s internal and external, to leave work behind, (he didn’t call it unplugging, but we can) and to find things, places, and people to love. Here is the final section of his 1856 poem:

Allons! the road is before us! It is safe—I have tried it—my own feet have tried it well—be not detain’d! Let the paper remain on the desk unwritten, and the book on the shelf unopen’d! Let the tools remain in the workshop! let the money remain unearn’d! Let the school stand! mind not the cry of the teacher! Let the preacher preach in his pulpit! let the lawyer plead in the court, and the judge expound the law. Camerado, I give you my hand! I give you my love more precious than money, I give you myself before preaching or law; Will you give me yourself? will you come travel with me? Shall we stick by each other as long as we live? We invite you to survey the offerings in our Summer Guide—new books: picture books for children, books for middle grade, young adults, and fiction and non-fiction for adults; interesting food by LDS purveyors for your campout and picnic basket; fascinating podcasts and audio books for road trips; and in-person and virtual summer school classes. Bring your own sunscreen; otherwise, we’ve got you covered.

SUMMERguide PICTURE BOOKS

All Summer Guide photographs: James Ransom

1. An ode from a mother to her sleeping boy, this poetic journey imagines what is possible for an infant who will gradually experience the world until he can ultimately change it. One Day is written by Joanna Ho and illustrated by Faith Pray (HarperCollins, 40 pp., hardcover) $18.99 2. Jack is a pirate in training, and he loves everything about being a pirate except for the gruff

Captain Squinty Eye’s rule: No dancing! When he hears music, dances spring out of Jack, which comes in handy when other pirates attack and his ballet steps save the day. The captain—who, apparently, has never seen the ballet Le Corsaire— recants and promotes Jack to pirate. Pirates Don’t Dance! is written and illustrated by Shawna J. C. Tenney (Sleeping Bear Press, 40 pp., hardcover ) $17.99

3. From Madeleine L’Engle’s granddaughter comes a book about the Newbury Medal winner’s life, her curiosity and determination, leading up to the publication of A Wrinkle in Time. A Book,Too, Can Be a Star:The Story of Madeleine L’Engle and the Making of A Wrinkle in Time by Charlotte Jones Voiklis and Jennifer Adams, pictures by Adelina Lirius (Farrar Straus Giroux, 40 pp., hardcover) $18.99 4. In L.A., a little girl finds treasure in the trash a broken guitar. She dreams of being a musician one day. The author of this semi-autobiographical book should know the feeling: La Guitarristra is by multi-Latin Grammy Award-winning musician,

Lucky Diaz and illustrated by Micah Player (HarperCollins, 40 pp., hardcover) $19.99 5. “Once upon a time,” begins each of the 45 biographical stories that describe notable LDS women from around the world. Taken together, the sketches of influential people—the literary texts by Raeleigh Wilkinson and the accompanying illustrations by seven artists—use historical and contemporary women to gesture toward what is possible for readers. Bedtime Stories for Girls of Destiny: 45 Tales of Extraordinary Latter-day Saint Women is Raeleigh Wilkinson’s first book. (Cedar Fort, 96 pp., softcover) $19.99

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

SUMMERguide MIDDLE GRADE BOOKS

1. Twelve-year old Hazel has strange luck. She is a trans-Atlantic stowaway and narrates this historical fiction about a young girl sent to America to work in a factory but who instead determines to write a book about the ship on which she sails: the Titanic. Good news, bad news. The novel, Iceberg, is by New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen (Scholastic Press, 352 pp., hardcover) $17.99 2. An adaptation for young readers of the bestsell-

ing novel based on a true story, The Paper Daughters of Chinatown, by Heather B. Moore and Allison Hong Merrill, tells the story of a young Chinese girl sold by her father in the late 19th century to pay his gambling debts and the friend she meets in San Francisco. (Shadow Mountain, 240 pp., hardcover) $18.99 3. The Hope of Elephants is a novel told in verse about a girl who may have a genetic mutation that makes her susceptible to cancer and a scientific

study of elephants in a Utah zoo that may provide a cure. The author is Amanda Rawson Hill, whose family also has that mutation. (Charlesbridge, 480 pp., hardcover) $17.99 4. When junior high school students are invited to attend a digital-only school because of a pandemic, the students take advantage of the opportunity to appear to each other online exclusively as avatars, and thereby reimagine themselves and the way they present to others. Virtually Me is written by

Chad Morris and Shelly Brown (Shadow Mountain, 256 pp., hardcover) $16.99 5. Teenage Sarah becomes the caregiver of her little brother and their father after the death of her mother. While trying her best to hold everything together, she tackles a school art project about Diego Rivera and discovers her own Mexican and Guatemalan heritage. The Weight of Everything is written by Marcia Argueta Mickelson (Carolshoda LAB, 240 pp., hardcover) $19.99

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

SUMMERguide YOUNG ADULT BOOKS

1. The Manderfield Devil by Rachel Allen Everett is a graphic novel detective story blended with horror, as she describes it, “a one-shot noir murder mystery meets cautionary fantasy inspired by Hellboy and The Twilight Zone.” We’d add one more ingredient: religious zealotry. (Ghost Machine Publishing, 60 pp., hardcover) $25.00 2. In a memoir, Beehive Girl by Mikayla Orton Thatcher, the author retraces a mostly forgotten

LDS program for “young ladies” initiated in 1915. Similar to Julie Powell’s memoir of cooking her way through Julia Child’s The French Chef,Thatcher finds a vintage copy of the defunct program (also reproduced as an appendix) and completes dozens of its 300 projects with the newfound insight of adult contemporary life. (By Common Consent Press, 374 pp., softcover) $12.95 3. As will happen, teenage Gemma rescues Beau

from a boating accident, but while he is in a coma, she is mistaken for his girlfriend. Dear Evan Hansen-like, this story gets out of control until she is caught between faux devotion and the real romance she feels for Beau’s older brother. This Might Get Awkward is by Kara McDowell (Scholastic Press, 336 pp., hardcover) $17.99

4. An Improbable Season by Rosalyn Eves follows a trio of cousins over their debutante season in Regent-era London. In rule-bound society, these heroines seek success and happy endings but find social scandal instead. (Farrar Straus and Giroux, 352 pp. hardcover) $19.99

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

SUMMERguide BEACH READS

1. Joshua Sabey’s novel Ali :The Iraqi is written with the title character on which it is based,Ali Alsamer. An Iraqi citizen, Ali came to the United States and lived with the Sabey family in Colorado. The night before he was scheduled to return home, he ran away. The novel combines the fragmented stories the men shared with each other with a narration about the Iraqi and his American life (By Common Consent Press, 306 pp., softcover) $12.95 2. Legacy of the Corridor is a series of short sto-

ry collections written by authors writing in and about the LDS western corridor. A collection of speculative fiction, horror, romance, and essays by Lehua Parker (this is volume 4 in the series), she bridges her Hawaiian and Utah pioneer roots. Sharks in an Inland Sea (Hemelein Publications, 340 pp., hardcover) $27.99 3.The first thriller novel by Annette Lyon, who has previously focused on an LDS audience, is Just One More, a suspenseful story of a murdered wom-

an and the best friend who tracks down clues to solve the mystery. Told in parallel devices of flashbacks and first-person narratives, the novel includes the complexities of contemporary life of women (Scarlet, 312 pp., hardcover) $26.95 4. Wineskin: Freakin’ Jesus in the ‘60s and ‘70s is a memoir by Michael Hicks, one of the most influential voices in LDS arts and recent Association for Mormon Letters Lifetime Achievement Award winner. Recently retired from Brigham Young University after 35 years, one imagines that his next decades will include more volumes like this one, which covers his childhood in hippie-era California through his conversion to Mormonism and his undergraduate life at BYU. The film Man’s Search for Happiness used to ask the questions, Who am I?,Where did I come from?, and Where am I going? Hicks riffs on those and adds one more, How did I ever get here? (Signature Books, 223 pp, softcover) $19.95

5. Jeff Benedict is the most celebrated sports biographer of our time (previous books include Tiger Woods, The Dynasty, and The Mormon Way of Doing Business: Leadership and Success through Faith and Family.) His latest book turns to LeBron (“King”) James, the 21st century’s greatest basketball player and in an exhaustively researched volume finds an epic of bottomless resilience and limitless talent. (Simon & Schuster, 576 pp., hardcover) $32.00 6. A settler named Zina in the territory of Deseret 1856 loses an infant to a snakebite, and in her grief hears about a magic coffin that can bring the dead back to life.This begins a dangerous quest. The Resurrection Box is a novel by Declan Hyde, which is a pseudonym of a young filmmaker who specializes in Mormon Horror. Yes, that’s a big thing. (Gypsy Fox Publishing, 140 pp., softcover) $7.99

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

SUMMERguide PICNIC BASKET

LDS chefs, purveyors, and food entrepreneurs are innovating their way to deliciousness, maybe greatness. As you shop for that summer outing, consider some of these goodies for your picnic basket. 1. Creminelli Fine Meats was a local, Utah secret, but no longer.The company of artisan, salamis was started by Cristiano Creminelli of Biella, Italy who somehow ended up in Utah and set up shop with

local experts who expanded the business to a national, award-winning juggernaut. (Black summer truffle infused uncured salami, garlic salami minis) $14.95, $6.49 2. Beehive Cheese is the winner of multiple awards, including six major awards for its Seahive, a Utah cheddar rubbed with ancient sea salt harvested from a pristine ocean deposits in Redmond, Utah and with local wildflower honey. In

2021, the cheese took a silver rating at the World Cheese Awards in Oviedo, Spain. Plus, the company is a certified B-Corporation. (Seahive, two 12 oz. wedges) $34.99 3. Delmosa is a curator of grower-produced, terroir-driven, non-alcoholic beverages from Europe and Canada. This company that supplies some of the best restaurants in America with non-alcoholic drinks is run by Bruce Blosil of Bristow,Virginia. Many international vineyards bottle fruit juices and blends for customers who don’t drink. For foodies (what’s the beverage equivalent of that?) who have stopped thinking of Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple Cider as a festive luxury item, these complexly flavorful and adventurous beverages will change your world. Zerozzante Cuvée Nr. 3 Wild Red-fleshed Apple (Cold pressed juice of wild, red-fleshed apples and Dornfelder grapes, vitamin C, carbon dioxide. Sparkling. Unpasteurized. 750ml/25.4 fl. oz) $24.00 Jörg Geiger Cuvée Nr. 21 (Juice of organic heritage apples and pears, hay flower, roasted barley, carbon dioxide. Sparkling. Gently pasteurized. 750ml/25.4 fl. oz) $21.00 Jörg Geiger dzin Bitter (Juice of heritage apples, cucumber, and gooseberry blended with hydrosols of juniper, fir, orange, anise seed, angelica, meadowsweet, mint, carbon dioxide. Sparkling. Gently pasteurized. 375ml/12.7 fl. oz) $16.00 4. Kodiak Cakes is a Park City, Utah food company founded by Jon Clark that partners with wildlife conservation and awareness organizations like Vital Ground Foundation and Kati Conservancy while encouraging a healthier diet. Kodiak Cups are whole grain products that can be quickly made in a microwave: oatmeal, muffins, and flapjacks. (Oatmeal, cinnamon, 2.12 oz) $2.70; (Muffin, chocolate chip, 2.36 oz) $2.70; (Flapjack, s’mores 2.36 oz.) $2.70

5. Crispý Cones is a fresh dough cone filled with ice cream, fruit, and toppings that is a traditional dessert in Eastern Europe. As seen on Shark Tank, two current stores are in Rexburg, Idaho and Logan, Utah. Too far away to try? Settle for clever logo stickers or t-shirts. (Crispý Cones Stickers, 3 x 1.25 inches) $2.50 6. If you do an online search for “soda wars,” you’ll probably be led to articles about the rivalry between Coke and Pepsi. But, LDS addicts (sorry, customers) of drive-by soda shops like Swig, Sodalicious,Twisted Sugar, and Fiiz, would scoff in boredom at such predictable, tired, big corporation concoctions. Fans are passionate about their designer, dirty soda favorites. Fights and lawsuits have resulted. But there are empty calories enough for everybody; can’t we all just get along? (Swig Til I Die air freshener, 2.5 x 3 inches) $6.00 7. Eight years ago, Sodalicious opened its first store behind the one-chair Johnny’s Barber Shop in Provo, Utah.To commemorate the occasion, the company that now has over two dozen locations, has created an anniversary sticker pack with five stickers. Retro vibe and zero calories. (5-pack of .5 inch stickers) $6.00 8. Crumbl is a new, heirloom vegetable co-op that delivers local farmers’ organic harvests directly to your table via solar-powered drones…. Kidding. As you undoubtedly know, Crumbl is a sprawling chain of luxury cookie shops founded by Jason McGowan and Sawyer Hemsley in Logan, Utah in 2017. Indulgent, sure, but don’t you deserve it? Of course, you do. The nutrition facts state that a serving size is 1/4 of a cookie. Good luck with that. (Six pack of cookies: Milk Chocolate Chip, Dirt Cake, Banana Bread, Strawberry Cake, Chocolate Milk, and Classic Pink Sugar) $15.78

9. Snacktivist is a women-owned and operated company in Coeur d’Alene Idaho that produces baking mixes. Its founder is Joni Kindwall-Moore, an Ethnobotanist, who now uses the same prin-

ciples of plants as food and medicine for a line of allergy friendly, plant-based mixes. (Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix, 12 oz., vegan, gluten-free, and assembled with only water, oil, and vanilla) $9.99 10. Steven Colvin and Cole Munger are the owners of Bobelo (based in Sandy, Utah), the first self-carbonating drink mix. It grew from the founders’ determination to create a sustainable soft drink that

was better for the planet than commercial sodas and their endlessly wastefully discarded plastic bottles and aluminum cans.The individual, 15 calorie Bobelo packets are poured into your own bottle of cold water and shaken.Then the carbonating magic happens. (Sample pack of 12 0.28 oz packets in four flavors: Tropical Bliss, Mountain Berry, Orchard Breeze, and Lavender Lemonade) $12.49

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

SUMMERguide ROAD TRIP

The family is in the vehicle at last, seat belts fastened, GPS initiated, snacks ready and looking to the open road…with hours and hours to kill. You could arm the passengers with digital devices that would cocoon them from each other, ok. But how about another path? Why not find books and podcasts that everyone can enjoy and then (gasp!) talk about?

Podcasts Scripture Central Leading Saints Podcast Data Over Dogma General Conference Podcast The First Vision: A Joseph Smith Papers Podcast

Audiobooks Compassion:The Great Healer’s Art (Ulisses Soares)

need to scroll down or enter search in the Deseret Book library to access this title.

The Parables of Jesus (Gerald N. Lund)

Silent Souls Weeping (Jane Clayson Johnson) Note: You may need to sroll down or enter search in the Deseret Book library to access this title.

A Walk in My Shoes: Questions I’m Often Asked as a Gay Latter-day Saint (Ben Schilaty) Note: You may

Dark One: Forgotten (Brandon Sanderson and Dan Wells)

QB: My Life Behind the Spiral (Steve Young)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

SUMMERguide SUMMER SCHOOL

1. Why should adults have all the fun? Literal is a platform that seeks to make reading as fun for young people as social media. Books are placed into groups with a chat format, like social media, but, you know, smarter. Free to register for recommendations. 2. Somewhere in the world, $5,000 in gold has been buried and is the prize (for two) for the treasure hunt. Brainchase is a learning adventure

program for K-12 students and their families with animations, interactive rooms, and a global competition. Other programs include weekly camps with hands-on learning. $99/week, $249 for the six-week hunt. 3. Some of the world’s best outdoors athletes and adventurers give you-gotta-try-this courses on what they love: backcountry skiing, trail running, climbing, mountain biking, fly fishing, and

more. Masterclasses for the non-couch potato. Multi-video lessons and webinars are produced by Crux Academy. Free. 4. Exponent II, a feminist space for women and gender minorities across the Mormon spectrum, offers two kinds of virtual writing workshop series. Both encourage and empower writers to tell their stories. No fee but registration required. 5. The AML Online Book Club meets monthly to do what great books groups do: talk about books, old and new. Being sponsored by the Association for Mormon Letters, titles are from the broad range of LDS authors. The June book up for discussion is Beehive Girl by Mikayla Thatcher. No fee, updated schedule on the association’s Facebook page. 6. Composer Robert Anton Strobel offers The Resilient Composer Course aimed at the composer who needs a jolt to help with the tools and knowledge for the aspirational composer. July 24-September 9, deadline is July 9. $177-677. 7. If you’re lucky enough to be in the Orem, Utah area this summer, SCERA is rolling out summer camps for kids, teens, and adults. The short-duration classes include jewelry making, tap, musical theater, singing, illustration, magic, hip hop, songwriting, painting, and more. Tuition prices vary by course duration, starting at $60. 8. You can play video games, but can you write music for them? Students ages12+ are invited to apply for the Music Creators Academy Video Game Scoring Summer Workshop taught by award-winning composers Benjamin Taylor and Jeff Broadbent; the latter has composed music for some of the most successful game franchises in the world. July 3-15. $399 ($349 early bird tuition).

mySUNDAY KEVIN JONES GIDDINS

Kevin Jones Giddins lives in Orem, Utah and was born in New York City and raised in New Jersey with 10 brothers and sisters. An eclectic man, professionally, he studied the fine arts and has been a professor at Ohio University teaching in the Dance Department and personal brand management in the business school. He is a recognized diversity and inclusion thought leader who develops leaders at Vivint an NRG company and has a leadership consulting firm, Sunlight Works.

Rolling out of bed to pray. I have the habit in the mornings—not only Sunday, but every day—the first thing I do is literally, I don’t stand up, I roll out of bed, hit the floor to my knees, and pray. That’s the first thing I do. On Sundays, after that—I don’t shower yet—I put on a shirt and get ready for a bishopric meeting over Zoom. I then get ready for the day, like shower and stuff. And maybe have some type of a breakfast sometimes. My wife Lita fasts every Sunday morning, so I don’t flaunt a breakfast—usually it’s something very quick—and then I have a little devotional with Lita. We pray and then we read an app on our phones that tells us what scripture to read. So we just do that. And then I march to church. Sundays for me used to be a day of rest; they’re no longer a day of rest. It’s really a day of service. Whether I’m in my calling now in the bishopric or not, I’ve always been focused on a calling, and I’m in church usually two thirds of the day. And I say that because I’m either preparing for something or cleaning up after something. Being in the bishopric for me means I have meetings beforehand, meetings during, and meetings after church services, so I don’t get home until 3 or 4 o’clock. Family time. Then I can give my day back to my family. When I come home after church, Lita and I do Come, Follow Me together—Lita’s influence. We’re very faithful at sharing what each of us has studied in Come Follow Me, not because of me, because of Lita’s faithfulness. We will watch The Chosen or some BYU station programming on the TV and then get ready for dinner. Either we’ve made dinner the day before, one or two of our adult kids bring food over, or Lita has made it after church. We then have dinner and the rest of our “big little people” come over. That’s what Lita calls them. Right now in our house, we are a revolving door. We have never been by ourselves as a couple. We’ve always had a child or 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 in our life. When we got married, we had a honeymoon baby, so literally, we have had children in our lives forever.We are looking forward to the days of just being Lita and I. What will that be like?

But no one told us there’s something called Adult Parenting. Sunday is the day that we have either family counsel, or one on one with the five kids. But we now have a child that moved back home. Remember I said revolving door. They take turns. When one moves out, another one seems to say, “Oh, there’s a free basement,” and they come back in. So we have now a daughter living at home with us. But our family is so close that they are at our house during the week. They come get lunch, raid the food pantry, borrow my tools, “borrow” Lita’s clothes, use the family computer and printer. I guess their high-tech laptops are never working because our kids are always coming over for something, which is interesting because they all could not wait to leave the nest. And Sunday’s the day when everyone usually comes over together, and I love it! We have dinner together with three to five kids around the table. Gospel music. The first thing we’re doing as we’re helping mom finish the dinner preparations is singing to gospel music. Gospel music is very big in our house, to the point that we’ve had neighbors come to our house and question, “Is this reverent?” They’ve literally have said to us, “We didn’t consider this music to be reverent. I can’t believe you guys are blaring this music.” So we’ve had to educate our neighbors that we do things a little differently. Thank you very much for your concern, but we’re okay.We still love the Lord, believe in his church, and we listen to gospel music, and we blare it loud. We are singing it loud and we’re dancing in the kitchen to it. According to our neighbors, our gospel music seems not approved. We’ve actually had one neighbor come—back in the day when we had home teachers—and while they were here, the music was playing, and one said, “You know what, this is weird because I feel the Spirit on that song, that gospel song touched me, and I don’t know why. I feel awkward that I feel the spirit.” We were dumbfounded at his expression that he felt some-

thing, that he’s surprised that he feels the spirit on a gospel song. And so literally, that is a big part of my Sunday: gospel music and moving to it around the house. It really is. Sunday is a celebration. So we’re eating around the table. We have council, we talk about everything, from Church policies, to relationships, God and country, to politics, to racism, social justice, education, goals, dreams—these are a few of my favorite things. We have family discussions about fashion, and trends, to the prophets’ words. Sometimes it gets heated. Sometimes we’re all on the same page, and we have taught our children to think for themselves. So some are aligned in thinking and some are not. And it’s great to have an engaging family discussion. Games and movies. And then we play games. We play games (did I say we play games?) and always a family staple: we watch a movie. We are such a movie family, we cannot get together without watching a movie and spending 30 minutes after the movie talking about the movie, the acting, the arcs in performance, the themes and backstories, the actor’s family and favorite color. So games are before a movie or after—but movies are a Sunday feature. Without fail, every Sunday, we’re watching a movie. When our kids moved out of the house, I decided that every time they move out, I turn their room into something else—either a storage room or a craft room, I just let them know, “We love you, but your room is no longer your room. It really never was because this is your mom’s and my house, your home, but my house and that room is now something else.” Well, my daughter’s room I turned into a movie room. So we have a large projector, screen, a large couch, and I put in there movie-style chairs. “Kid, I love you, and that room is now a movie room.” And so we’re watching, whether it’s Disney movies or artistic movies, we are watching movies every Sunday. Every Sunday, did I say every Sunday? The movies and the TV shows we watch have to be inspirational, according to Mom-Lita. We can’t watch anything that’s not inspirational. So every-

thing we’re watching is “Sunday approved.” Lita has also purchased what’s called TV Guardian. So whatever shows are on, we click on TV Guardian, and all language and unwanted stuff is filtered out. During the week, we listen to anything and watch what most people watch. But on Sunday, it’s all “Sunday approved.” I say that because what makes it different is we’re not watching just anything. There are times that we record the Tonys or Oscars and don’t watch them on Sunday. I may wait until late Sunday night to see the highlights— just to make sure all is well when Lita watches it the next day. Father’s Day. On Father’s Day, I get to pick the meal for the family dinner. And it’s whatever meal I want. Each year is different. Like sometimes I’m going to have breakfast foods for the meal. I also love Italian, so sometimes Italian. A lot of times Italian. And I love apple pie or an apple dish. We have to make some type of apple dish—like apple cobbler or apple pie. That is just a standard. I grew up loving that. And then Father’s Day gifts are always a part of it. We decorate the house on special occasions. In the Giddins house, because of Lita’s influence, we celebrate everything. We celebrate Groundhog Day, first day of spring, and we decorate the house on those occasions. So on Father’s Day, that’s the one time I’m excused from decorating; the kids decorate. The kitchen is decorated with Happy Father’s Day banners and streamers or whatever that theme is. All of our holidays have a theme. I love cars. So it could be a car theme. Or it could be about ties, but there’s some type of decoration theme. And the dining room table is decorated with gifts. I have five kids plus Lita, so at least six different gifts on the table. I don’t open them until after we have eaten and gifts are sitting on the table as we eat. We open gifts, play games. And on Father’s Day, I get to pick out the movie Ministering. The only thing that I didn’t say is some Sundays before or after dinner, I go out ministering to families in my home area. I have three families, and I am dedicated to visiting families at

least once a month, that’s three times. I mean, oftentimes it’s on three different Sundays I’m visiting someone. Remember I said, Sunday is not a day of rest for me, it’s a day of service. And I’m old school, I still go and visit in person. And I’m that weird guy that takes bread or takes baked goods to the families I serve. That’s the part of my Sundays that I feel the happiest about: visiting families. I often come home teary-eyed and filled with the Spirit. When I have a chance to serve, that’s when I feel the best. Sometimes I’ll sit in my car before I come in the house, just thanking Father for that experience that I just had in that house with that family, because I have families that have, you know, some of them have challenges. But that is probably the favorite part of my day: visiting the families in my neighborhood.

ward. And we probably have in our whole neighborhood maybe two families who are not LDS. And we probably only have two families that are not fully engaged in our ward, we have former mission presidents, bishops, stake presidents and general officers: it is just a very strong ward. Okay, after the movie we then do personal things, like people will get into groups, like either me and one daughter will get into the corner and we’ll talk, or continue a card game, or we just break off into little groups and do things. And when people leave, then Lita and I, without fail, we’ll have another devotional, a little devotional prayer and a few scriptures to close out the day. And then we sit and watch late night TV until literally 12:30 or 1 o’clock in the morning. Then we fall asleep.

We live in one of the most active areas in all the Church. We have probably 98% activity in our

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

LETTERSto theEDITOR Thank you so much for your continuing efforts, as you say, to focus on the intersection of creativity and belief for Latter-day Saints, and to share your experiences, knowledge and insights with others. You are doing our community a great service. That spirit was also a core value of the Associated Latter-day Media Artists (ALMA) that I founded in the 1970s-90s, and it lives on today, not only in your Center for Latter-day Saint Arts organization, but also in other similar groups like the Latter-day Saints in Publishing and Media Arts (LDSPMA) and the fledgling “Visionaries” in Utah, and the Utah Alumni in Entertainment in Los Angeles. May it continue to grow as we all use our talents in service to our God. Robert Starling Riverton, Utah

Glen Nelson, you are an extraordinary writer. Both pieces in the May issue are great reads. The discussion about The Chosen obviously went well beyond the event itself. Particularly compelling was the section about McNally and Shepard. I was devastated. Thanks for intellectually and emotionally impactful writing. Pat Debenham Orem, Utah

The May issue just arrived in my inbox and I wanted to dig in when I had full time to relish.You have my interest piqued! The team does such important work. Being exposed to The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts felt like I found the home I had been looking for. I attended an Exponent II retreat last fall and there met Margaret Olsen Hemming who told me about it. May we all art more! Shannon Milliman Florence, Alabama

CONTRIBUTORS MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

JAMES RANSOM James Ransom is an award-winning commercial photographer with over ten years of experience shooting stills and motion for brands spanning the food, still life, and interiors industries. He lives in New York City with his wife and four children.

SUMMER GIFT GUIDE SOURCES Jennifer Adams, AML Online Book Club, Beehive Cheese, Jeff Benedict, Bobelo, Brainchase, Jeff Broadbent, Shelly Brown, Creminelli Fine Meats, Crispý Cones, Crumbl, Crux Academy, Data Over Dogma, Delmosa, Lucky Diaz, Rachel Allen Everett, Rosalyn Eves, Exponent II, General Conference Podcast, Michael Hicks, Amanda Rawson Hill, Joanne Ho, Declan Hyde, Jane Clayson Johnson, Joseph Smith Papers, Kodiak Cakes, Leading Saints, Adelina Lirius, Literal, Gerald N. Lund, Annette Lyon, Kara McDowell, Allison Hong Merrill, Marcia Argueta Mickelson, Heather B. Moore, Chad Morris, Jennifer A. Nielsen, Lehua Parker, Micah Player, Faith Pray, Joshua Sabey, Brandon Sanderson, SCERA, Ben Schilaty, Scripture Central, Ulisses Soares, Sodalicious, Snacktivist, Robert Anton Strobel, Swig, Benjamin Taylor, Shawn J. C. Tenney, Mikayla Orton Thatcher, Charlotte Jones Voiklis, Dan Wells, Raeleigh Wilkinson, and Steve Young.

theSEASON

JULY2023

inMIND LET’S WRITE A HYMN by GLEN NELSON

“That They All May Be One,” sung by the Wickman family. Watch on YouTube

I found myself writing texts for composers by happy accident. I had published some poetry, composer friends saw it, and they said, “Hey, let’s write together.” Since then, I’ve written lyrics, poetry, and librettos for hymns, children’s songs, cantatas, oratorios, art song cycles, and several operas. If you’ve ever thought about writing the words for a hymn, I hope that this article will be of use to you. There are some excellent essays online about the

spiritual side of creating these things, but I want to do something different today with you: this is about the technique of writing a hymn text, itself. Writing a hymn text is not the same as writing the lyrics of a popular song or a piece of musical theater. It’s not like writing poetry, either. Certainly, it’s not like writing prose. It’s technically demanding and specific, and if everything goes just right,

people won’t know how hard you worked to get it to feel so easy and natural. This article has three section topics: meter, rhyme, and imagery.

in the line of the first verse, for example, will have the exact same pattern of accents in every other verse. At least, that’s the ideal.

1. Keep an Eye on Accents

When a composer is setting text to music, he or she will have a sensitive ear attuned to accented syllables and to something else: the natural rising and falling of pitches in normal speech. “It’s a beautiful day today,” has a melodic line baked into it, for example. Say it out loud three times, each time slower and more expansively, “It’s a beautiful day today,…” It’s almost like you can just say it and music finds its way to attach itself. And so it is with everything in written and spoken language, even things that were never intended to be sung. Can the composer ignore those natural musicalities? Of course, and sometimes it’s interesting when they do. But the farther they get away from the inherent rhythms and pitches of speech as they set texts to music, the more manipulated it will sound. That could be good, but in hymns, it’s usually an unwelcome complication that undermines the words’ directness and sincerity. And what are hymns if not sincere?

Poets know all about meter, about accented and unaccented syllables in a line, but most of the rest of us rarely think about it, let alone count and analyze it. A quick primer: When you speak, you place stress on some syllables and not others. Sometimes the voice raises or lowers when you’re emphasizing those syllables, and sometimes they’re spoken louder or softer than the syllables around them. Take this sentence, “I really love potato chips.” (It’s true. I do love them. Note my accent of the word “do,” for extra emphasis.) When I speak naturally, the accents of the sentence fall like this: I reál- ly lóve po- tá- to chips. There are eight syllables in the line. The accented syllables are on the second, fourth, and sixth syllables. It would sound strange to accent other syllables in the sentence. I wouldn’t say, I reál- ly love pó- ta- tó chips. It would sound odd and unnatural to have accents on syllables 2, 5 and 7, you see? You say po-TAY-to, I say po-TAH-to; nobody says PO-tay-TO. There’s a natural rhythm to all speech, a musicality to it. We don’t think about it very often, but it’s there. When you write lyrics though, you have to think about it. This is especially important when you are writing a hymn because in a multi-verse hymn that has the identical melody for each verse, you are locked into its rhythmic patterns. The music is set on repeat, and it can’t readjust to your inconsistent rhythms. It would be as awkward as forcing the singer to sing “PO-tay-TO.” They could do it, but they would be very self-conscious about it, and listeners would no longer be thinking about the deliciousness of my favorite food, would they? In a hymn text, the accents of the first eight syllables

Let’s look at hymns in our hymnal. If you were to say the words, “I need thee every hour, most gracious Lord” in a prayer on your knees at bedtime, your natural accents would be very much like Robert Lowery set to music in the hymn: I néed thee év- ery hóur, Most grá- cious Lórd. Each verse that Annie S. Hawkes wrote for that work follows the same general pattern, “…In jóy or páin” or “…Most hó- ly Óne.” It does not have additional syllables either. It does not say,“…In happiness or pain.” A deviation in the number of syllables wouldn’t fit the existing pattern. It’s obvious, but once you’re syllabically aware—that’s probably not a legit phrase; how about metrics-minded?— you’re halfway there. Pity the writer who has to translate hymn texts from one language to another—an almost impossibly difficult job because, well, because it just is. Now think what it must be like to only know these

hymns that were originally in English through foreign language translation. Back to our discussion. In all of the projects I’ve written, the words have come before the music. That is, I’ve delivered the finished texts to the composer, who then set them to music. Well, there was one song I wrote to celebrate the Church’s history in New York City, and I took the hymn, “Utah,We Love Thee” and turned it into “New York, We Love Thee!” I can’t find a copy of it now, but I remember how hard it was to find words that rhymed with “Sondheim.” Anyway, writing text first is easier for me and harder for the composer, maybe, but I’m not sure I could do it the other way around very effectively. I suspect that most of our LDS hymns were written, words first, but when you come across an exception that really soars, you have to just sit back and marvel. My favorite example of this in our hymnal is Karen Lynn Davidson’s “O Savior, Thou Who Wearest a Crown,” whose text is fit to the glorious tune by Hans Leo Hassler that Bach used throughout his St. Matthew Passion. As you write lyrics for hymns, you’ll likely go first, too. My advice is to be strict about meter. Definitely be sure that every verse has the same number of syllables as the verse that comes before and after it, and if you take this seriously, have the stressed syllables align exactly from verse to verse, too. 2. Rhyme You might think that I’m going to get all judgy and proscriptive about end-rhymes—those are the repeating sounds of the syllables at the ends of lines of text. Two quick examples: More holiness give me, More strivings within, More patience in suff’ring, More sorrow for sin. Far, far away on Judea’s plains, Shepherds of old heard the joyous strains:

You might expect that from me, but I’m not too hung up on it. Just like contemporary poetry that has gone from a reliance on end rhyme centuries ago to something more free-flowing and proselike today, contemporary hymn texts may be a bit liberated from rhyme, too. However, one way or another, they do require cadence. The lines have to flow in a patterned way. We are in a world of songs that are becoming less rigid in their rhyming. Hip hop, Country, Pop, and Broadway songs might have once been very precise in this regard, but it’s common (and useful) now to use slant rhyme—line end sounds that are close enough to feel related without being an exact match—or no rhyme at all. Even though I would encourage you to be a vigilant rhymer, the bigger mistake, it seems to me, is to be boring and predictable. Is there anything worse that listening to a song for the first time and knowing in advance exactly how every line is going to rhyme? “Moon, June, croon, swoon.” Why bother writing that? I feel sorry for the wasted ink. Around 2018, I was asked by a fine composer named Ethan Wickman, who is LDS, to write a hymn for submission to the Church’s new hymnbook. (Eventually 16,000 works would be submitted from over 66 countries.) I didn’t really spend too much time worrying about being accepted or not. However, to me it wasn’t worth the effort to do something unless I was really proud of it, given that the odds for inclusion would be pretty small no matter how fine our efforts turned out. So I decided to give myself a problem to solve. Instead of referring to scriptures and gospel concepts in my hymn text, what if I used an actual scripture, straight from the Bible? And not just a few words from it, but an entire verse? I didn’t know what would happen, but I thought it might be interesting to find out. I landed on the passage from John 17:21, which I find remarkable in English on many levels, including the unusual pattern of its language: “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I

in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” It already has a couple of rhymes in it that give it a loose structure, “in thee,” and “sent me.” Hmm, I thought, maybe it could work. I divided the scriptural verse into four lines, like this: That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee That they also may be one in us: That the world may believe that thou hast sent me. Since it was for a hymn text, and given that I needed it to align with the rhythms of multiple verses with the exact repeating patterns of the music that Ethan would write later, I needed to analyze the accents of the syllables in the scriptural verse in order to repeat them in my own additional verses. With me, so far? Thematically, I wanted to explore something more: How does someone today internalize a verse of scripture? That is, after reading the sacred works, what comes next? So I asked myself that question: What should follow a scripture? How do I respond to verse 21 of being “one” when I see sadly very little of that in the world today? I wondered how could I make the text feel like a living, breathing person is talking. That was important to me, too. I’ll leave it to you to determine whether I did a good job. I submitted to Ethan the first verse, above, along with these following two verses. After the scripture, a question for God: And yet how to be one, we ask Father, when we all are unalike, When our differences of heart and mind Fill the world with distrust, to fear or to fight?

Then a plea and resolve: Grant us Father, a love for all. Number, feed, and gather us to thee That whatever tongue we speak or hear With one voice and one soul, we praise and love thee. I sent off to him my three verses of text. I can’t remember whether Ethan wanted me to change anything—I don’t think he did—and he sent me back a finished hymn score very quickly, as I recall. I played it on the piano and sang along. I loved it immediately. (If you are a writer, my hope for you is to find a composer as wonderful with whom to collaborate as Ethan.) Want to hear it? During Covid lockdown, the talented Wickman family recorded the four-part hymn a cappella with split screens at home, which they edited together and posted on YouTube for Easter. (Mental note to composers: it’s handy to marry musicians and raise musical children.) YouTube. 3. Imagery and other poetics If you think about your favorite recorded songs, the ones that played during important moments in your life, and you look at the lyrics of those songs, I suspect that you’ll find words that conjured up pictures in your mind:“Rows and flows of angel hair,” “And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,” “If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it,” “All the leaves are brown and the sky is gray,” “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,” “Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry,” “Popcorn popping on the apricot tree,” and so on. The imagery makes them memorable. And the opposite of memorable is generic. Unfortunately, it is easy to write hymn texts that are generic and forgettable. Maybe they make statements of belief. They teach lessons. They are “true” in that sense, but they fail to accomplish

all they could if they elevated the poetics just a little. You might think that if your goal is to be universal, it would be disadvantageous to be specific with imagery. I disagree with that, although there are limits. I have no idea what a translator would do with images like our hymnal’s: “more freedom from earth-stains” or “when in the sultry glebe I faint.” I think that when you are speaking personally and honestly, and you can describe a physical thing or idea beautifully, people will identify with you, even if your identity is different from theirs. Flip through the hymnbook sometime and stop at your favorites.What are the images in them? Here are some that pop out to me: The veil o’er the earth is beginning to burst A banner is unfurled I saw a mighty angel fly To lighten our minds with its rays Radiant beamed the sun above The tokens in his hands I knew We’ll make the air with music ring The night is dark, and I am far from home Our brains are built on the ability to remember stories. Stories stick more than sermons do. Likewise, images rise above mere declarations, regardless of their good intentions. An alternative to poetic imagery in a hymn text is a writer’s willingness to be personal or to approach a familiar topic in a new way. In my “That They All May Be One” text, my attempt to be new was to say, essentially, “Well, that’s the scripture, and I get it, but how is that admonition to be one even possible today?” My goal was to force the reader/ singer to question the timelessness of scripture and then seek a solution. In poetics, syntax refers to the order of words

in a line. In conversation I’d say (and have), “I love potato chips.” Speaking poetically, I guess I could say, “’Tis potato chips, I love,” although living in the 21st century, that kind of convolution falls flat with me. I’m rarely going for a throwback vintage construction or a Yoda vibe. This is a sore spot for some songwriters, and they may disagree with me, so I’ll leave you to it, but my advice is to get as close to natural syntax as you can. There you have it. Three points of advice. Writing hymn texts accomplishes a couple of additional wonderful things for you, as a person. First, it helps you think about something important and to try to say something meaningful about it. Second, it gives you more profound insight into other hymns and will make the singing of those works—in a sacred setting or on your way to grab a sandwich after work (potato chips on the side)—a more artful, moving, and memorable experience.

OUTandABOUT 100 PLACES TO SEE AFTER YOU DIE Riffing on the title of the travel bible, 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, the latest book by bestselling author and quiz show mogul, Ken Jennings is titled, 100 Places to See After You Die: A Travel Guide to the Afterlife. This new book is certainly on brand for the LDS quizmaster. Is it just us, or has the new Jeopardy! host covertly been sneaking more religious clues into the nightly broadcast games? This book adds fire to that conspiracy theory. In the introduction, Jennings writes, “A 2016 study of religious participation and belief found that, even though the number of Americans who believe in God, pray, or attend religious services has declined steeply since the 1970s, the number of us who believe in the afterlife has actually risen slightly over the same time.” But this book is not about testimonies; it’s about mashing up as many sources about the afterlife as possible into one entertaining volume: from mythology and literature, to the pop culture of South Park and The Good Place. It is a phantasmagoria of allusions linked with charm, wit, and (shhh!) insight. Who knows what vast encyclopedia resides in this author’s mind? Just try not to imagine that he sat down and wrote the entire book without looking anything up. (Published by Schuster, now available in bookstores) BANDONEONA In 1987, Argentine LDS poet Alejandro Seta published a collection titled Bandoneona.The 20-poem cycle has been newly released as a spoken word album performed by the poet in Spanish, paired with music by Dani Macia. Three of the tracks feature Macia singing, and the others are mellifluously delivered spoken poetry by Seta, with guitar ac-

companiment.. The bandoneón referenced in the title is a traditional concertina instrument (somewhat related to the accordion) that is particularly common in Argentina and music of the tango. The spoken voice performance on Bandoneona retains an intoxicating, atmospheric musicality, even without the wandering, probing lines of the guitar. (On YouTube.)

DONALD R. MARSHALL One of the founders of modern Mormon literature is Donald R. Marshall, who passed away October 25, 2022. A gathering is planned in his honor for July 1 in Provo, Utah, titled “A Celebration of the Life and Impact of Donald R. Marshall, 1934-2022”. He personified creation as a maker of fiction, non-fiction, painting, photography, music composition, theater directing, and criticism.At his death remains unfinished a manuscript of tremendous importance to the field of cinema: interviews with dozens of the world’s greatest film directors of the 20th century, often conducted before fame (and self-censorship) changed them. For his BYU job of running International Cinema, he visited the major global film festivals, traveling almost constantly. He often slept on my studio apartment floor on his way to and from festivals. He once told me a story of how he edited out “objectionable” content before showing foreign films at BYU. He would cut out swear words and scenes of nudity and violence, and then he would splice them back in before returning the rented reels. But to keep track of it all, he would tack the errant strips to a board in his office with the swear word, the revealed body part, or whatever labeled with a post-it note prompt. He laughed telling me how

anyone visiting his office potentially could have received quite an education. –Glen Nelson (The celebration is to be held July 1, 2023, Rock Canyon Ward Relief Society Room, 3-5:00 p.m.) ISLA DE LECHUGA Entering into a one-person art exhibition is like walking into an artist’s world. In the case of the new show, Isla de Lechuga, at Granary Arts in Ephraim, Utah, visitors walk into a space filled with works that are based on a fictional island created by Rachel Stallings Thomander. The artist writes to us about the exhibition, “I’m excited as I was able to explore a lot of different mediums in new and different ways. I’m also excited I addressed themes that are important to me such as motherhood, Latinx and biracial identity, spirituality and childhood.” The gallery describes Isla de Lechuga in this way: “For the last three and a half years, coinciding with the birth of her first son, she has been in communication with the island which she envisions is located off the coast of Colombia. Initially, the island was a way to talk about being bi-racial–a place where people speak both Spanish and English, and experience two cultures at once. Intentionally not utopian, the island acts as a prompt to engage the imagination and explore possibilities.” The works themselves are colorful, playful, inventive, full of symbols and objects. They look like beautiful flannel board stories—if they were designed by modern art masters Elizabeth Murray and Jean Arp, but with the impact of an emerging artist exploring a complex identity. (Exhibition runs through August 12 at Granary Arts)

PERPETUAL GARDEN Many artists create works in series. As they explore an idea, it makes sense to return to the aesthetic problem again and again, resulting in a body of work that can be exhibited or published as a group. The opportunity for visual artists to have

books published about their work is getting harder all the time. Galleries publish fewer exhibition catalogs than they used to, and the economies of scale make art books that are unconnected to a large exhibition rare. Maddison Colvin has used the limited edition art book as a way to gather recent images into publication. Her latest effort, published by Slow Worm Press, is Perpetual Garden. It includes reproductions of photographs, scans, paintings, drawings, and an essay by the artist. We asked Maddison about the new, beautiful book. She writes, “Our relationships with gardens have been symbolic from the beginning: Eden, utopia, a fallen world, wealth, beauty, entropy, control, death, new life. This book contains the past five years of my painting, photography, research, and writing trying to get my mind around these patterns. The most thrilling thing to me is that, 250 pages later, I find the garden more unfamiliar than ever, totally confounded, as rich with meaning as it is with living things.” (Available now from the publisher.)

RELATIVE SPACE: AN ATYPICAL MUSICAL Writing an original musical (not an adaptation of a movie, not a jukebox musical cobbled together from the pop music catalog of a single artist, not a rewritten revival of a musical) is like spotting an endangered species in the wild.You know they exist, but they’re rare. Break out the binoculars, then, for Relative Space: An Atypical Musical written, directed, played, and sung by women. Playwright Melissa Leilani Larson, who wrote the book for the musical, writes to us about the work, “Relative Space tells an important story—the parallel struggles of a mother and daughter haunted by generational depression and anxiety—in an atypical way. It’s a rock concert layered on top of a family drama. Both the play and the music, written and performed by 16-year-old singer/songwriter Kjersti Long, can stand independent of each other, but together create a work that is relatable and

compelling.” (The musical finishes its premiere run in Pleasant Grove, Utah on July 1, and will have an industry reading in New York in October.) THE LAST CARAVAN This alien invasion report just in: “The Last Caravan is a cars and aliens roleplaying game about a midwinter roadtrip in the wake of an alien invasion. The war ended in a cold stalemate, and now you play as normal people traveling across the transformed North America as the rumblings of a new war begin.” When the creator of the game, Ted Bushman, announced it on Kickstarter, it was

fully funded in 12 hours (and has nearly tripled the goal amount pledged). Bushman is a writer, actor, composer, and game designer, and he writes to us, “The Last Caravan is a melancholy, cozy story about a bickering family making a dangerous pilgrimage across North America... I’ve been holding the vibes and elements of this story in my head for years, and with our Kickstarter’s success, we’ll be able to bring it to life this fall. In my multi-hyphenate creative life, this project is the closest I’ve gotten thus far to creating a world for other people to actively shape and explore themselves.” (The estimated delivery of the game is October 2023.)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

ONtheLIST MUSIC RESOURCES OF CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST.ORG

Jacqui Larsen (American, born 1962) The Children Sing: Syracuse, New York (2018) mixed media on panel, 37 x 37 x 4 inches Collection of the Church History Museum Used with permission of the artist

The official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a vast site that is a portal to study libraries, gospel topics, sharing the gospel, news and media, resources for members serving in the Church, a tool interface for individuals and congregations, maps for meetinghouses and worship schedules, directory of languages and countries, landing spot for Church websites and apps, employment opportunities, as well as information about the Church and website support. So much content. For individuals and families, churchofjesuschrist.org is also a rich resource for music. Here is a guide to music resources on the site.

Music Library - All of the current hymn and song collections of the Church are found here (including playback tools, downloads, searchability, and training ideas. Still more, it includes music appropriate for church performance, General Conference music, and choir books for children, adults, men, and women. That’s only the beginning. Music published in the Church magazines can be found as well, for Seminary, from Church pageants, and music and texts submitted to the Church going back a few decades. For those wanting to learn to play the piano or conduct music, there is also a complete keyboard course and conducting course.

Music Callings - Music callings can be intimidating. This series of content includes training, policies, FAQs, and information on how to donate to a philanthropy to help people worldwide learn basic music skills.

Church Music Submission Guidelines - Did you know that an annual Church Submission seeks gospel-related works in these categories: hymns, hymn texts, children’s songs, arrangements for choruses, anthems, original songs, contemporary music, and instrumental music? Cash awards are given in each category, and some submissions appear on the Church’s website and in Church publications.

General Conference Music - Every musical performance during General Conference going back to April 2008 can be found in this section, divided by semi-annual conference and subdivided by session. Information about the works appear here, as well, including where to locate sheet music for the arrangements.

Radio Channels - Did you know that you can stream music and more 24/7 from the Church’s website? There are four radio channels:Tabernacle Choir Stream, Music Stream (uplifting and inspirational Christian music), Talk Stream (messages, talks, and podcasts), Canal de transmisión (the official radio station of the Church in Spanish).

Groups, Performances, and Broadcasts - Three entities have their own, robust sites within the Church website: The Tabernacle Choir, Music & the Spoken Word, and Temple Square Performances. Particularly deep is the Choir’s site which has a tremendous number of video performances of concerts, weekly broadcasts, recordings, tours, and more, all cataloged here and searchable in several compelling ways.

Worthy Music,Worthy Thoughts - A 1974 sermon by President Boyd K. Packer talks about music. The pages of this area of the website also include messages for youth regarding music.

Savior of the World - The Church-produced musical is featured on the site including scripts, music, costuming, props, set design, and casting suggestions for directors.

Strive to Be - A youth channel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints includes music videos, Strive to Be Concert, Youth Music Festival, and Youth Album.

mySUNDAY JANICE KAPP PERRY

Photograph courtesy of Janice Kapp Perry

Janice Kapp Perry is one of the most beloved of LDS artists. A composer of over 3,000 songs and over 100 albums, her works are familiar to members around the world. These include “A Child’s Prayer,” We’ll Bring the World His Truth,” “Love Is Spoken Here,” “In the Hollow of Thy Hand,” “I Love to See the Temple,” “I’ll Walk by Faith,” among many others. We asked her via email a few questions about her typical Sunday.

My Sunday routine. I live just two blocks from our chapel in Provo, and four wards meet there every Sunday. This year we are on the favorite schedule: 10:30 a.m., so I have plenty of time to shower, do my hair, eat a little breakfast and get there in time, either walking or driving–nice in good weather, but still a bit challenging in the winter unless the brethren have cleared the parking lot and the sidewalks of snow early in the morning. I listen to the BYU Classical Music station while I’m getting ready, which usually includes the weekly Tabernacle Choir program. I sang in the choir in the ’90’s and love to hear them every week! Home life. My husband died five years ago, so I live alone in a comfy home just a block or two down the hill from the Provo Utah Temple. Since I am 84 and live alone now and have had two strokes a few years apart, I now have a BYU graduate student living in my basement in case I need help. He is very congenial and helpful and is a good cook, artist, and helpful companion. My son John works in our home in our music office half days, and he is very helpful to me, too. At church. Church services are my favorite two hours of the week! One of our organists plays Primary songs as prelude music and often includes some of mine, like “I’m Trying To Be Like Jesus,” and “We’ll Bring the World His Truth,” etc., which is fun for me. We have good choristers and organists who keep us singing with enthusiasm (except on the sacrament hymns) and we have nice musical numbers which are often my favorite part of the meeting. I love the chance to take the sacrament in person now, since we couldn’t do it for some time during the pandemic. Study-friends. There is a brother in our ward whose wife died a month after my husband in

2018, and we have become study-friends, especially on Sunday evening. We read the Come, Follow Me lesson and scriptures for the coming week, and watch Taylor and Tyler and other videos on TV teaching us more on each subject. We also listen to that Sunday’s Music and the Spoken Word (again) before he leaves to go home. It helps to have a regular study partner! Music playing. Unless I’m writing music myself,I almost always have music playing in the background, especially on Sunday. When I hear my own songs sung in church it is a special feeling. I hear the organist play them as prelude sometimes. I write songs for our YW and YM to sing in church (songs about the church’s theme for youth each year), and I’ve written songs that all of our RS sisters sing together in sacrament meeting. It’s fun to get everyone involved. In our ward we have a wonderful choir leader and accompanist, and we meet in the choir director’s home at 3:00 each Sunday and have such fun singing under their direction! With four wards meeting in our chapel, this is a great option, and we all love it. We just quit last week so our leaders can have the summer off. Thinking about the coming week. Well at 84, my memory isn’t the best, and I have to keep an exact calendar of places I need to be and things I need to do. So before bed Sunday night, I write my list for the next day to get organized for the week. I have to do that nightly, in fact, because in the morning I won’t remember! Drop ins. We all live so close together here in Provo that we often stop in and visit each other on Sundays when we’re out walking. I love those drop in visits so much!

takeNOTE RE: LEROY ROBERTSON BY BENJAMIN SABEY

Benjamin Sabey, left, and Leroy Robertson, right. Sabey photograph used with permission.

In this fun, engaging, and moving three-video masterclass, Benjamin Sabey tells the story of the most successful classical composer in the Church’s history—but one you might not know anything about. He is Leroy Robertson, the son of a sheepherder in Fountain Green, Utah, who had an insatiable need to study with the towering musical figures of his day (including Ernest Bloch and Arnold Schoenberg) and to compose masterpieces like the “The Lord’s Prayer,” the Oratorio from the Book of Mormon, concertos, overtures, and symphonies, even if his largest works had no likelihood in his rural home state of ever being performed. The surprise winner of one of the largest prize ever given in the U.S. to a composer (the equivalent of about $350,000 today), Robertson’s story will make you laugh, cry, and sigh. Illustrated with photographs, vintage recorded excerpts of his works, and stories taken from the composer’s biography: all presented with a casual charm and insight of a great teacher.

Part 1 - Early Development and Early Career Sabey describes Robertson, a child who loved music so much that he made his own violin out of a cigar box, to his studies in Germany. This excerpt, after observing Hitler and wanting to capture his disgust in music: “…Realizing at once that he had found the companion (or foil) to his problem-melody, he stopped and whipped out from his briefcase the ever-present manuscript paper…The music [Etude in G minor for Pianoforte] came almost faster than he could notate it.” On YouTube.

Part 3 - Analysis of Punch and Judy Overture Have you ever wondered how to appreciate the craft of symphonic music? In the final video, Sabey walks us through Robertson’s Punch and Judy Overture, once a staple of symphony orchestras, and points out themes, developments, and surprising messages found in this delightful work—all using a vintage recording and full orchestral score. By the end, you will be an expert, too. On YouTube.

Part 2 - Disappointment, Award, and Studies with Schoenberg Sabey continues with the story of Robertson, back in the U.S., his studies, friendship, and collaboration with Schoenberg, followed by a heartbreaking loss and a jubilant victory. On the prize podium with the nation listening on the radio: “I only wish it [the award] had fallen into the hands of Mozart or Schubert. Since it comes to me, I shall consider it a sacred trust and sincerely hope that the Trilogy and other works will measure up to the glorious challenge and responsibility.” On YouTube.

FURTHERMORE TRANSLATED PRAISE by GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ

Photograph courtesy of Gabriel González

The announcement in June 2018 that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would produce a new hymnbook generated some excitement among the faithful. Of course, hymnbooks have been part of Latter-day Saint worship since the very beginning. As is often recalled, a July 1830 revelation directed Emma Smith “to make a selection of sacred hymns, as it shall be given thee, which is pleasing unto me, to be had in my church” (D&C 25:11). She went on to produce the first of several hymnals “to be had in my church.” In English, these collected praises were A Collection of Sacred Hymns for the Church of the Latter Day Saints (1835), A Collection of Sacred Hymns for

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Europe, aka, the Manchester Hymnal (1840), Latter-day Psalmody (1889), Songs of Zion (1908), Deseret Sunday School Songs (1909), Latter-day Saints Hymns (1927), Hymns (1948), and the soon-to-be discontinued Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1985). The story of these hymnbooks is well known and has been told and retold in different ways, including on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ own website. What is at times overlooked in the Anglosphere is the obvious fact that the Church has also produced many hymnbooks in other languages.These include the Welsh Hymanu,

Caniadau, ac Odlau Ysbrydol (1852), the French Recueil de Cantiques (1857), and the German Liederbuch (1861), among others. These early hymnals in languages other than English were published by the Church’s missions locally to satisfy the worship needs of converts in local areas. The hymnbooks themselves changed over time, as each mission saw fit. The evolution of non-English-language hymnbooks can be exemplified through the hymnals published by the Mexican Mission. While missionaries had been serving in Mexico on and off since 1876, it was not until 1901 that something called a Mission—the modern, ecclesiastical organization where a president oversees the actions of preaching missionaries within a specified geographical location—was organized in that country. By 1907, the Mission had published its first hymnal: Himnario mormón. This was a text-only collection of hymns which brought together translated lyrics from the LDS English-language hymnbooks, original Spanish-language compositions (most, but not all, penned by native speakers of English), Spanish-language hymns from other denominations, and even some hymns in English. A new, text-only hymnbook was published by the Mission in 1912 titled Himnos de Sión de la Iglesia de Jesucristo.The new hymnal was a corrected, expanded version of the 1907 one. This meant it also contained many translations (73 out of 105 texts) alongside several original Spanish-language lyrics. The Mexican Mission revised Himnos de Sión in 1927, producing a new, text-only hymnbook mainly through translation, with very few works originally in Spanish. In 1942, the Church decided to publish a single hymnbook for all the Spanish-speaking world, and thus a new Himnos de Sión came to be. Nearly 95% of hymns in it were translations from English. More recently, in 1992, the Church published its current hymnal, titled Himnos de la Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días. It was modeled after the 1985 English-language hymnbook, but roughly two thirds its size. Almost the entire content of Himnos is translated from En-

glish, with only a couple of original Spanish-language compositions remaining. Thus, a gradual transition can be observed from a hymnbook created locally with a strong Spanish-language element to one that was created for an international audience almost exclusively through translation. (Hymns not originally written in English were translated into Spanish not from the original texts but from the English translations.) This is evident if one compares the composition of the 1907 hymnal and its 1992 counterpart. The 1907 Himnario mormón had 72 hymns, of which 15 were in English, 34 were translations from English, and 23 were original in Spanish. The 1992 Himnos has 209 hymns, of which 207 are translations from English and 2 are credited as original in Spanish (specifically, “La voz, ya, del Eterno” by José V. Estrada G. and “Placentero nos es trabajar” by Andrés C. González). So, if historical trends are any indication, the new, global hymnbook that has been announced will be largely a collection of lyrics written originally in English with a few translations from other languages. Granted, the current English-language hymnal has some translated lyrics (e.g., “Oh, Come, Al Ye Faithful” is a translation of the Latin-language hymn “Adeste Fideles”), but the new hymnbook promises more translations into English. In fact, when announcing the project, the Church’s press release quotes Elder Erich W. Kopischke as expressing the desire that “these new books will also include some of the best hymns and songs originating in other languages that will then be translated into English and the other languages of the world” (West 2018). Thus, the intention has been stated that the unified hymnbook bring into English a number of hymns from other languages, which would then be translated out of English into the languages of the Church.The task ahead is enormous—more than 16,000 original songs were submitted from 66 countries. One might speculate, however, that it is likely many of the hymns from the current hymnbook will remain, and it is a safe bet that the new hymns being proposed are

mostly in English (consider that there are roughly 60 sovereign states where English is an official language). In addition, the committee charged with the project is probably more knowledgeable of musical traditions from the Anglosphere. This means that while the new hymnbook may have more translations into English than previous ones, these will probably still be a minority. For languages other than English, however, the construction of the global hymnbook is a massive translation undertaking. For that reason alone, one might briefly consider what it takes to translate musical lyrics. In some ways, translating the lyrics of hymns is very much like translating poetry. The translator must seek to carry meaning across languages and cultures (the verb translate, after all, comes from the Latin translatus: to carry across), but this transfer must take into account meter, rhythm, and rhyme. Ideally, a good poetic or hymnic translation would convey the desired message within those parameters. Each line in the hymn would have the same number of syllables, would follow a similar rhythmic pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables, and would rhyme at the end of the same lines. This can be challenging because different languages and cultures have different poetic conventions. What works as poetry in one language may be unpoetic, or sometimes impossible, in a different language. For example, English has no tones, but Vietnamese poetry takes into account tone classes when creating rhymes. In addition, different cultures assign different values to certain aspects of poetry. For example, in English poetry, the rhythm created by the meter is more valued than the rhyme, while in Spanish the rhyme is more valued than the rhythm. Because poetry is about creating an effect more so than conveying information, all these linguistic but also cultural differences matter when translating sacred poems. In addition, because hymns are poetry put to music, there are certain musical elements that need to be considered. This is particularly important when considering rhythm because the rhythm of

the lyrics must match the harmonic stress of the music. This can be accomplished by making sure that stressed syllables are lined up with strong beats. If this is not done properly, the hymn will sound awkward when sung, as if something is off, because the music will not match the words. Another important musical consideration has to do with phrasing, or the way in which a group of notes is sequenced to feel complete. The phrases in the lyrics must match musical phrases if the hymn is to sound beautiful. Misaligned phrasing can lead to breathing in improper places or words sounding unnatural when sung. Because hymns are about creating a harmonious experience, these musical considerations must be taken into account when translating sacred music. These considerations, both poetic and musical, are at once constraining and liberating. They are constraining because every line that is translated, every phrase that is carried across languages, must meet several technical criteria. Thus, finding the right phrase may come easily, as if carried in the wind, or may take several hours, as if extracted from a riverbed. Perhaps ironically, such considerations are also liberating because they free the translator from the prison of literalness. Languages evolved differently, in often strikingly different cultural contexts, and thus the way they convey things may be very, very different. Literal translation at times becomes difficult to understand because it carries over a foreign grammar and style, but also, and perhaps more importantly with hymns, it can be quite dull and fail to move the listener. Thus, the poetic and musical constraints that force the translator to give up on literalness provide greater freedom, the freedom to recreate a feeling. Therefore, when the new hymnbook does roll around—whenever that might be—pay special attention to the translated hymns, no matter what your native language is. Consider the long legacy of translation in the way Latter-day Saints praise God through song. Savor the richness of meter and rhyme as they cross into your language. Ap-

preciate the beauty of rhythm and phrasing as they flow off your lips in your own language. In essence, feel the awesomeness of translated praise. Sources Duffy, John-Charles, and Olaiz, Hugo (2002), “Correlated Praise: The Development of the Spanish Hymnal,” Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 35(2): 89–113. Kern, Chelsea (2022), “Update on Hymnbook Revision: Latter-Day Saints from 66 Countries Submitted More Than 16,000 Original Songs,” LDS Church News. Available at https://www. thechurchnews.com/2020/11/10/23265168/hymnbook-revision-update-childrens-songbook-submissions-elder-soares Liu ,Yvonne (2018), “How the LDS Hymnbook Has Evolved Over Nearly 200 Years,” LDS Living. Available at https://www.ldsliving.com/how-

the-lds-hymnbook-has-evolved-over-nearly-200years/s/88733 Nielsen, Chad (2022), “The Mexican Mission Hymns Project,” Times and Seasons. Available at https://www.timesandseasons.org/index.php/notable-series/the-mexican-mission-hymns-project/ Prescott, Marianne Holman (2018),“How the Current Hymnbook Came to Be,” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Available at https:// www.churchofjesuschrist.org/church/news/howthe-current-hymnbook-came-to-be?lang=eng West, Camille (2018), “Church Announces Plans for New Hymnbook and Children’s Songbook,” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Available at https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ church/news/church-announces-plans-for-newhymnbook-and-childrens-songbook?lang=eng

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

FURTHERMORE BELOVED DAUGHTER by STEPHEN ANDERSON

Photograph courtesy of Stephen Anderson

A few months ago, I was approached by a counselor in our ward young women’s presidency, and she asked me if I could compose a song that would help the girls more easily memorize the Young Women’s Theme that they often recite together in their Sunday meetings. I had a little break between projects at work, and I composed Beloved Daughter, which sets the theme with little variation from beginning to end so that the girls could sing the words straight through as they would in their church meetings. A talented vocalist in our ward, Kristin Perez, and I then created this demo recording where Kristin multi-tracked the soprano and alto parts so that the girls could more easily hear and learn their parts. Beloved Daughter, a setting of the Young Women’s Theme of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, for soprano and alto voices, is available for free download on the composer’s website. On the site, also listen to a performance of Beloved Daughter.

CONTRIBUTORS STEPHEN ANDERSON Stephen Anderson is a North Carolina composer and pianist who was formally distinguished (May 2022) by the Minister of Culture, Señora Milagros Germán, of the Government of the Dominican Republic. As musical director of The Dominican Jazz Project, the group won Best Jazz Album and Best Jazz Song in the 2023 national Premios Indie Dominicano 3ra edición awards. Anderson has composed chamber music, sacred choral works, and music for symphony orchestra and various jazz ensembles.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ Gabriel González is a native of Uruguay who has also lived in Belgium, Ecuador, and the United States. In addition, he has spent several months in Colombia, Germany, Mexico, and Spain.

JACQUI LARSEN Jacqui Larsen is a painter and mixed-media artist originally from Syracuse, NY. She has received several grants and awards, and her work

frequently appears in literary journals, including Gettysburg Review, Rattle, and Tampa Review. She lives in Springville, Utah. GLEN NELSON Glen Nelson’s most recent book, John Held, Jr.’s Fiction was recently named a finalist in booklength criticism by the Association for Mormon Letters.

JANICE KAPP PERRY Janice Kapp Perry has been writing music since the mid 1970’s and is perhaps best known for Primary songs like “A Child’s Prayer,” “Love Is Spoken Here,” and “We’ll Bring the World His Truth.” Her husband Douglas passed away in 2018 just before their 60th wedding anniversary, and they have five children, thirteen grandchildren, and twenty great-grandchildren.

BENJAMIN SABEY Based in the San Francisco Bay area, Ben heads the theory, composition and electronic music programs at San Francisco State University. He holds a PhD from the University of California, San Diego where he studied primarily with Roger Reynolds. He has also studied composition with Brian Ferneyhough at the Royaumont Abby north of Paris, Chaya Czernowin, Philippe Manoury and Michael Hicks as well as computer music with Miller Puckette and psycho-acoustics with Richard Moore.

editorialBOARD WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE HYMN AND WHY?

TED BUSHMAN “Lead, Kindly Light” (97). It’s the rare hymn that both recognizes and renders beautiful the more subtle aspects of discipleship–the uncertain walk through darkness, the faint glimmer of divine approval, the smiling angel faces of lost loved ones on the other side.

against being led, and that struggle really spoke to me. Love that it is a prayer and conversation with the divine.

JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE

“In The Garden” (I know, it’s not in the present hymn book). I first heard this hymn at my Grandmother Smythe’s funeral which was shortly after I had been baptized as a 21-year-old BYU student. I find the presence of particularly my Heavenly Mother in my own garden

“I’ll Go Where You Want Me to Go” (270). This song became incredibly special to me when my first son left for his mission. It was the day of his farewell and I had planned on singing something different, but when that fell through I chose this thinking it would be easy. It was not. At all. Once I actually began looking at the lyrics and registered that my son would be doing the very thing I was singing about, I was immensely overwhelmed and barely got any of the words out. It’s been special to me and him ever since.

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ

BENJAMIN TAYLOR

Choosing just one is impossible, but let me say that today, one hymn I love is “Placentero nos es trabajar” (88, Spanish hymn book). I love the story behind the hymn. The lyrics were written by Andrés C. González, the first Mexican missionary, when he spent a night in jail due to a conflict that arose over the missionaries singing a hymn in public.

“Praise to the Lord, the Almighty” (72). The energy and vigor of this hymn has always inspired me. It is also one of the first hymns I played on trumpet to accompany the congregation during sacrament meeting after the handbook was updated. What a joy that was!.

KATHIE DEBENHAM

ARISAEL RIVERA “Lead, Kindly Light” (97). I think that I first fell in love with this hymn in Spanish “Divina Luz” or “Divine Light.” It connects with me the divine.The second verse talks about our pride, our fighting

KWANI POVI WINDER “Be Still My Soul” (124).This hymn speaks of hope but for me it also speaks of pain and sorrow. I played it at my father’s funeral and it helped me to grieve and pour my pain into the music.

WARREN WINEGAR One of my favorite hymns is “Lead, Kindly Light” (97). While I was a student at BYU my father very suddenly lost the hearing in his left ear. Feeling so disconcerted and bewildered by this change, my father, and our family, faced a challenging time as the doctors met with him and tried to determine what happened and how to reverse it. One Sunday afternoon, a friend in the BYU Men’s Chorus came with a quartet and serenaded my father with this song, which he heard only through his good ear while sobbing. His hearing never returned but the lesson of the lyrics became more meaningful and the beautiful act of service by those men has never been forgotten.

MYKAL URBINA, publisher A difficult choice but…”Be Still My Soul” (124)—a longtime favorite made all the more meaningful by a trip to the Sea of Galilee, where those “waves and winds” brought me even closer to He who “ruled them while He dwelt below.”

GLEN NELSON, editor “God Speed the Right” (106). When I was 12 years old, I was called to be the Priesthood Meeting Pianist, and this hymn was the only one I could play. Is this the best hymn? Hardly, but you do always remember your first love.

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD, communications “Lord, I Would Follow Thee” (220). I love this hymn because “would” is an auxiliary verb, operating in past, present and future states. Simple phrases render an elegant sermon on our eternal existence; the pattern to become as He is; and

being forever changed when we place our will on the Lord’s altar.

theSEASON AUGUST2023

inMIND FIRE IS A CHEMICAL REACTION by BRIDGET VERHAAREN

Photo credit: Kamilla Earlywine Artwork by Sara Lynne Lindsay, used with permission of the artist

At the age of 48, I applied to two M.F.A. programs: Columbia University and Vermont College of Fine Arts. I was elated to be accepted at both. I chose VCFA’s low-residency model of semi-annual, tenday residencies in Vermont, in conjunction with monthly one-on-one mentoring with a faculty

advisor. This program best suited my demands of work and home life.At the time, we still had two of our eight children in our blended family at home. At my final student reading last June, I was slated to follow a student named Amy. She read a fictional excerpt mocking a Mormon character, their

patriarchal blessing, and exaggerated food storage. My skin prickled as I listened to the crowd’s loud laughter. My mind flashed back to an October 2018 talk by President Russell M. Nelson who issued a prophetic plea to the women of the Church, to shape the future by helping gather scattered Israel. He said, “This gathering is ‘the greatest challenge, the greatest cause, and the greatest work on earth today!’…So tonight, I’m extending a prophetic plea to you, the women of the Church, to shape the future by helping to gather scattered Israel…. My dear sisters, you have special spiritual gifts and propensities. Tonight, I urge you, with all the hope of my heart, to pray to understand your spiritual gifts—to cultivate, use, and expand them, even more than you ever have…. My dear sisters, we need you! We need your strength, your conversion, your conviction, your ability to lead, your wisdom, and your voices.” We simply cannot gather Israel without you.” Crisp were the words, “We need your voices.” And I knew the time had arrived to expand my spiritual gifts. In January of 2019, I began my first descent into the inky pit of difficult experiences I had survived after my husband Rob died. I searched for the most concise and descriptive words to write from inside those moments. I wanted my reader to know, with exactness, what I’d experienced, and I wanted her to know the only way I have found peace is through Him, Jesus Christ. After I finished my “first draft/vomit draft,” detailing my grief, I realized I needed better tools. I wanted to learn the craft of writing, and I wanted to engage with other artists and build literary friendships. After Amy’s reading at VCFA, I said a silent prayer asking to know how to handle the situation. Help. Unsure, I walked to the front of the room and stood at the lectern and waited to speak. I noted the furrowed brow on a student who already knew that I was LDS. In that awkward quiet, it came to me, and I knew what to say.

“I’m Bridget Verhaaren.” There was a long pause. “And I’m a Mormon.” The AA Introduction. Thick silence. I scanned the crowd, left to right, and then said, “And I wish I had food storage like that.” The crowd’s hard laughter was one of relief. I smiled wide and then exhaled. My beating heart slowed, and the prickles on my skin evaporated. I was excited for the opportunity to share the experiences of an actual Mormon. I have always been a writer of journals, letters, notes. I am a nonfiction writer of essays and a memoir, now in revision. My goal is to write in the most honest, accurate fashion the truths of what I’ve experienced. I am an ordinary person who has found herself on extraordinary adventures–– some sought, most not. I read to the group an essay called “Detonation,” since published in Solstice: A Magazine of Diverse Voices, about my experiences driving refugee women and children from the Ukrainian Border crossings to Krakow, Poland and beyond. I read of delivering bulletproof vests to brave young men, Russian-speaking returned missionaries, who drove through Ukraine under cover of night to distribute them. Later I had discovered the recipients were members in the Zaporizhzhia and Kremenchuk congregations where my son, Ansel, had served his mission—a reminder to me that the Lord is always in the details. When I finished my reading, I was rushed at the lectern by students who wanted to know how I came to be in Poland and Ukraine.Was this something the Mormons were doing? I said yes.Truth is, we flew to Poland, rented a van, and drove to the LDS church building hoping to meet up with other volunteers who would give us the latest information on the situation. They did. Then we prayed to be led to the people who most needed our help. I am sorry to report that at every one of the six residencies I attended, there was at least one stu-

dent or faculty reading slighting Mormons. If you count workshop readings, there were many more than that. Slamming Mormons seems to be the “edgy” thing to do. Perhaps my graduate school peers couldn’t imagine that a Mormon—1.7% of the U.S. population—could be in their tiny class of sixteen, or in a fluctuating school population totaling 60-70 students. The first time this happened, I looked around to see my peer’s reaction: a quick laugh, and a head nod. I was surprised that this group of wordsmiths who loved to discuss inequities, acknowledged nothing was amiss. After my second residency, I wondered if the blatant prejudice I’d heard during readings was the norm at VCFA or at graduate schools in general. Twenty-five years ago, my late husband had encountered a few snide remarks from his cohort at NYU School of Law. After that, Rob often introduced me as his first wife, then waited to see the person’s reaction. Then he’d follow-up with, “First and only.” I thought things had changed since then. I mentioned this to my faculty advisor, Connie May Fowler, and she said, “The last acceptable prejudices are against Mormons and fat people.” As LDS people, what are we supposed to do when faced with this? I wondered if they had met Mormon people who hurt them or if it was simply that they didn’t know who we are. I decided that I would try to find out the next time it happened. At a faculty reading at VCFA, an author and poet read a piece about her twenty plus years’ experience of living in Salt Lake City amid so many Mormons. Her tone of mocking and contempt was palpable. I was bewildered by her unconcealed anger toward the LDS community. The following day, I emailed VCFA’s Writing Program Director: We at VCFA have adopted a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement, which includes religion (Vermont College of Fine Arts Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Statement). I

choose to take a stand when my culture, the LDS culture, commonly known as the Mormon Religion is ridiculed, in someone’s piece. I find this offensive. How is this different than any other group being ridiculed for wearing their sacred religious clothing and for their values? The program director’s response: I hear you. And I honor and grieve for your upset and pain. Upset and pain? No, this felt like straight up disappointment. I’d hoped for a more open-minded community at a liberal arts college. During my first residency, I’d called my husband and told him I felt like I was at the most fascinating cocktail party ever. I met a woman who had sailed the Pacific, an Olympic gold medalist, an Oxford undergrad/Harvard Law grad, and my roommate, a convicted felon—a bank robber. I found curious members of my cohort who sought my friendship one on one, including Frank DiPalermo, an actor, a writer, and a gay man, who acted as my unofficial mentor throughout my time as VCFA. However, in a group setting, I was often shunned. In the eyes of many of my peers, I’m too white, too straight, too conservative, and have too many kids; furthermore, that I am too open-minded to be a real Mormon. I wondered if I was the only one experiencing prejudice like this. I reached out to author and essayist Patrick Madden, a professor at Brigham Young University and a faculty advisor at Vermont College of Fine Arts and asked him what he thought of my experiences. He replied, “I decided long ago not to be offended by what I heard in the public readings at VCFA, not even by the dangling modifiers or subject-verb disagreements that sometimes slip in. This has been very helpful to me. I’m sometimes deeply moved by what I hear, and sometimes the words are lost almost as soon as I hear them. Either way (and all the many possibilities in between) is fine to me.”

I liked Madden’s approach, and I wanted more. Madden suggested I offer to speak with her directly over lunch, “If she’s felt alienated living in Utah, maybe a friendship with someone local could be a step in the right direction?” I emailed and asked if I could take her to lunch and learn more about her experiences living in SLC, and she said yes.

tor’s arduous journey to the West. I read the verses aloud and then played the hymn, “Come, Come, Ye Saints.” As I read and performed, I was terrified of being ostracized. But afterwards, many individuals reached out to tell me they had no knowledge of our history. My entire cohort had never heard of Mormons being persecuted.

It was in the time of Covid. I tested negative, picked up salads, and drove to her home. I prayed for an open mind and heart. And I learned that she recognized long ago that her LDS neighbors had too many demands on their time—work, church, children—and little time to socialize. She was left out, alienated in their midst. Hurt appeared to have turned to anger. As I was leaving her home, she hugged me goodbye and said, “This is the first time I’ve had a Mormon in my house.” Tragic. Her neighbors lost an opportunity for friendship with a brilliant woman. She and her partner have since moved to D.C.

I wondered how common my regrettable experiences in these sessions had been. I reached out to LDS friends who, unfortunately, had stories just as uncomfortable as mine.

During my June 2020 residency, following George Floyd’s murder, epigenetics, the idea that trauma can be inherited, was at the forefront of every discussion. A peer in my workshop singled me out, her voice brimmed with contempt as she said, “What do you know about epigenetics?” She wasn’t looking for an answer, she was looking for an opening. I remained quiet, thinking: You don’t know me. You don’t know my history. You don’t know the stories of my ancestors. I determined to share the legacy I’d inherited in a less explosive manner. During each residency there is a talent show, one of my favorite nights to spectate. I signed up to play the piano. As a child, I learned the hymns as fast as I could to stop taking lessons. I began by sharing about the Mormon Extermination Order of 1838, the persecution of the early Saints, and my ances-

My friend, the award winning author, Allison Hong Merrill, also holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She writes in both Chinese and English, both fiction and nonfiction. Her work appears in The New York Times and has won both national and international literary prizes. Her debut memoir, Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops, launched in September 2021 continues to win book awards. She said simply of her graduate school experience, “It was a very lonely time for me.” How do we as LDS people participate in art communities if we’re receiving prejudice in graduate school programs? And what of the next step in passing the gatekeepers of the art world? It’s daunting. A daring artist, Sara Lynne Lindsay, whose work is full of dyed dresses and pressed flowers and uses the universal themes of growth, decay and sacrifice to create a unique specificity that connects her viewer to her art, replied to my query on the subject with this: The “art world” is tricky to navigate. Many of the competitions that I have applied for are not interested in my demographic. I don’t think I’ll ever see the day when people put out calls for middle-aged women who stayed home to care for their kids first, love their religion and God, because there aren’t a lot of us. But then again, that’s what makes us so unique. People will be drawn to our work because it is different. It might not be for everyone, but that’s ok.

In the meantime, I can be a little frustrated when I know that I will not be picked for something even before I apply. Please forgive me for my sometimes rather grumpy moments when I can’t see how I possibly can break down walls in the direction that I think is best for me to go. I know that there are doors that I can still open, and things will work to mine and your advantage. During Covid, I shared on both my personal and the VCFA Facebook page, President Nelson’s invitation to join in a global fast for relief from Covid-19. Robert Atwood, a student in my cohort messaged me, “How do we pray, I don’t know where to start? Is it like talking to God and asking for guidance? Is fasting necessary for successful prayer? Can I pray to God directly or do I need a kind of mediator or pastor to pray with me? Sorry for all the questions. I’ve never really studied religion or God so this really is new to me.” As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, in the thick of the action with our peers, we need to safeguard our light; otherwise, we risk having our flame smothered due to a lack of oxygen or fuel. But those looking for light will recognize it. “Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house” (Matthew 5:15). Fire is a chemical reaction between oxygen and fuel. Fire needs three things to burn. Fuel. Heat or a spark. Oxygen. To keep our candle lit, we need fuel, our testimony which consists of our gospel experiences. We need heat or a spark, the Holy Ghost, and His constant companionship. And we need a constant flow of oxygen, Godly Love, or our fire will go out. If we become angry, resentful or hate, we can’t maintain our fire. Removing the oxygen, or Godly Love stops the chemical reaction. And we are no longer a light. What makes fire different from many other chemical reactions is that the fire itself generates the heat necessary to cause the reaction to continue

occurring. For fire to happen, all of the ingredients need to be present and constantly replenished. Our testimony, the Holy Ghost and Godly Love for all those we encounter. Even those who are blatantly prejudiced against us. Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf said, “Let us be known as a people who love God with all our heart, soul, and mind and who love our neighbor as ourselves.” There is no qualifying. Your neighbor is everyone you encounter. Christ did. He even loved those that spitefully used him. This is hard, and I’m not there yet, but I continue to try. My husband, Gary and I like to joke, “You can love anyone…at the right distance.” We don’t have to accept or embrace the beliefs of others. But we do need to love them exactly where they are.Without Godly Love, our light will be extinguished. In February 2023, Robert Atwood, the student who had asked me how to pray, messaged me again, and I answered a few of his questions about the Church. Little did I know that Robert’s wife saw the light held by their LDS neighbors in New Hampshire. Robert and his wife joined the Church in March. He received the Melchizedek Priesthood in May and baptized his ten-year-old son in June. They are now scheduled to begin taking temple prep classes. As members of the Gospel of Jesus Christ we can all be a light illuminating into the darkness of persecution and prejudice. I don’t know where my interaction with the poet I met for lunch will go. I don’t know where sharing our legacy of persecution, and playing “Come, Come,Ye Saints” to my entire program will go. Or the tense “AA” moment introducing myself. What I do know is that I worked to fuel my light and used my voice to create positive interactions with my peers. How many lights does it take to help lighten someone’s load? I imagine a community of artists, illuminating the entire hill creating a path toward the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

OUTandABOUT (AT) WRIST

CHRISTIAN ASPLUND

The 2018 publication of Rain Scald, the debut collection of poetry by Tacey M. Atsitty, introduced a voice of exceptional talent into the landscape of American poetry. Alice Fulton, a MacArthur Fellow and award-winning poet, wrote of the book, “...Tempered by hardship, seasoned with experience, this brilliant book witnesses a world Atsitty knows intimately and, in doing so, offers courageous testimony to suffering and spiritual resilience. I can think of no poet writing today whose work is more gorgeous or moving, no one who brings more heart or brains to the page.” The book won the Wisconsin Brittingham Prize for Poetry.With it and numerous publishing credits of the highest echelon, Atsitty sits in rarefied company, particularly in Mormon literature.

Experimental composers have options, although they often think they have few.They can absorb the fact that the audience for unusual music might be limited and just make work for themselves; they can let the absence of attention be a barrier to creation and stop writing altogether; they can gather others around them into societies of specialists and enthusiasts; or they can become composer-entrepreneurs who exhibit determination to make concerts and recordings happen no matter what.

The poet’s website notes her identity: “Tacey M. Atsitty is of the Diné tribe and her clans are as follows: she is Tsénahabiłnii (Sleep Rock People) and born for Ta’neeszahnii (Tangle People). Her maternal grandfather is Tábąąhí (Water Edge People) and her paternal grandfather is Hashk’áánhadzóhí (Yucca Fruit Strung-Out-In-A-Line People) from Cove, AZ.” Soon, the poet’s second book will appear. It is (At) Wrist. The publisher’s description includes this: “Tacey M. Atsitty melds inherited forms such as the sonnet with her Diné and religious experiences to boldly and beautifully reveal a love that can last for eternity.” The book’s cover transports the iconic 1980 portrait by Annie Leibovitz of Yoko Ono and John Lennon taken just hours before he was killed, to new, evocative territory. (The poetry collection arrives from the University of Wisconsin Press November 14.)

Christian Asplund is Professor of Music at Brigham Young University. He is a Canadian American composer and performer. He is also the most important incubator of New Music in LDS history. Although his award-winning music is performed, published, and admired widely, he was presumably tired of waiting for others to give him and his prodigious compositional output a home. So he made his own. In his garage. For years now, he has curated frequent concerts of his own and others’ music under various titles, most recently Avant GaRAWge. The latest concert (July 22, 2023) witnessed the live debuts of two entirely new ensembles: Brandoz (Oswaldo Machado, Randall Smith, Brynn Staker) and Spider Control (Christian Asplund, Rob Buchert).Asplund describes the groups this way: “Brandoz features a wide variety of talents and proclivities. Expect idiosyncratic comprovisation, virtuosic performance, and poetry. Spider Control is preparing to release their new album Bones and Other Hiding Places. Expect music and sound emanating from custom-built wooden-diaphramed speakers, activated by synthesizers, viola, voice, and other things. (Visit Asplund’s website for a staggering amount of fascinating music.)

LANSING MCLOSKEY Covid hit classical music hard. Among the first spreader events in the U.S. were large choruses, which makes perfect sense now that we understand how the virus spreads. For musicians and composers who work in close proximity, the pandemic left little room for safety maneuvering. How could a symphony orchestra play together? How could opera performances work? Largely, they didn’t. A secondary fallout of shutdowns hit the pipeline of music, specifically projects that had been on the books but suddenly were in limbo. Grammy-award winner Lansing McLoskey, one of our most accomplished composers, had project after project postponed or canceled. The bottleneck is easing now, happily, and McLoskey’s thrice-scheduled work, a flute concerto titled, ...que la tierra se partió por su sonido, finally gets a performance in August, by Trudy Kane and the NFA Professional Flute Choir. (Performance at the annual NFA convention, Phoenix, Arizona, August 6.)

MIKE WHITING Weber State University’s Dumke Arts Plaza is the outdoor site for a 15-year retrospective of the sculpture by Mike Whiting, Level Up, whose works are created within the pixelated aesthetic of retro video games. Whether exhibited outside museums, in galleries, in public plazas, on the street, or in the wild,Whiting’s works are disarming, playful, incongruous, and comfortable. They are constructed from welded steel, distressed, and finished with automotive paint. Some can fit on a shelf or be scaled to stand high against a skyline. The works in the retrospective are designed to be outside and interact over time with the elements. These flatly but brightly colored works intrude into the landscape—as all public sculpture does—but also welcome viewers with a comforting, nostalgic wink.

The surprise and philosophical artfulness of the works is the curious blend of their daring and familiarity. As the culture enters into a phase of looking at old technology with surprising fondness (new films like Tetris and Blackberry are prime examples of the trend), Whiting’s images have begun to take on the burnished sensibility of the ennobling of a ground-level, digital vocabulary. From San Marcos, California, the artist received his MFA from the Pratt Institute in New York and has been exhibited throughout the country. (Level Up continues through August 4.)

NEW YORK’S BURNED-OVER DISTRICT The origin story of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a social movement catalyst: the spiritual awakening of Americans living on the frontier near the Erie Canal to organized religion in the early 19th century. Joseph Smith wrote about “...an unusual excitement on the subject of religion…Indeed, the whole district of the country seemed affected by it, and great multitudes united themselves to the different religious parties….” The white-hot fervor led to the phrase “burned district” or “burned-over district.” A new anthology published by Cornell University Press invites readers to revisit the transformational era of the Second Great Awakening with new insights regarding how the revivals fit into a larger pattern of social reform and a narrative of an expanding population on the move. Edited by Spencer W. McBride, who is Associate Managing HIstorian of The Joseph Smith Papers, and Jennifer Hull Dorsey. (The volume’s publication date is August 15.)

THE ABDUCTION OF BETTY AND BARNEY HILL On a rural highway in New Hampshire on Sep-

tember 19, 1961, Betty and Barney Hill, a social worker and postman, respectively, saw a UFO and were abducted by aliens. Their detailed descriptions, photographs, drawings, transcriptions of hypnotism and medical examinations of the encounter have served as the primary template for ufologists and innumerable creators of fiction ever since. Now comes a new examination of the Hills placed in context with the era’s breakdown of American society. The Abduction of Betty and Barney Hill: Alien Encounters, Civil Rights, and the New Age in America is written by scholar Matthew Bowman, Howard W. Hunter Chair of Mormon Studies and associate professor of history and religion at Claremont Graduate University. The HIlls were also an interracial couple, involved in civil rights reforms, and active Unitarians. The public’s reaction to their story of an extraterrestrial encounter tells as much about a society in a period of dramatic transition as it does a description of small gray creatures with very large eyes. (The Yale University Press book arrives August 29.)

THE FAIRBANKS FAMILY Theologically, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a family-centered faith. Art historians can make similar dynastic connections about its members. Just as generations of the Smith family seeded early Church leadership, the Durham family created hymns and music, and the Fairbanks family visual art.A new exhibition at the Springville Museum of Art brings together for the first time 70 original works by John B. Fairbanks and his sons J. Leo Fairbanks and Avard T. Fairbanks, all of whom built national and international reputations as painters and sculptors. Titled The Fairbanks Family: An American Art Dynasty, the exhibit starts with John, who was one of the LDS missionaries set apart to study painting in Paris at the end of the 19th century, and continues with the considerable contributions of J. Leo and

Avard T. It is the perfect venue for the show, being Utah’s first museum, which was founded with donations of works by John B. Fairbanks’ Paris colleague, painter John Hafen and the sculptor of the Salt Lake Temple’s statue of Moroni, Cyrus E. Dallin. (The exhibition runs through December 2.)

mySUNDAY JENN BLOSIL

Photograph courtesy of Jenn Blosil

Europe and Utah. I live all over the place, I suppose. I am kind of homeless at the moment. But all of my things are in boxes at my parents house in Orem, Utah. I have been in Europe for the past month, month and a half. So yeah, I’m trying to live in Europe. Full time. I love that I get to be in the USA and Europe. That makes me happy. My Sundays in Utah have more structure. I wake up, and I do my yoga and study. But Sundays are my sleep in days! So I will sleep in on a Sunday and then prepare for church. Jesus playlist. I’m not the type of gal that’s like, so holy, that I’ll put on sacred worship songs. I have a Jesus playlist, but it’s full of a lot of alternative Jesus songs, which is far more my jam. I think our understanding of worship can be broadened and expanded to mean lots of things. And so I like to put on music that will help me feel connected to God or to myself. So that will look like whatever it is. Why hold back? Something that is really important to me, if I’m driving to church by myself, is saying a prayer in my car before I go into the worship meeting to have the spirit of revelation to be with me that I will hear what I need to hear at church and that I’m open and ready to receive it. I’m so grateful for anyone who chooses to show up at church. And if we’re showing up, let’s go all in. Like, why hold back? So I’m so big on taking out a notebook, taking physical notes at church with a pen on paper, and being open to whatever prompting God has for me while I’m at church. And that’s a really big part of my worship experience—just knowing that I’m at church to partake of the ordinance of the sacrament and also to commune with the saints and be there to serve and to connect and to help and to engage. So, church is a really important part of my worship. Chefs. I’m lucky that in Utah a lot of my family is there, and we will always have a family Come, Follow Me discussion at 3:30 followed by dinner. Our dinners are joint efforts. I have really great cooks in our family. My brother’s a chef, and then others

of us just love to cook and prepare, so there’s always going to be some delicious meal following that. And we love to have friends over for dinner. The Sunday dinner is a big deal for me and my family—to gather, and share, and first discuss what we’ve learned in that week’s study or at church, and to learn together, and grow spiritually. I don’t have the typical Utah family, other than my siblings, where there’s eight kids. But aside from that, my family is quite small. It will be an uncle who is there, and another uncle, and then my aunt who is now serving her mission who’s single. My uncles are also single. So it’s like my single uncles and my single cute aunt and then some of my siblings. There’s at least 14 people, and then friends over. Different energy and newness. About making Sunday special, I think I could definitely do better to prepare perhaps for Sundays, but I’m always so looking forward to it being Sunday and to be able to gather with other people where we’re sharing spiritual truth and knowledge and engaging in that way. And so, Sundays are different for me, because I do try to keep the Sabbath day holy. It’s difficult while traveling. But when I’m home, I like to make sure that my activities are focused on how can I receive the Holy Ghost and specifically on Sundays, it’s around family. It’s around scripture study, and there’s a different energy and newness around the Sabbath. And I’m a nerd who gets excited on Saturdays when I know that tomorrow’s Sunday and I get to go be closer to my Heavenly Father in a church building, I get stoked. So I don’t know. It’s just as different in my spirit. I get excited. The light of my life. I just feel like when you live an entirely consecrated life—and that’s my goal is that my life is consecrated to the works of the Lord—that there’s no real transition in or out of a Sunday. It just always is. And Sunday just happens to be one day. Again, like I said, that it’s different because I’m going to church, but my objective with every day is, How can I use my gifts and talents to gather Israel? That’s the light of my life. And God is the light of my life. And so there’s holiness every day for me, but then, Sundays are just

slightly different because of the ordinances. But I don’t feel a transition out other than, okay, It’s a new week; what are my goals for this week? But there’s no loss of sacredness, if that makes sense, or a transition from the spiritual to the temporal. I always try and seek and live in the spiritual realm.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

FURTHERMORE CONVERSATION FOR A SUMMER AFTERNOON by KATHIE DEBENHAM

All photographs of Lisa Valentine Clark courtesy of Lisa Valentine Clark

It was my good fortune to spend an hour or so the other afternoon conversing with Lisa Valentine Clark and hear her reflect on things that matter most to her at this time in her life. As host of The Lisa Show Podcast found on BYUradio as well as on numerous other social media platforms, Lisa is a public figure known to many. She is also a comedian, actress, believer, single mom, and widow

who dives into substantive conversations about parenting challenges, mental health questions, and social issues with able assist from her “Council of Moms.” Lisa invites her listeners to “Come figure out this life thing together with her, with a lot of laughs along the way.” As a jumping off point, I asked Lisa about transfor-

mative life experiences and how they have helped shape, form, inform, and guide her. Her response was that she has found and continues to find transformation in relationships. Transformation for her is a quiet, internal process that involves wondering where she fits in the world/universe while grappling with a sense of purpose. And it is her relationship with her late husband Christopher, who died three years ago from ALS, that has, in her words, “Changed my whole outlook and my personality.” Lisa says the process of caring for Chris as he was dying changed her and continues to influence how she lives her life. During this terrifically painful time of their life together, Lisa says she learned from Chris to attend to the inner life. His capacity to be at peace was emblematic of who he was at his core. This was a catalyst for change for her. Her life focus has become learning to love and attending to how we treat each other. Lisa said, “When all of the pieces of my life were swept off the table onto the floor,” her anchor was “I know God loves me.” “When I got hit in the face with a 2x4, I began to approach life more gently, seeing it as more sacred, living with more reverence.” Lisa reflected that living her deep and ongoing grief has brought her to understand that this place of dissonance and duality actually is life and has brought her to hold at length questions about the meaning of life, a process that requires patience. She has found stillness challenging; “I am a doer and wanted to do whatever I could to ‘get through’ grief faster.” She realizes she may not know answers to her questions in this life, “How to come to learn truth.” She does know through her experience learning to live without Christopher, truth can bring peace and understanding and can also bring suffering. An important abiding question for Lisa is, “What does truth look and feel like?” Our conversation turned to how Lisa presently experiences herself as a maker/creative. Her response was, “How do I want to live my life?” She believes that opportunities that are meant for us

come to us. “We don’t have to wait. Chris didn’t wait. He made things happen and lived a fully creative life. He created so much joy and goodness. This perspective is everything to me.” Because Lisa finds human stories so fascinating, her podcast career fulfills her desire to share her story and the stories of others. She knows how overwhelming fresh grief can be and how she struggled at first to figure out how to even hold it. Lisa acknowledged several close friends who were willing to share their faith in God, their own life experiences, their own hope when she felt bereft of hope. Indeed relationship is at the center of Lisa’s life orbit. While in a “Best Moments Orchestrated” view of life one might seek to “do something great or change the world” using a God-given talent, Lisa has come to see how caring for those we love is actually what can change the world. Three years ago, Lisa had a household of 7; now she has one child left at home. Launching children into adulthood is not something Lisa ever thought she would be doing as a single parent. She thinks about Chris all the time as she navigates solo parenting. Her dedication to ongoing creation of an evolving family life is abundantly evident. As we concluded our conversation, I asked Lisa what was on the front burner for her. She wants to do a series on her podcast on creativity, on our divine right to create. She is considering questions such as, “What keeps us from creating? How to we define creativity? Who gets to create? Do we limit people’s opportunities to create?” I am looking forward to listening to those future podcasts where Lisa will, with a signature combination of probing depth and laugh out loud humor, help us consider how much of life and creativity is really about showing up which she herself does with much grace, humility, faith, deep humanity, authenticity, and of course humor.

LETTERSto theEDITOR I just want to get this thank you message to Benjamin Sabey (for his July issue videos, “Re: Leroy Robertson”) and to Glen Nelson. Great story, wonderful tribute and excellent “class” about form, structure, themes and variations. And Ben, I wanted you to be a BFF the moment you choked up during the story about Leroy’s response to Crawford Gates taking his spot for the 100th anniversary celebration (Promised Valley). Tough blow, to be sure, and sadly it hasn’t been the only time like it in our history. But as you pointed out, $360K wasn’t a minor compensation. The prize money said, “We heard you. We value you and what you offer and hope this award encourages you to keep on keepin’ on.” So many times when things like this happen, we think that heaven’s representatives don’t hear or value or want to encourage us at all. Not true, of course, but it certainly can feel that way. So glad, Benjamin, that you are now on my radar. Hopefully, when I recover from my kidney transplant, I’ll have a chance to get to the Bay Area and may sneak into the back of your class and be inspired. Michael McLean Heber City, Utah

phy. Renee was in the first grade when she came up with her melody. A student teacher in Renee’s class shared a simple poem with the class and asked if anyone would like to compose a melody for the poem. Renee came up with the tune and then sang the words and her song to her family after school. Leroy was delighted and made a big fuss over it.The first few bars of the oboe part are Renee’s original song to the poem she learned at school: Swinging, Swinging Here we go up Here we go down Swinging, Swinging Here we go up and down. Then together father and daughter came up with some additional words and music before returning to Renee’s tune. Up so high in the treetops Down so low in the garden Swinging, Swinging Here we go up, Here we go down.

Dear Benjamin, A colleague of mine here at USU, Patrick Mason, passed along a series of videos you made earlier this summer on Leroy Robertson for the Center for Latter-day Saints Arts. Robertson is my great-grandfather. I particularly enjoyed your analysis of the Punch and Judy Overture. Just a fun fact: Renee is my grandmother (she just turned 94). She remembers her contribution a little differently than Marian recorded in her biogra-

If you haven’t already seen it, here is a short video the U of U put together on Robertson. Rebecca Anderson Logan, Utah

Hi Rebecca, Thank you for this nice note! It was a fun little project that Glen Nelson goaded me

into, and I’m so glad he did. I’m afraid that I did not do the subject matter justice but it was the best I could do under the circumstances and hopefully it brings one or two new listeners to Leroy’s music. Thank you for the wonderful detail of that anecdote! If you feel so inclined, I would love to have you put it in the comment section on the video in YouTube so that this extra information can be recorded there “for posterity” as they say.Yes, I have

seen that video. I think I pilfered it for some of the screenshots I used in mine! Hopefully our paths may cross in real life someday. Best Wishes! Ben Sabey Belmont, California

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS JENN BLOSIL Jenn Blosil is a singer and songwriter born in Vienna, Austria. She divides her time between Europe and Utah. Her latest single is “Jesus Freak.”

KATHIE DEBENHAM Kathie Debenham is Emeritus Professor of Dance at UVU where she founded the Dance Department and was inaugural Dean of the School of the Arts. She is a member of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts’ Advisory Board and The Season Editorial Board.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

SARA LYNNE LINDSAY Sara Lynne Lindsay’s work uses plant material and soil as a record of personal, cultural, and ecological history. She is based in Georgia.

BRIDGET VERHAAREN Bridget Verhaaren resides in the Wasatch Mountains, is an avid fan of skiing, and enjoys travel adventures with her husband, Gary Garner, and their eight children (five “bonus” children). She has a B.A. in English from Brigham Young University and an M.F.A. in Creative Nonfiction from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She spent a

life-changing Spring of 2022 working with refugees at the Polish Border after the Russian Invasion of Ukraine. She is revising a memoir, So, I Married a Doctor and a Lawyer.

editorialBOARD WHAT PODCAST ARE YOU LISTENING TO?

KATHIE DEBENHAM At Last She Said It

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Q More

KWANI POVI WINDER Andrea Hales Podcast

MYKAL URBINA, publisher Beyond the Block

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ The Joseph Smith Papers series

BRIAN KERSHISNIK Fireside

GLEN NELSON, editor Latter-day Saint MBA Society

EMILY LARSEN DOXFORD, communications Leading Saints

MADELINE RUPARD Faith Matters

JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE Beyond the Block

BENJAMIN TAYLOR The First Vision (Joseph Smith Papers)

WARREN WINEGAR Faith Matters

theSEASON

finalISSUE

finalISSUE In Much Ado About Nothing this advice appears: “It is needful that you frame the season of your own harvest.” Shakespeare did not have The Season in mind, but the Bard’s counsel to determine one’s own cycle in life makes us jump into gratitude mode. In this final issue of The Season, we look back to frame this project of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts with appreciation–for our readers, for the artists whose works we have profiled and fol-

lowed, and for the people who made the endeavor possible. The works in this issue are newly-commissioned offerings in the form of essays, articles, visual artworks, film, music, and dance–all from the publication’s editorial board. Finally, we leave you with some advice of our own, from the book of James: “And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” (James 3:18, English Standard Version)

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

finalISSUE WHAT JUST HAPPENED: THE SEASON IN REVIEW by GLEN NELSON

Covers of The Season, September 2022 through August 2023

The hypothesis of The Season seemed inevitable: emerging from a pandemic that infected nearly 700 million of the planet’s 8 billion people and killed 6,955,497 as of August 24, 2023—including members of my immediate family and some of my friends—artists who are LDS and their art were bound to be affected. Tiptoeing back to public performances, exhibitions, and publications af-

ter almost two years of lockdowns, dealing with emotional fallout from isolation, and innumerable cancellations and postponements of projects, how would these artist’s works have changed as a result of this global disaster? The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts is the leading authority and resource on the full range of creative arts by members of The Church of Jesus

Christ of Latter-day Saints, so we felt it was incumbent upon us to take a year and document every possible concert, recording, publication, exhibition, podcast, and performance worldwide by LDS creative artists to be able to answer this question: What is happening right now? Our format was in two parts: a monthly online magazine of articles and features about art and an ongoing calendar of events with information and links to everything we could find. As it turned out, the pandemic was only part of the story. The art world is also roiling from era-defining battles of other kinds.Wars and violence, rising hate crimes, widespread distrust, social upheavals, protests, boycotts, union strikes, contagions of addiction and epidemic levels of anxiety and mental illness, fear and anger everywhere, concerns of potential disruptions from AI, shifting tastes and spending habits of audiences, inflation, incendiary discourse on social media, book bans and school play cancellations, rebalances of racial, gender, and class expectations with corresponding new voices to be heard and others to be canceled: all of these things impact artists and the work they make. In total, we captured and wrote about some 2,000 works and events. The Season included 185 articles, interviews, original scholarship, commissioned images and music, and notices of new works and events written by 66 contributing authors and artists. We polled our editorial board for lists of music, books, podcasts, and events that they were interested in. We published letters from readers. We made playlists and searchable spreadsheets of new works. We noted artists who had passed away during the year. We featured two product catalogs—one a Christmas gift guide, and the other a Summer guide. Given all the potential ways to look at the works, what we did not do was filter them. It was liberating to be free of judgment regarding the categorizing of a work as good, better, best. Our mantra was: Gather everything. There are works that represent the full range of opinion, too. There were works

that thrilled us and some that repelled us, which is only fair and to be expected, given the broad spectrum of individuals involved. Our sole concern was to chronicle art made by LDS people, and as is our way at the Center, which resides in the intersection of divine creativity and social relevance, we were as inclusive with that definition as possible. I served as The Season’s editor and did the majority of the event listings research. Our publisher was Mykal Urbina, our communications chair was Emily Larsen Doxford, our editorial board was: Charlie Bird, Ted Bushman, Kathie Debenham, Gabriel González, Brian Kershisnik, Jeff Parkin, Arisael Rivera, Madeline Rupard, Joël René Scoville, Benjamin Dean Taylor, Kwani Povi Winder, and Warren Winegar, and our designers were Connor King (graphic design) and Megan Eckersley (website design)—fascinating artists and wonderful colleagues, all. Now to make a little sense of it. What were the questions The Season sought to ask? Would new voices emerge, and who would they be? Where would the audiences for these artists come from? What artists would have a breakout year? What impact would the pandemic have thematically on new works? Who is doing exceptional work to support these artists? How many LDS artists are there, and why aren’t there even more works to catalog? What are the choke points for awareness and interest in art by LDS people? What larger trends could be charted? What dividends would an in-depth look at our art landscape yield for the Center itself? I’ll make an attempt to answer them.

1. Would new voices emerge, and who would they be? There is no humility like the prostrate confession of ignorance. I will only speak for myself from here on out in this article, so I have to begin this report by saying that I thought I knew a lot about the art of LDS people, but maybe I don’t. I have to own up to a new fact that shakes my confidence: I was shocked (and happily so) by all of the names that were entirely new to me that I encountered this year. Emerging artists are always appearing on the scene—think of all those recent college graduates. Still, there are many, many, many LDS creative artists out there right now, and I have much to learn about them. I would say that the most intriguing new voices in LDS art today are coming from outside the U.S. In a couple of cases, they are the most prolific, too. Ricardo Rendón of Mexico City, Mexico is the best example, in my view. Almost every month I found a new exhibition of his sculpture somewhere in the world…and his music…and books about his work. I imagine the cities showing these exhibitions had likely never had another LDS artist’s work on display. Another sterling case study is the husband and wife team of Aaron Toronto and Nha Uyen Ly Nguyen of Ho Chi Min City,Vietnam. Their film, The Brilliant Darkness! won the Vietnamese Oscar equivalent for best film last year including best screenplay by Toronto and Nguyen and best actress (Nguyen). It was Toronto’s feature film directorial debut. It is a testament to everything that matters in fine art: it is meaningful, skillful, beautiful, and impactful. The social discussions that emerged from this very successful film have caused laws to be rewritten in the country; it’s that powerful. Another example, also in film, is Luis Fernando Puente, a young Mexican American writer/director, whose short film, I Have No Tears, and I Must Cry, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and then made pit stops at so many other U.S. film festivals that I could hardly keep up. Puente is a new voice of importance, but for me, an equally exciting piece of the story is his com-

munity of filmmakers, recently coming from BYU, who share his immigrant background. They are writers, directors, actors, cinematographers, film score composers, and crew—all of them LDS and all of them wanting to tell their personal stories in daring, uncompromising ways. There are far too many more examples to mention, of course, but especially surprising to me, was the large group of fiction and non-fiction writers who are LDS. I wanted to start The Season by looking at all of the books by LDS authors I could find that were already published in the year 2022 (our first issue was September of that year). I found 209, and by the end of our project, that number had grown to 511. It’s a big number, but it should be even larger. Who knows how many titles I missed. Self-published books are difficult to discover; academic and literary journals publish multiple author’s works that I often failed to break out and catalog; poetry is a constant challenge to find because those works often appear in scattered literary journals; and I’m sure that many books slipped through my fingers because I simply didn’t know where to look. It appears that Covid gave authors a rare commodity for creation: unscheduled time to write. Several of these authors had multiple books appear this year. Some of the titles were issued by the most important publishing houses in the English-speaking world. These authors penned solo books, co-authored books, contributed to anthologies, and in the much-reported case of Brandon Sanderson, who set a $41 million Kickstarter record for four new novels written during the pandemic, became entrepreneurial to a stunning degree. This is probably the place to note that politically, LDS artists are all over the map—the opposite of the lockstep stereotype—and publishing is the clearest demonstration of that range. There are books from these authors that are conspiracy theory-laden, books that attack politicians of both major parties, books that are religiously devout in character as well as others who chronicle the pain

of no longer believing in the faith, at all. There are books that are scholarly and others that are pure opinion. There are romances, sci-fi epic series, humorous books, books aimed at every aged reader, and literary novels. Stacks of memoirs were published—in other cultures many would likely have been developed as novels—as well as books about celebrities or by celebrities. It went beyond the scope of The Season, but to my mind, another notable group of books included those written about our culture by others. 2. Where would the audiences for these artists come from? The big questions for those on the production side of art—the publishers, performance producers, exhibition venue management, and so forth— was simply this: When would they be allowed to reopen for business and would audiences return for art when they did? Some disciplines benefited from new circumstances. No surprise: reading soared. In the UK in the early months of the pandemic, reading doubled. But at the same time, in-person art forms found the biggest challenge in a generation. Broadway, for example, has a motto “The show must go on.” And indeed, other than a couple of short strikes in 1975 and 2007, cancellations, as My Fair Lady’s Eliza Doolittle would say, “Hardly ever happen.” Even after the 9/11 bombings, New York shows reopened their doors defiantly just two days later. But Covid changed all of that, and the uncertainty of when/whether things would get back to the new abnormal were undecided for eighteen long, profit-destroying, career hibernating months. LDS musicians and bands were all in the same boat. Touring? Out of the question. Some were able to get into a recording studio, but without the ability to perform live to drive record sales, their business was stymied. Perhaps as a consequence of the above, 2022-2023 was a boom period for touring musicians, once venues worldwide reopened. As I cataloged the bands with LDS singer-songwriters in them—The Killers, Panic! At the

Disco, Neon Trees, Imagine Dragons, The National Parks, Kaskade, The Aquabats, Lindsey Stirling, LOW, Six, The Piano Guys, Mat and Savanna Shaw, Merrill Osmond, Jenny Oaks Baker, Jacob Kahlil, Rosevelt, Goldie and the Guise, Ammon and Liahona Olayan, Silver Cup, Gentri, The Moss, and many others, I imagined how exhausted they must be from nearly endless touring. I imagine that they were trying to refill their coffers, but every other band in the world had the same idea. In numerous cases, the biggest of these bands had concerts almost every night or every other night for months at a time, spaced out with just enough to fly from Rio to São Paulo or from L.A. to Vegas. Film and TV audiences continued their tidal shift of I-want-it-right-now streaming, and some of the biggest projects in the industry this year included LDS creatives: Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (John D. Payne and Patrick McKay), Cinco Paul’s continuing outpouring of blockbuster content: Minions:The Rise of Gru and Schimigadoon!: Season 2, film composer Chris Bacon’s multiple high-profile projects including his Emmy award-nominated Wednesday, his Strong Enough and 65, and an exciting group of LDS composers for video games. These are but a few examples. LDS cinema, it seems to me, is in an exciting new era that is quite distinct from the made-in-Utah, made-for-Utah mentality of a generation ago, and it is reflected by its broader audience. On one hand, there are the works made for Christian audiences—Angel Studios continues to push deeper into high return projects like Sound of Freedom and digital-release projects. Then there are the LDS filmmakers who are turning to the genre of horror with compelling results. BYUtv continues to be a force producing and distributing works that are sometimes pitched to LDS viewers and other times deliberately not aimed at them, exclusively. And then, there are the breakthroughs of auteur filmmakers and studio-system filmmakers who are looking for audiences of much more diverse types, but including LDS people. Many seem to be finding funding.

Finally, there are important films and TV projects that while they are not made by LDS people have LDS characters in them—everything from the Oscar-winning The Whale to several series that run a broad range of agendas. Casual references to the Church in increasingly nuanced ways are scattered about so commonly as to make a sighting of them about as eventful as a passing butterfly. There is one thing I am not seeing much, and I expect and hope to see more in the future: these same LDS filmmakers could be creating rich, complex, perhaps flawed but real characters who are LDS, in their works. I want to see a Mormon Jack Ryan,Ted Lasso, and Janine Teagues (of Abbott Elementary). 3. What artists would have a breakout year? Naming just one or a few is a bad idea for a host of reasons. Still, I would say that the most portentous emerging artists—other than the four mentioned earlier (Ricardo Rendón, Aaron Toronto and Nha Uyen Ly Nguyen, and Luis Fernando Puente) are writers Tacey M. Atsitty and Rachel Rueckert. Atsitty is a winner of the Wisconsin Brittingham Prize for her first book of poetry, Rain Scald (University of New Mexico Press, 2018). A quick bio: “Tacey M. Atsitty, Diné (Navajo), is Tsénahabiłnii (Sleep Rock People) and born for Ta’neeszahnii (Tangle People). The recipient of numerous prizes and fellowships, Atsitty is an inaugural Indigenous Nations Poets fellow and holds degrees from Brigham Young University, the Institute of American Indian Arts, and Cornell University.The author of Rain Scald, she is the director of the Navajo Film Festival, a member of the Advisory Board for BYU’s Charles Redd Center for Western Studies, and a board member for Lightscatter Press. Atsitty is a PhD student in creative writing at Florida State University.” Here is a poet of great imagination who is blending her Diné culture, and as a blurb for Rain Scald notes, “…the poems negotiate between belief and doubt, self and family, and interior and exterior landscapes.” Her new collection is due in November, (At) Wrist (University of Wisconsin Press, 2023).

Rachel Rueckert’s first book was published this year, East Winds (By Common Consent Press, 2023), a memoir about her journey to discover what marriage means, undertaken while on her honeymoon trip backpacking around the world. Her short bio: “Rachel Rueckert is an award-winning author, editor, and teacher. She holds an MFA in nonfiction from Columbia University as well as an M.Ed from Boston University. Rachel specializes in creative nonfiction, historical fiction, ghostwriting, and curriculum design.” She is currently the editor-in-chief of the quarterly, Exponent II. In 2024, expect two historical fiction novels from Rueckert, published by Kensington Books. The first is If the Tide Turns, due March 2024. I would suggest that both of these writers, as well as the previous four artists, have the potential to shift what we think LDS art is about, whom it’s for, and why it matters. 4. What impact would the pandemic have thematically on new works? The Center had a call for submissions in the early days of the pandemic.Titled Art for Uncertain Times, our goal was to give a little money to artists who were hurting, including a subsequent call aimed at children artists. The online collection and later an exhibition curated at the Center Gallery in New York by Emily Larsen Doxford, revealed LDS artists working in different genres and responding to Covid and its impact on their lives. Some of the images were surprising, including a photograph by Emily Wall showing her family sort of happy to be forced to be together. It was as if the little kids were saying, “Woo-hoo, this is the most time I’ve spent with my parents in my whole life!” There were also poignant works about loss and loneliness that still haunt me. Still, aside from isolated gestures toward the pandemic, I would generalize a have been less embracing of it as a topic than other works I’m seeing in the last year. In the theater, for example, nearly every new play I attend in New York has a reference to the awkwardness, weirdness, and disorienta-

tion of the pandemic, if not its tragedy. Playwrights are finding rich material about the human condition and isolation, about the ways people sought normalcy in a surreal time. At the very least, it is subtext for every story of contemporary life. I’m reading similarly layered approaches in newly published novels and short stories, but not as much by LDS artists. I’m not sure why that is. It’s certainly true that I haven’t read everything. Maybe I’m missing disproving examples, but I also wonder whether LDS artists living in the West, where my Utah friends often joked that Covid never happened, simply don’t find it compelling. They don’t see the drama in it.

if you include non-fiction authors, documentary filmmakers, and others like them, podcasters are doing a commendable service in creating content, and they merit attention, too.

Going into the depths of Covid, I also expected artists to take the newfound chunk of time to undertake hugely ambitious projects, the kinds of things that they would not have had the bandwidth to tackle otherwise, and consider radically changing their aesthetic, reinventing themselves, and emerging with new artistic identities. A big disruption sometimes yields a big breakthrough. I’m also not seeing that in LDS arts right now, either.When I consider art, literary, and music history emerging after world wars and times of global illness, for example, I see those moments as catalysts for new approaches to art and philosophy: a stark before and after in the timeline of art history. It’s premature to say so, maybe there’s more of a lag time involved, but so far, I don’t see LDS artists attempting such seismic course shifts. It might be fascinating to track how that evolves.

Apparently, there is some group tasked with adding LDS citations to online publications—Wikipedia is the prime example of this effort now. I know it because my own Wiki page is continually updated and includes lots of LDS-related things. As I research artists, celebrities, and people of note who are LDS, there is almost always a mention of their Church membership. That might creep some people out, but I find it normalizing, and given how very common it is to list people’s religious affiliations and backgrounds on these sites, regardless of their current religious practice, it feels smart to me: a Dumbledore’s army of LDS champions.

5. Who is doing exceptional work to support these artists? Maybe it’s surprising, but I’d say that the podcasters are leading the way, here. Our list of podcasts featured 211 current shows, many of them monthly or weekly.They are on-the-ground critics.They are talking to people who are doing and making things, and frequently they are artists themselves or they are speaking to artists who are LDS. There was some internal debate whether to include podcasting in a publication about the arts, but I feel that

It’s my opinion that the LDS-related associations are vital, as well, regarding the arts. I am thinking of the Association for Mormon Letters, the academic journal publications that feature art and arts reporting, performing arts entities that often include LDS creative artists, and a newer crop of organizations determined to service the artists themselves in terms of business development, training, and networking.

There are some published criticism and reviews of books by authors who are LDS—there could be much more—but the other art forms could use far more attention in the form of art criticism and art historical discussion. I was impressed this year by Heather Belnap who had multiple books, papers, and presentations on LDS art-related topics, one of the few scholars this year to bridge academic writing at an elevated level with LDS art history. If there is scant visual art criticism featuring LDS contemporary artists, 15 Bytes is a noteworthy exception, covering the visual art gallery and museum scene of Utah. I’m unaware of any sustained and recurring criticism or scholarship on contemporary film, music, dance, architecture, or design by LDS artists anywhere in print. The

artists would benefit from it, and their potential audience would, too. At the risk of…I don’t know what…I want to add that local attention for art is valuable and wonderful. I’m thinking especially of Utah here. What is absent from it, often, is attention to religious identity, even when elements of the work are themselves derived from LDS culture or theology. I can hardly imagine a serious publication writing about an artist, let’s say from Bali, that doesn’t reference the nationality, heritage, or culture in the body of the article describing the Balinese art and artist. I think writers should be less fearful of engaging religious identity in their writing of LDS artists. It is prejudice by omission. Meanwhile, accomplished LDS artists around the world are writing to me and talking about how isolated they feel. I can’t help but think that this regionalism at the expense of religious identity has an unintended consequence of marginalization. 6. How many LDS artists are there, and why aren’t there even more works to catalog? To conduct research during the last year, I relied on the databases that the Center has—a couple of thousand visual artists and a similar number of composers, for example. And we asked artists to share with the Center notifications of upcoming events. My inbox always had some fun discoveries, for which I’m grateful. I kept my eye on postings of events quite closely for a year, as well. I would review every name on our databases, look at their websites and social media channels, all with the hope of finding upcoming events—concerts, exhibitions, publications, and so forth. I predict that The Season will be the seed for even more databases of creative artists within the Center. Again generalizing, I’d note that the majority of LDS artists are not featured often in public events. They may be painters frequently in their studios working, but gallery and museum exhibitions of their works are rare. I should add that a few venues in Utah specialize in large group shows that

have given a sizable number of local LDS artists access to collectors and the press. JKR Gallery and Writ and Vision in Provo are exemplary community builders in that respect, and the Springville Art Museum is invaluable. It’s hard for most artists to gain such access. I don’t see it as a division between professional and amateur, and I don’t think that statement minimizes artists who are not paying the rent with their art. It does, however, place an increased burden on scholars and others to dig deeper to find art that might be a bit hidden. The history of art is full of monumental discoveries of those who labored under the radar, in some cases, for their entire lives. During the year, the Center had a couple of calls for arts submissions. One was for visual artists to create a piece for a New York art gallery show on the theme of music; another was an application for The Artists Residency at the Center, a weeklong residency in New York City. In both instances, we received many submissions from all over the world, which was tremendously gratifying and proof that our mission to broaden the discussion is working. As the submissions arrived, I recognized more than half of the artists. Again and again, however, I would look at names new to me and marvel how accomplished and exciting their projects were. I’ll add another caveat: and how serious they were about their work. Many artists have not exhibited work this past year. That’s an important distinction because their work is certainly worthy of finding its way into the public eye, and I believe it will, but if one looks only at the work from the past year, there will be many artists’ names who have all the hallmarks of excellence who simply don’t have a 2022-23 exhibition, performance, or publication credit. 7. What are the choke points for awareness and interest in art by LDS people? How to answer this without getting into a lot of trouble? Let’s see how diplomatic I can be. I joke with friends about this all the time. I say that I have

a permanent dent in my forehead from banging my head against the wall to try to interest LDS members in the art of their own people. I don’t entirely understand the deficit, and I’m getting old and wondering whether I ever will understand it. But despite the fact that there are artists who would easily connect with every stripe of LDS person there is, artists who are of great quality, or who are super-accessible, or who have all the trappings of acceptance and excellence anyone could hope for, there simply are too few people who care. (Dear reader, I hope you are an exception.) Furthermore, there lacks an institutional venue to pull it all together.There’s no publication that seeks to talk about the totality of LDS art, either.There’s no museum that attempts to tell an encyclopedic story of the visual art of our people.There’s no record label that tries to tell a full story of our composers. Regarding literature, publishers are trying, and I would say that BCC Press is an important recent addition to our literary production, but it is difficult for audiences to discover what is out there by LDS artists, and the problem is particularly acute once we talk about art other than by English-speaking people.There’s no archive of LDS artworks that seeks to be comprehensive, in any artistic discipline. There are some BYU databases that are helpful, but some are abandoned and out of date. We are a record-keeping, entrepreneurial people; there must be solutions for this. Of course, the artists themselves don’t want to be put in a box of claustrophobic Mormonness, but I’m saying something different. There are people who would support these artists, love them, and champion them…if they could find them and locate people to help understand them. There’s certainly the infrastructure to build awareness for the grand history of our art at Church schools and affiliated schools, for example—a single university president’s memo could change this regrettable problem almost instantly—but there seems to be no institutional will to teach about nor expose LDS students to such things. The consequences are, in my opinion, tragic.

Meanwhile, technology is doing something quite interesting regarding awareness. Every artist’s Instagram feed is building its own collector base. Followers may not ever purchase anything—let’s say, in the visual arts—but they have on their phones a sort of private, curated art collection. I was at a ward event recently, and somebody asked about LDS artists; everybody whipped out their phones and showed me image after image of LDS painters and their most recent works. They follow these artists very carefully and discover new LDS artists by seeking their peers’ faves. Many LDS visual artists are quite well-followed, even if they lack gallery representation and other markers of traditional careers. The flip side to that is the unprofitable (and perhaps unsustainable) expectation that all their art be digital and shareable, that art is free, that the consumption of art is viewed by perpetually scanning and the work itself as nearly disposable. Frequently, images online are skeletally described, cited, and photographed, which drives scholars and collectors crazy. One more bottleneck to awareness is the lack of public access to LDS museum collections online. I know they’re working on it, but there are amazing things in the basements of the Church History Museum, BYU Museum of Art, and other institutions with sizable collections of works by LDS artists that you simply can’t access because the websites aren’t able to share them yet. Compare their websites to the richly-funded institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the Museum of Modern Art, and you’ll see the potential for average viewers—both members of the Church and others—to find exposure to life-changing works of many kinds. It needs to happen. I was at the Modern a couple of times last week, and I loved a giant work of AI-generated art by a Turkish American artist named Refik Anadol. He had full access to the museum’s online collection, and the media program he created and projected on a huge lobby wall took those digital works and turned them into gorgeous, morphing images right before my eyes. What might happen if the Church Histo-

ry Museum let someone play around with AI and their beautiful collection? 8. What larger trends could be charted? Covid accelerated a number of art consumption behaviors that were previously underway. Reading and streaming video content blew up during lockdown, for obvious reasons. Social media engagement likewise jumped. The average person of working age spends 2.5 hours a day on social media platforms now. That might be good news for artists. But here’s a stat that artists aren’t going to like. What is the average amount of time someone looks at a social media post? Trigger warning: It’s not good. The attention span, even for a video, is only 1.7 seconds if they’re on mobile and a relatively luxurious 2.5 second on a desktop computer. Nor is liking content quite the indicator of engagement that it appears. The average range of Instagram likes per account is 36-60 per day. Scrolling and liking, liking and scrolling. What does a “like” really mean, anyway? It’s not very sticky. All things considered, looking at visual art in person isn’t that profound for most people, either.The average duration somebody in a museum looks at an artwork is only between 15 and 30 seconds. Some museums are trying to slow visitors down by inviting them to take pictures of themselves in front of the art and post them online. (Worldwide “MuseumSelfie” day was January 22, in case you didn’t know.) At least while taking a selfie with art, the reasoning goes, people will stop to pose and get the shot just right. I’m unconvinced. Unless you have a photographic memory, what kind of art can be appreciated this way? I’m all for love at first sight, but total sighting durations have to be longer than a few seconds. The diminishing digital attention span trend plays into LDS arts, too. Name recognition trumps curiosity when you’re robo-scrolling; the usual suspects retain a disproportionate hold on viewers, readers, and listeners. It is already a problem that

artists in Utah have an outsized influence on the broader cultural output because the official media and headquarters are based there, and Church tastemakers often look close to home for examples of art to share, perform, and use. Pity the person trying to buck that trend. The ability of critics, scholars, and arts advocates to explain new LDS works is increasingly challenging—and speaking of challenging, works that are difficult to grasp are unlikely to gain much of a following after such a drive-by art experience. To my mind, that’s just one more reason why arts education is imperative and LDS arts exposure for members of the Church is so crucial. 9. What dividends would an in-depth look at our art landscape yield for the Center itself? This whole thing was Mykal Urbina’s fault—I mean, idea. She is the Center’s executive director. Unfortunately, when multiple people at the Center get together, ideas likewise multiply, and quickly, a little over a year ago, we were talking about a huge undertaking of The Season. I was into it because I love magazines, and I imagined my weekly delivery of The New Yorker and bimonthly Art in America at my doorstep except, what if they were about LDS art? It was too tantalizing to pass up. It was an experiment and a valuable one for many reasons. I’ll start with the personal. I met so many wonderful people this year. I loved meeting with the editorial board every month. I wish everyone could sit with LDS people like this and brainstorm and network. They were like improv comedians. To every idea, they would respond, “Yes, and….” Marvelous, meaningful fun. Related to that was the joy of meeting more artists of the Church. I would often encounter their work randomly and write them a fan letter out of the blue, “You don’t know me, but.…” They probably thought I was wacky, but as proof of their generosity, they would often spend time with me on the phone or have long exchanges of emails chatting about their work and their lives. Maybe

I’m a pushover for experiences like that, and maybe another consequence of Covid was my eagerness to come out of my shell a bit and meet new people. The thing I’ve discovered about all of this is that every human has a beautiful story to tell, and once you get past the bland, surface responses that all of us are so programmed to give, artists are some of the most generous and self-revealing people on the planet, and LDS artists, perhaps, doubly so. Should I confess that I love them? I do. Regarding the Center and its future, though, The Season accomplished much more than we could have anticipated, even if the lessons learned were not entirely about Covid. It solidified ideas that I had been considering for a long time, namely that the all-or-nothing, black and white version of the culture doesn’t really work today. To truly understand the art and artist, you have to take them where they are right now, without judgment nor agenda. You can’t project onto them what you wish they would deliver. There’s trust involved; if you want their best work—and that’s the kind of work that can change your life—you have to give them your best and most accepting and appreciating self in exchange. The main takeaway of The Season is the most obvious: the sheer number of artists who are LDS is both overwhelming and glorious. Our organization will never run out of content to share. Never. It makes me a little sad to end this project and nervous, too. I have other, even bigger Center things on the horizon (no spoilers, here). Still, without the excuse to constantly prowl for new works, I know I will be missing out. I’ll need you to write and tell me what just happened. glen@centerforlatterdaysaintarts.org

finalISSUE TIMELESS FRUIT by JEFF PARKIN

Jeff Parkin (American, born 1965) Timeless Fruit (2023) To view the film, click here 4K digital film and music randomly ordered by AI Credits: Creator: Jeff Parkin. Featuring Vaughn Armstrong; cinematography by Steven Bartholomew, Avery Olsen, Ian Wood; music by The Tane; programming by Adam Bonny, Shane Warby Commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

I’ve always loved peaches in the late summer and early fall. They are rich, juicy, sweet. They are the fruits of a farmer’s years-long labor of careful, nurturing, pruning, watering, fertilizing, and finally an intense period of climbing and picking and getting the fruit to market so people can enjoy them at the perfect time. I’ve seen discarded boxes of rotting peaches at roadside fruit stands that nobody bought, and thus no one enjoyed the gift of such delicious fruit. Peaches also remind me of the fruit of the Tree of Life and how at times I don’t partake of its sweetness despite it being freely offered.

In conceptualizing this project, I thought about how time operates for God: it is non-existent. The past, present, and future are all present for Him. This must change his perspective dramatically. I wanted to explore that idea by randomly ordering shots from a traditionally-filmed linear story about a peach farmer who labors diligently to grow and harvest his delicious peaches so he can give them away. Because all God’s children are individual, each film viewing experience is also unique as the AI creates an arbitrary order for the pre-filmed clips which will be different every time the film is viewed.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

finalISSUE THE STORY TELLER by KWANI POVI WINDER

Kwani Povi Winder (Santa Clara Puebloan, born 1989) The Story Teller (2023) Watercolor and ink Collection of the artist Commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

finalISSUE SEARCH FOR ATABEI by ARISAEL RIVERA

Photograph of the poet, used with permission. Watch a video performance of the poem here. Commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

I was born into stories Stories that have been told to me Constantly Molding and guiding Sign posts and core memories Failures and victories Savior and Enemy Shaping the malleable me Yet from within, it seems Another story beckons me The blood in me, Lo Taino en mi, My ancestry Calls to say, “Busca, Search for Atabei” Mother, Goddess of the deep, profound dream that was el universo, cielo, sky, body, cuerpo It was all there was and ever would be So goes the story Mother God plants two sons Two sons to fight the empty Two sons who begin to till and grow and scheme on the universe known as Dream And one of the two,Yucaju, Makes Wonders Atabei watches Him create the Earth and separate Water from Land and add Light to the Day and let it rest And animales roam the way and His brother Guacar watches His Mother’s praise Watches the way She gleams and laughs and tears arise in pride for Her Son Her Tree, “But not for Me.” Then Yucaju seeds the ultimate being Locuo, between God and human, in peace What a Dream They stand on the Motherland

But then Guacar in seemingly impotent rage Borne from the same Mother Filled with the same Power Blood from the same Blood Screams and proclaims And ravages against the good His Brother would create So much anger turned to Hate He even changes his name Winds begin to blow another way JURACAN comes! “NO!” yells Atabei Yet He torches the land And rains every way And drowns the animals’ life Like He opens a vein And He powers the wind And engages the waves Destroying Locuo’s home Where humans would roam Yucaju’s in pain and He pleads for reprieve But Juracan can’t abide Brother being “better than Me” So He uses His power And He hurts His own blood A Flood! He couldn’t see Atabei weeps “Why did you forget to dream? To create To be,” She pleads. Juracan retreats To return and repeat A cycle to find meaning Blinded by the feeling Searching for peace in the bleeding Destroying instead of believing Missing ever missing the power of dreaming And I try to see clearly Look back at my life Find the root of believing Do I look for peace in the bleeding? Did I forget the power of dreaming?

Let me replay the scenes Like I’m reversing a feeling Unpack the story Uncover the theme and I find Mother there, beaming Atabei lives in me She holds me in her arms And tells me the meaning “JURACAN will come and ravage all you know, You must grow Grow, Not above But below” Roots must run deep Rooted in what I can’t know In what I can’t see Only in what I believe What’s inherent in me Esperanza is the seed. Only then will I remember, Will I Create, will I Be Only then will I never forget To Dream.

finalISSUE MORMON LITERATURE IN SPANISH:

CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS AND OUTLOOK by GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ

Indira Deviagge (Argentine, born 1992) Vieja estación del pueblo en que crecí (Old Railroad Station in the Town Where I Grew Up) (2023) Watercolor, 42 x 59.4 cm Used with permission of the artist Commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

Here’s an unusual thing about me: I went to Brigham Young University. This is strange because I am from South America, and BYU is rather far away from where I grew up, in nearly every way. I loved it there, and one of the things I treasure from my days in Provo is that there I discovered that Latter-day Saints have been producing literature for a very long time. In Provo I discovered stuff ranging from Nephi Anderson to Levi Peterson to Jack Weyland. I was fascinated by their stories. They reflected my own religious tradition. And yet something seemed to be missing, and I speak very personally here. These writings did not cause me to light up like when reading Gabriel García Márquez, feel melancholic like when reading Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, or get worked up like when reading Eduardo Galeano. I believe that was the case because all the LDS authors I was reading wrote mostly, with occasional exceptions, very American stories in the English language. Of course, there was no reason for them to write anything other than exactly what they wrote, and I celebrate that. Nonetheless, all that reading made me wonder about the possibility of something like that in Spanish. I had never heard of Latter-day Saint authors in my own language, but I wondered what stories might out there. Perhaps a novel about the Third Convention in Mexico? Or a memoir by an Ecuadorian sent to the mission field in Idaho? In other words, were there stories in Spanish that might add to the already rich tradition of LDS literature I had found in English? So, after a few years of reading in English, I decided to start searching in Spanish. The first obstacle in this process was that I was not sure where to start. I tried the BYU library, but I was unable to find much of anything. I thought about talking to an actual LDS Spanish-language writer but did not know of anyone who would fit that description. I asked around, but it seemed like I was wandering in Borges’ desert labyrinth. However, by then the internet had become a lot more widespread, so I

eventually turned to searching online. Initially all searches returned only English-language works. Eventually, though, I found blogs, and that was my first discovery of Latter-day Saints who do their creative writing in Spanish. An example of a blog I found early on was Espejo de brea (Tar Mirror), by an Argentine who goes by Tago Hladík. In it, the author has published short fiction and poems, some of them openly Mormon in nature. The blog was more active about a decade ago, but the short texts it collects are memorable. Another blog, one which is very much active, is Palabras de Ana (Words of Ana), a web page for writer and oral narrator Ana Enriques out of Argentina. It collects her ongoing short stories, haikus, and podcast episodes. These two examples, even if the word “blog” sounds outdated now, signal how Spanish-language LDS writers continue to use the technology to put their writings out there.The advantage that blogging websites offer is that they are free tools that can and do act as repositories of their work. I soon discovered that another way LDS authors were distributing their writings in Spanish was, no surprise, through social media. For example, Argentine poet Luis Jorge Verano has been writing poetry for several decades. His poems were originally published in book form, but for the last four or five years he has been uploading his previous poems and new pieces, including short prose, to a dedicated Facebook page called Hebras (Threads). A similar approach is taken by Mexican poet Miki Calzada who set up a Facebook page titled Rincón poético Miki Calzada (Miki Calzada Poetry Corner) to promote his book Jornadas románticas de un soñador (The Romantic Days of a Dreamer). That these kinds of social media presences would arise is no surprise. Social media is, of course, a tool that all writers currently use to promote themselves, both well-known writers and also independent, less-known writers. Through my digging in cyberspace, I came to

learn that most LDS writers who write in Spanish fit into this latter category. I could find no LDS writers that were major players in their national book markets. No Miltons or Shakespeares, so to speak. And probably no Stephanie Meyers or Orson Scott Cards either. Most LDS authors are publishing either directly online or, quite often, self-publishing their works, either through their own efforts or through vanity presses. The list of works that see the light of day in this fashion is rather lengthy, and the practice seems to go back decades. The oldest example of this I could find was a poetry collection titled El mundo y yo (The World and I). It was published in Montevideo in 1952 by Uruguayan poet Iria Biaño. To give this some historical context, the Uruguayan mission was created in 1948, and the collection includes a poem dedicated to its first mission president: Frederick S. Williams. These self-published works appear in just about every genre. To give just a few examples, in Argentina, we find Patagonia gringa y otros cuentos (Foreigners’ Patagonia and Other Stories), a short story collection by Iris Lloyd about childhood for a Welsh girl in Southern Argentina, and Tierra Prometida (Promised Land), an illustrated children’s book by Vanina Chehda retelling the story of Lehi’s family. Across the Atlantic, in Spain, we find Calle Nicola, a memoir by Nicolás Sánchez Crespo told through vignettes and meditations about growing up and finding faith. In our current state of technological development, e-books have also become a way for Spanish-language LDS writers to get their works out into the stream of books. An example of this would be El Estandarte de la Libertad: una sorprendente historia del amor en la guerra (The Title of Liberty: A Surprising Story of Love in War), a play by Mexican author Armando Navarro Cano about a Lamanite woman and a Nephite captain. Of course, the difficulty for readers with works that are self-published or published by vanity presses is two-fold. The first is that the works are not very widely distributed and thus can be hard to find. Sometimes painfully so. The second is that

quality is all over the map, from books that might as well have been published by major publishers to things that were not ready for publication. Even so, some self-published authors have done well. A good example of this would be Carlos García Egures, an Uruguayan author who has penned a collection of children’s books. The protagonists in these books have different disabilities and it is precisely this which allows them to solve the challenges presented by the plot. And some authors have found publication through traditional publishers. I myself have been able to publish several children’s books about Uruguayan historical figures through a well-established publisher. None of the books that are sold in national markets have any LDS elements. It would seem that a book with evident LDS elements would not really work for Spanish-language markets. Thus, for individuals who produce literature that is unequivocally Mormon, there seems to be no outlet other than self-publishing. This, of course, begs the question of the viability of a publisher that would focus on uniquely LDS works (i.e., with LDS characters, stories, and concerns). The starting point would be the observation that right now, there are no LDS publishers in the Spanish-speaking world. One publisher that comes close to it, but not quite, is Ulterior Editorial. This is a small, independent press in Mexico run by husband-and-wife team Cynthya Alva and Rafael Vázquez. Over the last decade they have published three novels, all of them by LDS authors. I spoke with Vázquez about their endeavor, the gargantuan difficulties they face, and the sustainability of their effort. One thing he stressed was that theirs is most decidedly not an LDS publisher. The reason their authors are LDS is because Alva and Vázquez are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the circles they move in are mostly LDS. But Vázquez tells me that the future ahead for Ulterior must of necessity include non-LDS authors that speak to the broader society. (Their upcoming novel, for example, is in

many respects quite the opposite of a Mormon novel.) In his opinion, born out of his own experience, a Spanish-language publisher that deals only in LDS literature is not viable. One might be surprised to hear this and even argue that there are millions of Latter-day Saints throughout the Americas and that surely there are enough out there that consume literature. While this may be true, one should be reminded that the Americas are about 20,000 miles long, if the Pan-American highway is any indication, and Spanish-speaking Latter-day Saints are spread thinly through most of this wingspan. Latin America (even if one adds Spain, where there are a few LDS writers) has no critical mass of Latter-day Saints comparable to the Mormon Corridor. In the United States, a distributor like Deseret Book is possible because of the demographic density of LDS consumers in certain locales. Thus, reaching millions of thinly spread-out Spanish-speaking Latter-day Saints means having the ability to send books across great distances. At that point, distribution becomes a problem. For example, an LDS publisher in Guatemala City might have something of interest for someone in Chile’s Tierra del Fuego, but physically getting the book from one place to another can prove an insurmountable challenge. This is true because of the distances involved and also because of the very real national borders that have to be crossed. It may not seem like a big issue at first glance, but it can be in some places. Shipping a single book from, say, the United States to Argentina, may well run over 50 or 60 USD, depending on the weight of the book and the service used. Additionally, in some countries, packages coming from other countries, even neighboring countries, have to clear customs, which adds a layer of bureaucracy and costs for the person receiving the book. Further, rules for distribution in different countries vary, along with tax implications. True, a distributor might find a way to successfully get one-off packages distributed in cer-

tain markets, but occasional, one-off sales do not a sustainable business model make. Nowadays, of course, there are many publishing formats. One option that many writers and even small publishers have availed themselves of is using Amazon or similar distribution mechanisms. Printing or distributing books through Amazon, however, does not solve the international distribution problem because Amazon only physically prints books in a relatively small number of territories. This implies that while a book may show on the general Amazon store, someone who wishes to purchase it in, say Bolivia, would need to have it shipped internationally, which does not solve the cost and potential bureaucratic challenges mentioned above. In short, having a publisher that would reach the whole of the Spanish-speaking world would amount to a translational (or transcontinental, if one considers Spain) business venture, with associated costs and logistical challenges that would probably discourage even the most daring. That is likely one of the reasons why major LDS publishers such as Deseret Book do not attempt to distribute across the Americas. This means that a Spanish-language LDS publisher would have to be local, and perhaps begin its life as an imprint within an already established publisher. Right now, I get the impression that no single market would seem to support such an endeavor, not if anyone expects it to be profitable or at least to be anything less than a black hole where money and efforts sink into oblivion. Even if no one market would seem to have enough of a base to sustain a Spanish-language, LDS-publisher, my digging around and talking to people has helped me understand that there are many Latter-day Saints in Latin America and Spain that enjoy reading and writing literature. But they struggle to find their tribe, so to speak. Aware of that, at one point I joined with other like-minded members of the Church spread out throughout

Latin America, and we created an informal association to promote Mormon letters. We rather flamboyantly called it Cofradía de Letras Mormonas, which translates to something like Confraternity of Mormon Letters. Our aim in joining our efforts is two-fold: 1) to discover all the hidden writing by Latter-day Saints that is already out there and 2) to promote Spanish-language Mormon letters. Mostly, we have been doing this through a quarterly digital publication called El Pregonero de Deseret (The Deseret Towncrier). Every three months, more or less, El Pregonero hits cyberspace with literature, interviews, and news that can be broadly defined as “Mormon.” In this endeavor, we’ve come across more Mormon literature in Spanish than most people, and we’ve distributed a lot of it through our own publication. I discussed this with Mario Montani, who is also a founding member of the Cofradía, and I asked him what works he would recommend for people who have never read any of this. He suggested several pieces, some of which are translated into English. For poetry, he suggests Máximo Corte’s sonnet “Jesús en Gestemaní” (Jesus at Gethsemane) as a poignant entry point. This one might be hard to come by, since it was published originally in the December 1948 issue of Mensajero Deseret, the Church magazine in Argentina back then. So it might be easier to come by some poems published in Irreantum (which include English-language translations): Santiago Vázquez’s “Lagar” (Winepress), Luis Jorge Verano’s “El círculo del sol” (Circle of the Sun), Teresa Rosa Coustés de Ciccio’s “Manga de langostas” (Locust Swarm), etc. For short story, Montani recommends Jonatan I. Walton’s “Abedul” (Birch), which was the first runner-up in a 2020 Mormon Lit Lab contest, about a certain birch tree readers might have heard of. Of course, Montani is too modest to suggest his own story “Y no preguntes más…” (So Ask No More…), but he should. It’s a fascinating theological exploration of the scope of redemption, and

it won the 2021 Association for Mormon Letters Award for Best Short Story, so it’s definitely worth a read. In the short fiction category, newcomers might also consider Estampas del Libro de Mormón (Book of Mormon Sketches), a book that has been published in English and Portuguese, which I wrote and I only dare suggest because it received a Special Award in Fiction from the Association for Mormon Letters. For novel, Montani doesn’t hesitate to go with R. de la Lanza’s Eleusis, a short but sweeping novel about several generations of a Mexican Latter-day Saint family. (Content advisory: the novel contains sexual descriptions and coarse language.) The first two chapters of this work have been published in translation by James Goldberg in Dialogue. It won the Association for Mormon Letters Award for Best Novel. Novels are lengthy, so for readers who are interested in very short works—in flash fiction—, I am happy to suggest Santiago Vásquez’s “Recuerdo de la lluvia que no recuerdo” (The Memory of That Rain I Do Not Remember) or Citlalli H. Xochitiotzin’s “TIEMPO una partícula” (TIME a particle). Both of these micro fictions were finalists in different Mormon Lit Lab contests. They both pack a punch, each in their own way. What all of this implies, in my mind at least, is that while the market may not support a Mormon literature in Spanish, the creators are there, and Spanish-speaking Latter-day Saints will continue to produce literature even without distribution networks. At some point, there may be markets to sustain it economically, but until then, let there continue to be no shortage of LDS voices describing, exploring, and processing their experiences through literature in the Spanish language. Let them do so, even if the audience is just a handful of readers. It is worthwhile for them. If you know about other LDS writers who are telling their stories in Spanish, do let the Center

for Latter-day Saints Arts (glen@centerforlatterdaysaintarts.org) or myself (ggnsud@gmail.com) know.

La literatura mormona en español: situación y previsiones Gabriel González Les cuento algo extraño: cursé estudios en la Universidad Brigham Young (BYU). Digo que es extraño porque soy sudamericano, con lo cual dicha universidad queda lejísimos de donde me crie, en prácticamente todo sentido. Como sea, considero que valió la pena, en parte porque estando en Provo hice el hallazgo de que los santos de los últimos días llevan muchísimo tiempo haciendo literatura. Fue en esa ciudad que descubrí una gama de autores que va desde el precursor Nephi Anderson pasando por el controvertido Levi Peterson hasta el esperanzador Jack Weyland. Sus historias me fascinaron ya que hasta cierto punto reflejaban mi propia experiencia religiosa. Sin embargo, algo parecía hacer falta en todo aquello —y ahora hablo a título muy personal— porque sus escritos no me entusiasmaban como cuando leía a Gabriel García Márquez ni me inundaban de melancolía como cuando leía a Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer ni me hacían hervir la sangre como cuando leía a Eduardo Galeano. Sospecho que tal era el caso porque estos autores santo de los últimos días que leí por aquellos días escribían más que nada, con contadas excepciones, relatos muy estadounidenses en el idioma inglés. Claro está que dichos autores no tenían por qué escribir nada distinto a lo que escribieron, y en esto merecen todo reconocimiento. Aun así, tanta lectura me llevó a preguntarme en cuanto a la posibilidad de algo parecido en castellano. No tenía noticia de que hubiera autores santo de los últimos días que se expresaran en mi idioma, pero me preguntaba si tal vez no existiesen relatos de ese

tipo por ahí. ¿Tal vez una novela sobre la Tercera Convención en México? ¿O las memorias de un ecuatoriano mandado al campo misional en Idaho? En otras palabras, ¿había relatos en español que sumaran a esta rica tradición que había descubierto de literatura santo de los últimos días en inglés? Así que tras varios años de lecturas en inglés, decidí buscar materiales en castellano. El primer obstáculo en este proceso fue que no sabía ni por dónde empezar. Probé suerte en la biblioteca de BYU, pero no logré dar con nada. Pensé en hablar con un autor SUD hispanoparlante pero no conocía a ninguno. Pregunté por ahí, pero me parecía estar dando vueltas y vueltas en el laberinto desértico de Borges. Para entonces, no obstante, internet ya había logrado extenderse bastante, por lo cual llegó el momento en que busqué ahí. Al principio, todas las búsquedas arrojaban resultados que apuntaban solo a obras en inglés. En su momento, sin embargo, di con los blogs, y fue así que descubrí a los primeros santos de los últimos días que creaban literatura en español. Un ejemplo de un blog tempranero que encontré es Espejo de brea, de un autor argentino que se hace llamar Tago Hladík. En este blog el autor ha publicado ficciones breves y poemas, algunos de los cuales son de carácter abiertamente mormón. Si bien el blog tuvo su mayor actividad hace como una década, los textos breves en él recogidos son memorables. Otro blog, este todavía muy activo, se llama Palabras de Ana. Se trata de la página web de la escritora y narradora oral argentina Ana Enriques, donde recoge sus producción continua de cuentos, haikús y episodios de pódcast. Si bien la palabra «blog» ya empieza a sonar anticuada, estos dos ejemplos demuestran la forma en que los escritores SUD hispanoparlantes siguen empleando esta tecnología para dar a conocer sus escritos. La ventaja de ofrecen los sitios de blogs es que son herramientas gratuitas que en efecto se emplean para depositar obras. Pronto descubrí que otra forma en la que los autores santo de los últimos días distribuían sus es-

critos en español era —y esto no sorprenderá a nadie— las redes sociales. Por ejemplo, el poeta argentino Luis Jorge Verano lleva varias décadas haciendo poesía. Al principio publicaba sus poemas en forma de libro, pero en los últimos cuatro o cinco años ha pasado a cargar sus poemas anteriores y composiciones nuevas, incluso prosas breves, a una página de Facebook dedicada a ello: Hebras. Algo parecido hizo el poeta mexicano Miki Calzada, que puso una página en Facebook llamada Rincón poético Miki Calzada con la intención de promover su libro Jornadas románticas de un soñador. En nada sorprende que surgiera este tipo de presencias en las redes sociales ya que dichas redes son, claro está, una herramienta que todos los escritores emplean en la actualidad para promoverse, tanto los consagrados como los independientes y menos conocidos. Mis indagaciones en el ciberespacio me llevaron a concluir que el grueso de los escritores SUD de habla hispana pertenecen a esta última categoría. No hay entre ellos ni un Borges ni un Cervantes, por decirlo de alguna forma, y posiblemente tampoco ninguna Stephanie Meyers ni Orson Scott Card. La mayoría de los autores SUD publican ya sea directamente en línea o, con frecuencia, de forma independiente, ya sea mediante ediciones de autor o la contratación de servicios editoriales. La lista de obras que salen a la luz por esos medios es bastante extensa y parece remontarse décadas hacia atrás. El ejemplo más antiguo que hallé de esto es el poemario El mundo y yo, editado en 1952 por la poetisa uruguaya Iría Biaño en Montevideo. Para darle algo de contexto histórico, la Misión Uruguaya fue creada en 1948, y el poemario incluye un poema dedicado a su primer presidente de misión: «Federico S. Williams». Estas obras de edición propia aparecen en prácticamente todos los géneros. Por dar algunos ejemplos, en la Argentina tenemos Patagonia gringa y otros cuentos, una colección de cuentos escritos por Iris Lloyd sobre lo que es la infancia para una niña galesa en el sur de Argentina, y Tierra Pro-

metida, un álbum ilustrado para niños de Vanina Chehda que recuenta la historia de la familia de Lehi. Cruzando el Atlántico tenemos Calle Nicola, unas memorias de Nicolás Sánchez Crespo en las que el relato breve y la reflexión exploran lo que es crecer y encontrar la fe. En la actual etapa de desarrollo tecnológico, vemos que los libros electrónicos se han convertido en un medio para que los autores SUD hispanoparlantes lancen sus obras al torrente de libros. Un ejemplo de esto sería El Estandarte de la Libertad: una sorprendente historia del amor en la guerra, una pieza teatral de un autor mexicano llamado Armando Navarro Cano sobre una mujer lamanita y un capitán nefita. Lógicamente, la dificultad que enfrentan los lectores ante estas obras de edición propia o de servicios editoriales contratados es doble. Primero que nada, estas obras son de distribución limitada por lo que resulta muy difícil, en ocasiones penosamente difícil, conseguirlas. Además, su calidad es bastante dispar, con libros por un lado que bien pudieron ser editados por una editorial de renombre y otros por otro lado que no estaban en condición de ser publicados. Como sea, algunos autores han encontrado el éxito mediante sus propias ediciones. Un ejemplo claro de esto lo tenemos en el uruguayo Carlos García Egures, autor de una colección de libros para niños. Los protagonistas de sus libros tienen distintas discapacidades y es precisamente por ello que logran resolver los retos que les presenta la trama.También hay autores que han encontrado alguna medida de éxito mediante las editoriales tradicionales, como me sucedió a mí, que he visto la edición de varios libros sobre figuras históricas del Uruguay por medio de una editorial establecida. Ninguno de los libros que se venden en mercados nacionales contienen elementos SUD. Parecería ser que una obra con elementos de este tipo no encajaría en los mercados de habla hispana. Por consiguiente, quienes producen literatura inequívocamente mormona parecen no tener salida más allá de la edición propia.

Esto obliga a preguntar si es viable que exista una editorial cuya oferta sea de obras distintivamente mormonas (es decir, con personajes, tramas e inquietudes SUD). Una casa que se aproxima a ello, aunque no llega a serlo, es Ulterior Editorial. Se trata de un pequeño sello independiente en México conducido por el matrimonio de Cynthya Alva y Rafael Vásquez. A lo largo de la última década han editado tres novelas, todas escritas por autores santo de los últimos días. Conversé con Vásquez sobre el emprendimiento, las dificultades colosales que enfrentan y la sustentabilidad de su esfuerzo. Algo que me recalcó es que sin duda la suya no es una casa editorial SUD. La razón por la que los autores son santos es porque tanto Alva como Vásquez son miembros de La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días y en ese círculo es donde más se mueven. No obstante, Vásquez me afirma que el porvenir de Ulterior forzosamente pasa por la inclusión de autores no miembros de esta Iglesia quienes puedan apelar al grueso de la sociedad. (Su próxima novela, por ejemplo, es en muchos aspectos todo lo contrario a una novela mormona.) Vásquez sostiene, con base en su propia experiencia, que una casa editorial en español que solo trabaje con literatura mormona resulta inviable. Esto puede resultar sorprendente y se puede argumentar que en vista de que hay millones de santos de los últimos días en toda América sin duda habrá una cantidad suficiente de consumidores de letras. Puede que sea cierto, pero vale la pena recordar que América se extiende a lo largo de unos 30.000 kilómetros —si es que la Panamericana nos sirve de indicación— y los santos de habla hispana se encuentran desparramados por toda esa extensión. América Latina (y esto se aplica incluso agregando a España, donde también hay algunos escritores) carece de esa masa crítica necesaria de santos de los últimos días que se evidencia en el Corredor Mormón de Idaho/Utah/ Arizona. En Estados Unidos la existencia de distribuidores como Deseret Book se hace realidad por causa de la densidad demográfica de clientes

SUD en ciertas localidades. A su vez, llegar a millones de santos de los últimos días hispanoparlantes escasamente extendidos supone la capacidad de mandar libros hacia lugares muy distantes. Es entonces que la distribución se vuelve problemática. Por ejemplo, una editorial SUD en la Ciudad de Guatemala puede que ofrezca algo que interese a una persona en la Tierra del Fuego chilena, pero el reto de hacer llegar el ejemplar físico de un lugar a otro puede suponer un reto insalvable. Tal es el caso debido a las grandes distancias y además a las fronteras nacionales, que son muy reales, que hay que cruzar. Puede que esto último no parezca en primera instancia un problema mayor, pero en algunos lugares sin duda lo es. Mandar un ejemplar de un libro desde, digamos, los Estados Unidos a la Argentina puede costar más de 50 o 60 USD, según el peso del libro y el servicio que se emplee. Además, en algunos países, todo paquete proveniente del exterior, incluso si se trata de un país vecino, tiene que pasar por la aduana, lo cual agrega más burocracia y costos a quien reciba el libro. Encima los reglamentos de distribución varían según el país, así como las obligaciones impositivas. Es cierto que puede que algún distribuidor encuentre la forma de hacer llegar un paquete con éxito a algún mercado, pero estas ventas ocasionales de ejemplares sueltos no son precisamente la clave del éxito empresarial. Claro queda que hoy por hoy existen muchas formas de publicar. Una opción de la que se han valido un buen número de escritores e incluso algunas editoriales pequeñas es Amazon o mecanismos de distribución semejantes. Como sea, imprimir o distribuir libros por medio de Amazon no resuelve el problema de la distribución internacional porque Amazon solo imprime libros en un número más bien reducido de territorios. Es decir, si bien el libro puede que aparezca en la web general de Amazon, si alguien quiere comprarlo, digamos, en Bolivia, el libro tendría que ser enviado por correo internacional, lo cual no resuelve la

problemática de los costos y los posibles enredos burocráticos antes mencionados. En pocas palabras, una editorial capaz de llegar a todo el mundo hispano supondría en efecto un emprendimiento comercial transnacional (o transcontinental, si se incluye a España), con unos costos y dificultades logísticas que seguro disuaden incluso a los más osados. Posiblemente sea por ello que las principales editoriales SUD, como Deseret Book, no se molestan en tratar de llegar a todo el continente americano. Esto quiere decir que cualquier editorial de libros SUD en castellano tendría que ser de alcance local, tal vez dando sus primeros pasos como un sello dentro de alguna editorial ya consolidada. Tengo la impresión de que en este momento no existe mercado alguno capaz que mantener un emprendimiento así, no si lo que se espera es generar ganancias o, por lo menos, ser algo más que un agujero negro aniquilador de todo dinero y esfuerzo. A pesar de que no hay mercado que en este momento cuente con la fuerza necesaria para sustentar una editorial en español de literatura mormona, mis indagaciones y conversaciones me comprobaron que hay muchos santos de los últimos días en Latinoamérica y España a quienes les gusta leer literatura y producirla. Lo único es que les cuesta encontrar a su gente, por decirlo de alguna forma. Consciente de ello, llegó el momento en que auné esfuerzos con otros miembros de la Iglesia en América Latina que compartían mis inquietudes a fin de crear una asociación informal encargada de promover las letras mormonas. Le pusimos el altisonante nombre de Cofradía de Letras Mormonas. Nuestro objetivo al combinar esfuerzos es doble: 1) descubrir todos los escritos perdidos que los santos de los últimos días han producido por ahí y 2) promover las letras mormonas hispanas. Nuestro principal vehículo para ello es una publicación digital llamada El Pregonero de Deseret. Cada más o menos tres meses se lanza al ciberespacio un número del El Pregonero con literatura, entrevistas y novedades del gran abanico «mormón».

Encausados en tal esfuerzo hemos hallado más literatura mormona en castellano que la mayor parte de las personas y hemos distribuido gran parte de ello mediante nuestro órgano trimestral. Conversé sobre esto con Mario Montani, que también es un miembro fundador de la Cofradía, y le pregunté qué obras recomendaría para quienes nunca han leído nada por el estilo. Me sugirió varias obras, que enumero a continuación: En el género poesía, señala que un emotivo punto de partida puede ser el soneto «Jesús en Gestemaní» de Máximo Corte. Es difícil dar con este poema porque originalmente apareció en diciembre de 1984 en el Mensajero Deseret, el órgano de la Misión Argentina por aquel entonces.Tal vez sea más fácil leer algunos de los poemas publicados en Irreantum (la revista digital de la Association for Mormon Letters): «Lagar» de Santiago Vázquez, «El círculo del sol» de Luis Jorge Verano, «Manga de langostas» de Teresa Rosa Coustés de Ciccio, entre otros. Si de cuentos se trata, Montani recomienda «Abedul» de Jonatan I. Walton, que fue primer accésit del Certamen Literario «Palabras de Mormón». Claro, Montani peca de modesto y no menciona su propio cuento «Y no preguntes más…», una fascinante exploración teológica sobre el alcance de la redención. Este cuento fue galardonado como el Mejor Cuento del año 2021 por la Association for Mormon Letters, así que vale la pena leerlo. En el rubro de las narraciones breves, me atrevo a sugerir que los recién iniciados pueden gustar de Estampas del Libro de Mormón, el cual, si bien es de mi autoría, me animo a recomendar porque recibió un Premio Especial en la categoría ficción por parte de la antedicha Association for Mormon Letters. En lo referente a la novela, Montani no duda en recomendar Eleusis de R. de la Lanza, una novela breve pero de extenso alcance que narra la historia de varias generaciones de una familia santo de los últimos días mexicana. (Cabe una advertencia

sobre el contenido: la novela contiene descripciones de carácter sexual y lenguaje soez.) Esta obra ganó un Premio a la Mejor Novela otorgado por la Association for Mormon Letters. Las novelas suelen ser largas, así que para los lectores que prefieran textos mucho más breves —me refiero a los microrrelatos— con gusto puedo recomendar «Recuerdo de la lluvia que no recuerdo» de Santiago Vásquez y «TIEMPO una partícula» de Citlalli H. Xochitiotzin. Las dos microficciones fueron finalistas en concursos de literatura mormona. Las dos lecturas son fuertes, cada una a su manera. Todo esto da a entender, por lo menos a mi modo de ver, que si bien no hay ningún mercado capaz de sustentar una literatura mormona en español,

lo que hay son creadores, y los santos de los últimos días hispanoparlantes seguirán haciendo letras incluso sin canales de distribución. Puede que llegue el día en que los mercados le den viabilidad económica al asunto. Hasta entonces, empero, que abunden las voces SUD que describen, exploran y procesan sus vivencias a través de la literatura en idioma español. Que lo hagan por más que el público sea apenas unos cuantos lectores. Para ellos, vale la pena. Si usted, estimado lector, sabe de otros escritores santo de los últimos días que estén creando en español, le rogamos informe al Centro para las Artes Santo de los Últimos Días (glen@centerforlatterdaysaintarts.org) o al autor de esta nota (ggnsud@gmail.com).

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

finalISSUE EMBRACING THE WEIRD: A NEW MOMENT FOR LATTER-DAY SAINT ART BY TED BUSHMAN & KRISTIN PERKINS

Megan Knobloch Geilman (American, born 1986) Joseph’s Book of the Dead (2017) Digital composition (printed on matte canvas), 36 x 48 inches Courtesy of the artist

In a photograph staged like a mural, Joseph Smith faces off against Anubis, the Egyptian God of the Dead. Joseph, recognizable only by his stiff coat, high collar, and cravat, looks like a red-headed BYU dental student—Anubis wears a paper dog mask, black shirt, black pants, and black tie. Between them sits a scale, evenly balancing a marble heart and an ostrich feather. Surrounding the two figures are tokens: an upturned hat (seer stone presumably inside), a ring of keys symbolizing the priesthood, a masonic pyramid, a large letter “G” that would look at home in a first-grade classroom, a horn, lion and alligator figurines, a picture of a rabbit in a small frame. For a Latter-day Saint audience, the collection of symbols, artfully framed by deep blue velvet curtains, presents a tableau at once familiar and strange—and that is exactly the point.

Michael J. Sorenson (American, born 1989) If You Could Hie to Kolob (HIVE ZINE-013) 12-page zine Courtesy of the artist

This photograph is from Megan Knolboch Geiman’s series Works of Translation, arranged and edited by her and shot by her collaborator Samantha Zauscher. In the series, she places familiar characters in Christianity and Mormonism in highly-staged sets surrounded by household objects. Many pay homage to famous paintings—Emma Smith stares plaintively over one shoulder with a pearl earring à la Vermeer; Malchus sits like Van Gogh with a bloody cloth wrapped around his head and over a missing ear. The work brims over with significations and layered meanings, some obvious (Eve holds both a bitten apple and an open book) and some obscure (Adam sits near eggs and an orchid). Contrary to the trend of much LDS art that focuses on the beauty and accessibility of scriptural characters and ideas, Geilman’s portraits use everyday objects and theatrical composition to make the quotidian and recognizable seem arch and unfamiliar. The overall effect is, well, weird.

tive taxonomy, but we hope to capture a sense of this moment that we are calling Weird Mormon Art, its potential origins, and its rhetorical effects.* “Weird Mormon Art” is a cross-disciplinary trend that intentionally defamiliarizes Mormon symbology, often reappropriating Mormon kitsch, history, and culture into new contexts. In these paintings, zines, and novels, things that were once comfortable and familiar are rendered strange and disorienting. Thrown into a different light, we find ourselves forced to reconcile with a new viewpoint. Temples are reimagined as spaceships, the sacrament bread transubstantiated into green jello, and one of the mystic three Nephites wanders an upmarket grocery store as in, respectively, Michael J. Sorenson’s zine If You Could Hie to Kolob, Hayley Labrum Morrison’s painting Nourish, and William Morris’s short story “After the Fast” from his collection The Darkest Abyss.

We at The Season have seen a lot of this “weird,” in Geilman’s series and as a broader trend in art and literature about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Our goal isn’t to create a defini-

Weird Mormon Art runs the gamut between high and low culture, from the gallery space to the Instagram post. It crosses and sometimes erases the boundary between devotional and critical, long held as the most salient lens for Mormon art cri-

Hayley LaBrum Morrison (American, born 1986) Nourish and Strengthen Diptych, spray paint and oil on cradled panel, (5 x 7) Courtesy of the artist

tique. It can also vary in its level of abstraction, although defamiliarization requires at least some representational object, figure, or event. It draws on some of the art of the past (for what is a walk in Salt Lake’s Gilgal Gardens but a jaunt through a surreal blend of the ordinary and the odd), but it feels uniquely current—part of a cultural moment we find ourselves in. Created by (often young) artists and writers with post-modern sensibilities, informed by Mormon history, and steeped in Mormon culture, the Mormon Weird might not be a cohesive movement, but it does constitute an active and evolving moment. It’s a mode of engagement that defies our expectations about how artists and writers express their religious experience, questions what is “fundamental” about our religion, and exists in vivid, minute-to-minute conversation with the mainstream church. There are a number of artists working in this space, although rarely does an artist’s whole oeuvre fit within this trend, and it’s often more accurate to talk about single pieces of art or stories. Annie Poon became famous for her black and white animations capturing childhood’s imagination and awe, but her work about Mormon history and scripture—the first vision of Joseph Smith, her Book of Mormon coloring book—combines familiar stories with the strangeness of her stop-motion cartoons. There’s Casey Jex Smith (think Mitt Romney as D&D character “Lord Spelldyal” with a listed 19 charisma), Emily

Larsen (Emmeline B. Wells collaged into a radiating background), and Maddison Colvin (architectural composite of LDS temples). In literature, Steven Peck’s The Scholar of Moab is a near-perfect example—the titular “scholar,” Hyrum Thayne, develops a conspiratorial belief that he must save his home from Gadianton Robbers. Other Weird Mormon Literature includes work by William Morris, Luisa Perkins, D. J. Butler, and Aaron Michael Ritchey. Viewed as an aesthetic form broadly, the trend is inclusive of the Instagram account @texturesofmormonism, whose half-mocking, half-celebratory crowdsourced images of LDS meetinghouses contain images of surprising beauty and resonance, and @themormonr, meme page of the B. H. Roberts Foundation which transforms ludicrous meme formats and exploitables to Latter-day Saint ends, placing niche Mormon controversies into modern contexts. Likely the greatest unifying force in the trend is The ARCH-HIVE, an art collective based in Utah, founded by Laz and Camilla Stark in 2019. The collective operates as a league, broad and loose enough that artists from all over the United States contribute to group shows (staged at Writ & Vision Gallery) and zines. Not all the work in these shows and zines are identifiably “Weird Mormon Art” (not all have a Mormon figure, building, or symbol that is transformed and recontextualized), but the ethos of the collective centers on exploring the “unique perspectives & peculiarities of Utah, Mormonism, and the American West.” The collective’s statement lends itself towards the transformational and esoteric—use of the Deseret Alphabet, combining Utah landscapes or botany with traditionally Christian images, and playful riffs on Book of Mormon or church history characters. Stark described their goals in an interview: “We engage directly, but from different angles than we’re used to seeing with Mormonism. It’s artwork that is exultantly celebrating and embracing the weird quirky bits and saying ‘This is us.This is our culture. Look at it— be proud to be part of it.’” Weird Mormon art and literature resonates in our cultural moment. Why?

“There’s definitely a generational quality to it,” said Brad Kramer, curator of the Writ & Vision gallery in downtown Provo. Many of the artists working in this space are under forty. Looking at a piece like Laz’s satirical Joseph Smith’s Pro Revelator, designed like a game for the PlayStation, it is easy to see the influence of youth culture and irreverent internet meme pages. These aesthetic referents are not unique to Mormon art—we live in the age of Everything Everywhere All At Once and Rick and Morty, and every year a new think piece about “groovival” or “old web” or “weird core” gets published by mainstream media. Some of these referents come straight from the 90s, some are earlier.William Morris, author of The Darkest Abyss and the current Association of Mormon Letters president, cites being Gen-X and the attendant influence of post-modern authors, the ascendency of genre fiction, and punk/post-punk sensibilities.

the Correlation Committee began when Joseph F. Smith was Prophet, to unite disparate instructional texts churchwide, the Committee has been primarily perceived as a tool for narrowing the Church’s cultural and linguistic range.

These influences extend far beyond the Mormon art scene, but bringing these styles to religious art is transformational. Kramer described this transformation: “Part of what we’re talking about is shifting patterns in the relationship between our sense of devotional spirituality and aesthetics. We’re changing the boundaries and changing the norms around what kind of aesthetics strike us as spiritually appropriate or conducive to spiritually enriching art.”

But in the effort to smooth out the Church’s roughest edges, something else is lost—and many artists and writers in the Mormon Weird recognize it. As Steven Peck, whose novels incorporate our culture’s most wacky and wonderful, says, “In correlation, we’ve homogenized [Mormonism] to the point where things like creativity, and self-expression get squashed a little bit. We’re missing that element of wonder and awe. The destabilization that’s appealing to people in this weird moment is a movement away from correlation, from homogenization.”

Of course, not all artists working in this space understand their art as devotional. Some artists mobilize their histories with Mormonism to offer critique or to differentiate their work in a curatorial landscape interested in artist’s identity and personal voice. Others bring an ambivalence and uncertainty to their work that has been rare given the church’s in-or-out approach to discipleship. Among all the explanations for the trend, it’s impossible not to see this movement in context with the Church itself and the specter of Correlation—a clean, simple word that strikes fear into the hearts of many a Mormon artist. While

There is a sense that one of the greatest threats to church membership was the unsettling weirdness of our history, and one of the greatest threats to the church’s standing among other American religions was the enduring weirdness of our culture. Responding to these concerns means inoculating members to the strangest parts of its history and ending unique cultural traditions and rituals—removing live endowments and historic murals, ending pageants, the logo redesign, and designating the 22 paintings that can be displayed in church foyers. In the eyes of many, these changes are wise solutions to existing problems.

It’s of course tricky to assign motivations to a whole group of artists, whose work is varied. Artists’ and writers’ influences come from some mixture of their histories, peers, mentors, and a mystical ether. It is easier to identify not why this art and literature exists, but what it does for us, as readers, as viewers, as (and here we’ll reveal our authorial bias) as fans. To this end, we present three case studies. In Steven Peck’s science fiction short story A Strange Report from the Church Archives, it is 1916,

and Elder Talmage is on a journey to Southern Utah to investigate tales of a man selling “possibility machines.” Upon arrival, he discovers that the machines—disguised as children’s toys—allow users to make a wish that can change the past.The wish is granted, but the people who make the wish instantly forget the world that existed before the change. Talmage watches as two bereaved parents wish their son had not died on a mission—and then feel foolish, since the son is already in the room with them. The wishes start small but soon take wild turns. Talmage suddenly remembers that Joseph Smith didn’t die at Carthage, but came to Utah with the Saints and lived until his 80s. More wishes transform ancient history, preventing the fall of Rome, and changing the structure of the Church itself. By the time Talmage finally finds the seller of these devices, the world we know is completely gone. Elder Talmage, not realizing the incongruity, introduces himself as “Second Elder in the Church of the Firstborn of the Son, Keeper of the Elysian Mysteries, and Proconsul of New Ionian Sea City.” You’ll have to find the story in Peck’s collection Wandering Realities: Mormonism Short Fiction to see how it ends. A Strange Report represents an important rhetorical effect of Weird Mormon Art: that of destabilization. The story relishes in dissociating us from Mormonism, at least as we know it. As Peck says: “If I step back and look at Mormonism from a distance, it is weird. We talk about angels and gold plates and all of these things that, from a secular realism point of view, seem utterly bizarre… Mormonism has borrowed syncretistically from masonry, and it becomes this hodgepodge… this whole movement has been strange and otherworldly.” In A Strange Report, the reader is reminded that from a certain perspective, the history and current reality of the Church are just as wild as the alternate scenarios presented. In this story, where anything could be true, what is fundamental about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

A Strange Report and other destabilizing works force readers to reconsider their expectations. It doesn’t simply reaffirm a core testimony, the implicit goal of most devotional art. Peck, and others, invite us to regard what we think of as normal and observe it in clarifying and often unsettling light. Our second case study is Recreation of Home Shrine, Deseret X-9, ca. 5755 by Laz, from The ARCH-HIVE’s first group show, Holy Hell in 2019. Picture a corner of the narrow Writ & Vision gallery taken over by an installation meant to invoke a living room around the turn of the 21st century. There’s a rug and a pillow, an old television on a small console, candles flickering almost ritualistically. Like with the Megan Knolboch Geilman photo, it’s the small details that matter—that draw the viewer in: a pizza box satirizing the Little Ceasar logo with “Little Seers - Hot-n-Worthy,” an unopened bottle of “Coca-Kolob,” an “I Want to Believe” poster tacked crookedly to the wall depicting the First Vision. The focal point is the flickering television showing the start window for “Lehi’s Dream Turbo,” with a grainy image of a tree with white fruit and a man in a white headdress standing before it in awe. The piece draws on iconic imagery of both Mormonism and childhood to create a heady synthesis of nostalgia and religion. Laz brings playfulness to the devotional. It’s a Mormon art idiom that doesn’t take itself seriously, and, the fact that it doesn’t, opens up other ways of engaging the sacred. The piece revels in the hyper-specific. In his online presence as @mormcore, Laz often engages the hyper-specific of Mormon culture and history, including controversial and faith-shaking events like the burning of the Nauvoo Expositor and the Salamander Letter. In a time when young people have felt disillusioned over the hidden things shouted from the internet’s rooftops, joking about these historical moments defangs them and reintegrates them into a community narrative. As Camilla Stark, Laz’s co-founder of The ARCH-HIVE, puts it: “Having in-jokes is powerful… It’s bonding for people

Future-Day Saints:The New Arrivals, Matt Page

Laz (American) Recreation of Home Shrine, Deseret X-9, ca. 5755 Installation, Mixed Media Courtesy of the artist

and creates a sense of community.” Laz’s work asks us to embrace being weird, even when the oddity is uncomfortable—and it does so playfully. For our final example, we turn to Matt Page’s graphic novel Future-Day Saints. Future-Day Saints presents a maximalist, colorful intergalactic Latter-day Saint future, where “Earth Humans” are one of dozens of faithful species who have emigrated to the distant planet of New Zion. In this cartoon landscape, prophets and priestesses share the stage with heroes like Zelph, a 12-foot-tall skeleton wearing two glow

ing seer stones in his empty eye sockets; Triple Combination, a three-headed record-keeper in indigenous feathers; Dr. Sunstone, a gay doctor depicted as, quite simply, the Nauvoo sunstone with cartoon arms and legs; and villains like Kinderhook, Natural Man, and the steaming angry Hot Drinks. Page’s pulpy adventures are lightweight but filled with both faithful and progressive details. The third installment in the series, The New Arrivals, takes a more serious turn from previous volumes, as it tells the story of Zioneers—a spaceship of faithful believers who have traveled across the stars to join the community of believers. With the gift of tongues, the Zioneer’s leader, a seer’s daughter named Laurel, tells the story of their people’s revelations. The community welcomes the new emigres with the generosity of spirit one should expect from New Zion. The New Arrivals represents a third rhetorical ef-

fect of Weird Mormon Art: presenting aspirational visions of a possible Mormonism. Page imagines a pioneer story in a context without colonialism, indigenous displacement, or frontier violence. He uses the tools of the Weird to safely offer alternate routes to Zion. It’s a utopian vision, drawn from a place of love, to imagine a more loving place inclusive of diversity and difference—open to the odd. In 2021, Church leadership announced they would strip historic temple murals from the Salt Lake and Manti temples and would end the practice of live endowments. Since 1893, these murals guided saints through the theatrical ordinance of the endowment. According to folklore, more evocative than true, aging temple-worker Eves had worn down the paint around the forbidden fruit through decades of sacred choice. This practice and these pieces of art represented an incalculable cultural treasure. Camilla Stark wrote mournfully about the loss, saying, “I have a hunch that our increasingly anemic cultural heritage leaves modern-day Mormons with little to hold on to. It makes me cry to think that in Mormon temples we used to play music and dance, and now we watch slideshows in silence.” The artists of the Weird Mormon Art moment do not have a unified thesis or rallying cry. They have diverse motivations and feelings about the Church. But many of these works present a vibrant counter-thesis to the shrinking cultural heritage of the mainstream Church.Weird Mormon Art doesn’t aspire to develop, as Orson F.Whitney hoped,“Shakespeares and Miltons of our own.” It isn’t interested in mass accessibility, normalcy, or cultural approval. The Mormon Weird is unashamed. It is the voice of those who disagree with the streamlining, the watering-down, and the Church’s 20th-century conservative appeasement strategies. Simultaneously, Weird Mormon Art embraces destabilizing perspectives on the Church, questioning ‘fundamental’ elements and encouraging radical reimaginings.

Perhaps one of our great cultural sins is a textual sophistry, a belief that our religion can be reduced to simplistic, straightforward text. Church leaders tend to see any non-textual parts of our religion as frippery. The practitioners of Weird Mormon Art and Literature present, in response, an overflowing multimedia waterfall of forms, from the painting to the installation to the novel and beyond. Some of the deluge is devotional, but very little of it conforms to our visions of reverence. Some of it is unsettling. Much of it is attempting a form of creative theology—a synthesis of observation, imagination, and revelation into a new vision. In this, Weird Mormon Art echoes the unquenchable polymathic theology of Joseph Smith. Religion, like art, suffocates when it is confined to the comfortable and controlled. This work demands that we gaze into our own personal seer stones and see anew our history, our religion, and our future. *Throughout the article we use the term “Mormon” to describe a cultural designator inclusive of but larger than The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

finalISSUE DETROIT UNDERGROUND BY BENJAMIN DEAN TAYLOR

Image: public domain. Listen to the music here.

I composed, for the final issue of The Season, a title track to a hypothetical video game named Detroit Underground. I wrote it as part of the MCA Video Game Scoring Workshop, which is an online summer music composition program I direct. As a full-time freelance composer writing primarily for orchestras and wind bands, I’ve been interested in

video game scores for a while now, so in the January 2023 issue of The Season, I wrote an article titled, “Game On!: LDS Composers Writing Video Game Music Soundtracks.” It featured the work of Jeff Broadbent, Lance Montgomery, Joshua Aker, Ron Saltmarsh, and Chance Thomas. I wanted to try my hand at it, too.

finalISSUE LIFE ITSELF BY KATHIE DEBENHAM

Kathie Debenham (American, born 1951) We Are Family (excerpt) (2005) Watch the video here. Video, duration: 2:43; choreography by Kathie Debenham and Pat Debenham; dancers: Kathie Debenham, Kelby Debenham Ellis, Pat Debenham, Jesse Ellis, Avery Kate Hasler, Josh Hasler, Noah Hasler, Whitney Hasler Debenham, Clarke Schaumann, Marney Debenham Schaumann Used with permission

Dancing is the loftiest, the most moving, the most beautiful of the arts, because it is no mere translation or abstraction from life; it is life itself. - Havelock Ellis As fellow students of the late Dee Winterton in the 1970s at BYU, my husband Pat and I believed dance could change the world. Dee inspired us to see the essential nature of dance as a most human experience, one that could connect, uplift, inspire, enlighten, enliven and even heal.We both fully embraced the philosophy that dance is life itself in our 40+ years careers in dance. This love of dance also permeated our family as our three daughters expanded our dance of life. In 2005, we were honored with a grant from the UVU Ragan Theater to present an evening of our individual and collective work in a concert we titled Debenham Dance. Pat and I knew we wanted to include We Five, a dance we had created with our three daughters to celebrate the love of dance and life we shared as a family. That idea then expanded into a suite of dances, We Are Family, that included our daughters, sons-in-law and (then) two grandchildren. It was a joy to work together once again in the studio creating the work; the environment and process were of course familiar to our daughters but totally new territory for our sons-in-laws, one of whom is now a clinical social worker, another a systems management guru, and the third an accountant and banker! This video made for documentation purposes captures their full and complete investment in moving expressively, expansively, confidently and joyfully as they shared the stage with the dancing Debenhams. What a gift to have had the opportunity to create and perform what to me was indeed “life itself.” Now days, years, and many lively grandchildren later, we continue to celebrate family with dance parties and disco lights and playlists curated by the clinical social worker. Life itself is very good.

finalISSUE LIVING WATERS BY MADELINE RUPARD

Madeline Rupard (American, born 1991) Living Waters (2023) Acrylic on paper, 8 x 8 inches Collection of the artist Commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

What is worth being painted? Art history tells us wars, kings, queens, deities, great cities, beautiful visions, terrifying dreams. But something changed in the last century or so. With the onset of “modernism,” the ordinary crept in. Vincent Van Gogh painted the tattered shoes of peasants. Gustave Courbet painted the backs of English laborers in a stone quarry. Across the continent, artists painted the dirty streets of New York and the working class on its wharfs in lieu of rose-colored European-parlor-style landscapes of the “New World.” By painting things as they really were, and not simply as an idealized fantasy, artists discovered a romance in the everyday. I saw the reference photo to this painting on the @texturesofmormonism Instagram feed and immediately asked their permission to paint it. I don’t always know what makes me want to paint something. It must be some alchemy of pleasant composition and unusual contradictions in the subject matter. I like the banality of the water fountains in the face of such a dramatic scene of Christ’s second coming. I have long been an appreciator of @texturesofmormonism run by Tallia Feltis who archives the niche visual experience of being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, down to relief society bulletin boards and the scratchy bristles of half-panel wallpaper common to meetinghouses around the US. I love @texturesofmormonism because, while a fun and lighthearted project, it also manages to give attention to the details of how we live our lives from day-to-day within our faith and the spaces we pass through.There is a quote by Susan Sontag from her important essay “Against Interpretation” (1966) that I think of often: “The world, our world, is depleted, impoverished enough. Away with all duplicates of it, until we again experience more immediately what we have.” Sontag calls for less escapism and a more present engagement with the world. By painting an image like this, I hope to see the humor and romance more in the day-today experience of Mormonism and to distill some-

thing in the small details of our existence that give them magnified meaning. Yet, it is a strange thing to paint something in 2023. (And even stranger when a 48 megapixel photo of it already exists). Why do it in the first place? In our high tech world and the ever-widening gyre of software updates and smart phone upgrades, to slow down and render something by hand seems if not a quaint notion, then somewhat insane. But this is precisely why I like painting. Painting is a determinedly low-tech area in a high tech world. It’s why I like looking at paintings; seeing someone else’s unique touch of hand and perception and thought. With the mess of colorful materials and without an undo button, I am reminded of my human limitations and my soft body that will not outlast a handmark on a cave in France. And I do it, for the record, entirely in earnest.

Madeline Rupard (American, born 1991) Living Waters (2023) Acrylic on paper, 8 x 8 inches Collection of the artist Commissioned by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts

finalISSUE ARTIVISM AND CHRISTIANITY BY JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE

Photograph of the author, used with permission

Everyone remembers where they were when significant and historical moments happened, both good and bad—when Kennedy was shot, when the Berlin wall came down, when the Towers fell on 9/11, and when President Obama was elect-

ed as the first African-American president of the United States. We remember these moments because of their historical merits and also because of the emotional impact on us and those around us.

Now before I continue, despite what I write, this is not intended to be a political essay. Nor is it intended to belittle people’s political affiliations. But this is about how those affiliations have affected me, my family, and other members of our faith. I was never much for politics prior to 2008. I voted, but I didn’t follow things closely. As a Black American, I knew it was my civic duty but more importantly, my obligation due to the fight African-Americans worked so very hard to win. But I still didn’t really follow politics because I’m an artist (actress, writer, librettist, and lyricist) and lived in a liberal bubble. And up until a few years ago, my art was solely for entertainment purposes. Even as an actress, the roles I performed were considered musical theater fluff. I always shied away from political statements, tense conversations, and any type of perceived activism. I believed, and still do, in separation of church and state despite going to religious schools as a child and even BYU for a stint in college. I believe that everyone has a right to their opinion, and I treasure being able to live in a country where we can speak and live freely. But something changed in 2016. Something that I wasn’t prepared for and have never quite gotten over. And to be honest, I’m not sure if I ever will. I converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints my freshman year at BYU. It was somewhat simple and straightforward despite having been raised and bred in the Southern Bible Belt and having my grandfather being my pastor. But after three patient sets of missionaries and nearly eight months of discussions, I was baptized and never looked back. Sure, I had my trials of faith, like any convert. And I will still never understand marrying someone after a blind date, but to each his own. Conversion is difficult for anyone. But I would be misleading if I didn’t state that it can be extremely difficult for Black people. If anyone is confused about that, consider life in the Church as a person of color pre-1978 and how much faith it took for members to join a religion that in a sense deemed them less than until President Kimball’s 1978 proc-

lamation (canonized as Official Declaration 2). Aside from spiritual convictions, one of the main reasons I converted was the love, kindness, and Christlike attributes I had grown to know and expect from LDS people. The immense generosity, the eagerness and willingness to serve, the unwavering faith, and the idea that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. I keep going back to that name, Christ.To be Christian is to be a follower of Christ and a doer of Christ’s teachings. When we take the sacrament we promise to take His name, Christ’s name, upon us. We commit to follow His example, but also to be His disciples, doing the work of our Savior. Being a Christian in the entertainment industry can be challenging. Being an LDS Christian? Well, it’s never without entertaining conversations: “Do you pray to Joseph Smith? Do you celebrate Christmas? Why do you have funny underwear? Is it magical? What number wife are you?” “Did you like The Book of Mormon musical?” I have heard these and many more interesting questions like them. I have also heard more personal questions: “How can you be LDS when they think less of women? How can you be LDS when they don’t like gay people? How can you be LDS when they don’t like Black people?” These have been the harder questions to respond to. Mainly because up until 2016, I was always able to say with assuredness that that was not true. But in 2016, my entire understanding and belief in what we as LDS people uphold and prophesy about came into question. My husband and I are an interracial couple with three bi-racial sons. My eldest was on his mission during that infamous election. My other two were in high school and attending seminary. For months, I drove by member’s houses that had “Make America Great Again” signs in their front yards, wore hats to church activities, and laughed about the future around us. I listened as they said, “He’s not really racist.” I listened. I listened as my ward family told me that “racism no longer existed” or

that “it’s way better than it used to be’’ and even, “some slaves wanted to stay with their masters because they treated them well.” I also listened as they said future policies would never affect my boys because they were “well spoken and dressed nice.” I listened and ached inside. On the day before the 2016 election, my sons came home from seminary and told me how the kids they had once called friends had turned into mouthpieces for hatred. On the day after the election I kept them home because we were uncomfortable with the intense zeal for the new president. I remember that I received numerous phone calls from ward members saying that nothing would change. They still loved me and my sons and they were sure “things won’t be so bad.” Their assuredness was a privilege I did not have. I wish I could say this happened in the deep South, but this happened in Las Vegas. And even though I no longer felt safe or respected in my ward, I never allowed it to turn my faith. But church attendance was becoming a chore. Two years later, I moved and was in a different ward. I had one returned missionary, one in the field, and one finishing up his senior year of high school. My youngest son never quite got over what he experienced in seminary and even in Sunday school, and eventually he felt that the hypocrisy at church was too great for him. Of course we can say, “Our testimonies must be rooted in Christ, not ward members, a leader or even a Young Men’s president, but in Jesus Christ.” But the damage had been done. So, it’s 2018, and I am now in my new ward’s Relief Society class. The lesson in class was on being followers of Christ. Prior to the lesson, one of the sisters got up to make an announcement that the school board was having a town hall to hear from parents regarding non-gendered bathrooms, trans youth bathrooms, etc.A city official who happened to be a member of our ward spoke and told everyone that although she was not allowed to

write anything for them or speak on their behalf, she was more than happy to help them form their comments in an effective way to prevent these bathrooms from happening. I sat in the room and felt my chest beating. I squashed the feeling and tried to focus on the lesson. I am in the entertainment industry, so I am very comfortable and unbothered by the LGBTQ+ community. I believe in and fight for equal rights for everyone. I don’t think who you love, how you identify, and which bathrooms you use is any of my business. As the teacher spoke, comments from the room were about being an example, standing up for Christ, etc., but my heart continued to pound. I was finally beginning to understand the term, “wrestling with the Spirit.” I didn’t want to say anything because I didn’t want there to be any contention, and I didn’t want to derail the lesson. I even quietly prayed, “Please Heavenly Father, please leave me alone.” But then I heard someone comment on religious persecution, and I suddenly could no longer deny the fire burning inside. I raised my hand and made a deal with God, “If she doesn’t call on me, it means I am not supposed to speak. And well, I tried.” She called on me. I was annoyed but also very scared. I took a breath and spoke very slowly and carefully. I was truly relying on the Spirit to guide my words. “We have been talking about being followers of Christ and taking His name upon us. Does that not also mean being Christ-like? We are The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; at what point did we become a church of exclusion as opposed to inclusion? When did we ignore the lessons in the New Testament when Christ spent time with the meek, the lowly, and the ones society deemed worthless? When did we forget that Christ said suffer the little children and let them come unto me? When did we decide that cruelty to children who are already struggling was ok? If you do it to the least of these you do it unto me. When did we decide that people that do not share our LDS beliefs are not good, kind, and worthy of love? When did Christ make us the judge of others?” The room was silent. Too silent.

I spent the rest of the lesson internally chastising myself for speaking. I cannot expect people to see life as I see it. Doing that makes me no different than those who force their views and beliefs onto me. Right? After the closing prayer, I jumped up and was nearly out the door when I felt someone grab me. I turned around and was met with a relieved face. A woman stood there, holding my hand as if for strength. “My sister left the church because she no longer feels welcomed. I didn’t have the courage to say anything today, so thank you for speaking for me…and for my sister,” she said. By the time I reached my car, a few other women had stopped and thanked me, and a couple of weeks later another woman spoke to me. It was then that I began to wonder, when did we as members of the Church of Jesus Christ stop representing Jesus Christ? Christ has not left us, but as time has passed, between 2016, Black Lives Matter, and even still today, I fear that the Church, or rather some members of the Church, have left Him and everything He stands for and somehow have mistaken dogmatism for discipleship. A few months later, I moved to NY for my artistic career. Since being here, I have experienced the Church in a completely different light. And that light has affected my work as an artist. My work is now rooted in stories about those from the many marginalized communities that the Savior would have fellowshipped with. My hope is that through my art, life will be easier for those that come after me and that as an LDS artist, those that have had a negative experience with religion and the Church, will have hope and see a glimmer of Christ. I came to the Church because of the example of the members around me. I stayed because of my testimony. But I now fear that the divisive behavior of some members will not only deter people from investigating the gospel, but will also continue to drive our most vulnerable members away.

Not because a large portion of the Church is politically conservative, but because I fear that the current brand of conservatism has moved them farther from Christ and His teachings, and more importantly, His empathy. As members we always say, “Don’t worry. Have faith. It will all work out.” But I hope we remember that it only works out if we do the work. And that work is working back to Christ to do His work. Otherwise, what are we even doing?

TIS THE SEASON

finalISSUE WILL THERE BE A SEASON 2? BY MYKAL URBINA

Covers of The Season, September 2022 through August 2023

It started as a question: “Why isn’t there a singular place to find new works by LDS artists?”

Then a concept: One year—one Season—of Latter-day Saint arts.

That turned into an idea: “What if we could help track every new project by LDS artists, anywhere in the world?” Which became a challenge: “We couldn’t, could we…?”

And, eventually, a publication (and a calendar, and a multidisciplinary editorial review, a holiday guide, playlists, media recommendations, a summer special issue, dozens of commissioned works: a whirlwind and a triumph).

We saw our role, initially, as aggregators, collectors of information, and distributors of data. We would raise the flag for every author, visual artist, composer, musician, choreographer, podcaster, and filmmaker who created something, anything. In September 2022, Glen Nelson wrote The Season’s first In Mind thinkpiece, a captivating essay comparing the influences of Catholicism on Bruce Springsteen’s music to the influences of Mormonism on Brandon Flowers’ music: “Brandon Flowers’s Pressure Machine.” (See page 5.) We commissioned artist Madeline Rupard to illustrate the article. Six months later, Brandon and two of his Killers bandmates appeared centerstage at a benefit event for our organization, where Brandon spoke candidly about the intersection of his faith and his music. (See page 176.) Prints of Madeline’s work were given as gifts, now on display in dozens of homes. The event itself became one of the very kinds of current artistic experiences The Season aims to capture. Through that event we became aware of multicultural, all-denominational musical group, the KING will come, and their album releases and special events followed.Throughout the year, members and non-members alike connected with the Center for the first time, sharing the artists they know and love.The wheel keeps spinning. The Season set in motion so many wheels. It begs the question, then, is it possible to immerse oneself in the art of your people without being inspired to create, yourself? To not then become a purveyor, consumer, advocate, and operator within the very ecosystem you meant only to observe? Perhaps the very mission this project aimed to address gives us the answer: The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts exists at the intersection of divine creativity and cultural relevance. We believe, wholly, that there is divinity in creativity. President Spencer W. Kimball taught: “I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity

and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away.” To draw closer to divinity is to find more divinity and our Latter-day Saint artists are a verified fount of inspiration. Such was true of The Season–find one new artist, you’ll find ten more. Connect one artist to a newfound peer and friend, you’ll create an entirely new network. (For example, see author Bridget Verhaaren on page 295. See musician Jenn Blosil on page 301. See choreographer Michelle Dorrance on page 25.) For this reason, the Center will not become casual in its efforts to discover and foster our community’s artists, and in doing so, we will continue to offer another entry point to the Church, to its people, to our history, and to our shared culture. So the question remains: “Will there be a Season 2?” In its totality, no. The Season was always intended to be a one-year project, a snapshot in time, with learnings and discoveries that would inform the Center’s role in the Latter-day Saint arts community. But to lose that momentum–that direct line to the now–would be to miss perhaps the greatest potential that The Season uncovered, to continue building a community of Latter-day Saint creators and appreciators. Here’s what you can expect from The Season moving forward: The Season, if you subscribe, will appear in your inbox twice monthly. First, with an In Mind-style thinkpiece to keep you immersed in the goings-on of the Latter-day Saint art world. And second, a monthly profile in the much-loved My Sunday interview series that describes the typical Sunday for some extraordinary artists. The Holiday Gift Guide will return for Christmas 2023, connecting you with LDS makers and artists whose works would make beautiful and meaningful ad-

ditions to your shopping lists. The Season will live on in its most impactful, most sustainable form, and we will continue to invite your participation along the way (email: theseason@centerforlatterdaysaintarts.org). To our readers, thank you for your overwhelming support of this experiment, for sharing with us the artists you admire and the artists you know personally, for helping us blaze a trail to knowledge and awareness and inspiration. You are the heartbeat of the Center, and we can’t wait to press forward with you and for you.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

LETTERSto theEDITOR First, a letter not to the editor but from him. I want to thank the many people who have expressed reactions, insight, and clarifications to the articles of The Season. My favorite letters to the editor came from people who shared their own lives and opinions with us. I believe we are lifted up by each other’s stories, and we learn wisdom from each other’s lives. Albert Einstein said, “The only source of knowledge is experience,” but I think that can include vicarious learning. Again, our thanks and my thanks. Glen Nelson, editor in chief New York, New York

In response to “Fire Is a Chain Reaction” by Bridget Verhaaren in the August issue, readers responded with gratitude to the author and with their own related stories. ed.

I really liked this–I was in a class on intersectionality this week–and I came to a deep realization of my own sense of vulnerability and work around protecting pieces of my identity (specifically religious identity) because of stereotyping and bias I encountered. Leslie Whyte Graff Sutton, Massachusetts

This is a thought-provoking piece. I think most people are probably carrying around a lot of hurtful experiences and are trying to fly low under the radar and blend in. How beautiful and courageous

it is to both dare to be different and treat others’ differences with love, respect, and acceptance. Tatiana Bryan Christensen Alpine, Utah

When I was in grad school, a visiting professor from Yale—not Harold Bloom; I couldn’t pull strings to get into his seminars—absolutely demolished a student who raised a question about religious belief. Even her comment that an author might be of faith set this teacher off. It was a tirade that I can’t forget. I would like to think that such a one-sided screaming match would get someone like him fired today, but the stories I’m hearing suggest otherwise. Did I think twice about professing devotion in classes after that? I’m embarrassed to confess: yes, absolutely, I did. Glen Nelson New York, New York

When I was in grad school at NYU back in the 80s, I was fortunate to have been preceded by a number of BYU grads, so being LDS wasn’t really a novelty. It did set me apart, though, and I still cringe remembering the time’s I’d hear a group of fellow students having what appeared to be a fun conversation, but sensing my presence quickly changing to topic. Occasionally I’d be asked questions such as, “What’s going on in Salt Lake City?” in response to the Mark Hoffman bombings. One of the professors, Jan LaRue, told me once his wife had been born in Salt Lake City, but when she was about five years old, her family moved to the east coast, leaving Utah (and the church) behind.

She still kept in touch with the Utah branch of the family, and the LaRue’s visiting Utah a number of times. One time Prof. LaRue told me, “You know, you Mormons are good people. But some of you have a tendency to primp and preen about your goodness. I feel like I can say that to you, because you’re not like that . . .” (Thankfully!) But I’ll never forget the day, after I’d done a bit of extra work for him in my assistantship, he brought me a bag from a local bakery. “I want you to share this with you wife - it has a flavor you might not be familiar with.” Indeed, the rum flavored cream filling was delicious! Of course, I remembered the bulletin board posting of an available job at BYU—and one of the students muttering, “How could anyone ever want to go there?” (It was interesting that the professor who wrote that letter that in all likelihood got me admitted to NYU wasn’t LDS . . .) I don’t think I ever shied away from my “Mormonness,” nor did I wear it on my shirt sleeve - and I made some great friends there. One thing I should note - being only one of a number of LDS students in that program, they were actually quite accommodating. They would often have guest lectures with a cheese and wine spread afterward. They’s started included sparkling cider or something similar to be inclusive. The funny thing is, those options were already consumed by the time I got to the table! One more incident…I was invited to a birthday party, and one of the attendees struck up a conversation. This guy wasn’t a student, but he participated in an early music performance group. Once he learned I was from BYU, the questions started: “You’re still not a believer, are you? I mean, you’re in grad school . . . . “ I was feeling very uncomfortable, being the rather inhibited person that I am. And then he asked, “What makes Mormons truly unique?” I wanted to keep it simple (and get this conversation over with!), and the urge hit me–give him the well-known Lorenzo Snow couplet: “As

man is, God once was; as God is, man may become.” As soon as I said it, I thought to myself, “No - I didn’t . . . “ But the response this guy gave me, after a bit, was, “Wow. I had no idea . . . I think that’s what people used to believe until Christianity messed it all up. I don’t think I’ll ever make fun of Mormons again thanks.” You just never know. D. Kim Croft Everett, Washington

It’s only in connection with the recent performance of my Oratorio CHRISTUS and a 2019 workshop presentation of my chamber opera Ammon and the King that my religious beliefs have ever come up in my grad school, my advocacy for living composers, especially women, and my performing career. I just never mentioned it. Like my musical partner’s homosexuality, my religion never came up because we were completely focused on making music! Deon Nielsen Price Arroyo Grande, California

I had so many similar experiences as a grad student researching gender at Oxford in the 90s. Everyone assumed I had left the LDS church and was angry, which was hardly the case.This is a fantastic article. Raquel Cook American Fork, Utah

This is almost a daily event for me in my professional life, thanks to The Book of Mormon musical, which everyone thinks is hilarious. Every fall the new crop of sophomores will make rude comments or really bad jokes about Mormons and I’ll say, “Thank you for that. I’m a Mormon.” Last sum-

mer my co-teacher was headed off to the Utah Shakespearean Festival, and when he told the students, they invariably commented, things like, “Watch out, you’re going to be with those Mormons.” Or, “How can you stand to work in the middle of those Mormons?” To which he replied, “You’ve been working with a Mormon all year and she’s amazing,” and he pointed to me, and the students were absolutely flabbergasted. One student actually said to me, “But I thought you were so smart…” I never take offense. It’s not that big of a deal. But it can be exhausting. Charis Bean Duke Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

ligion—which often comes with intolerance and mockery. I’ve done my best to dispel the negative stereotypes or ideas—probably with limited success. And while I am only a patron in the art world, I felt a familiarity with this piece of writing. Enjoy the read—it is worth wading into it! Amy Hawkins Wilcox St. Louis, Missouri

This was a fantastic article! Thank you Bridget for sharing your story and for your unwavering commitment to your Faith. I totally feel inspired and truly grateful! Andrew Lloyd

Amazing! I really needed to read that this morning. Days never to be forgotten with similar experiences in grad school at Columbia and in the NY architecture scene afterwards, both mockers, graceful defenders, and lifelong friends who’ve wanted to learn more. Tim Boyle Mesa, Arizona

I got some fire from one professor in my doctorate degree. But, as I found, normal people don’t care about the differences between people, it’s usually narcissists that create boundaries that don’t exist. Robert Anton Strobel Elizabeth, Colorado

San Antonio, Texas

It’s interesting to see how different people react to Latter-day Saints. In 1982 I began a two-year experience as a writer/producer at NBC in Burbank, CA. After a few weeks I was talking to a Senior VP at the network who was going to spend Christmas hoildays in England. He invited me to bring my family down from Utah and spend the holidays house-sitting for him at his mansion in the Hollywood Hills. Amazed, I asked “Steve, you’re willing to turn over your home to someone you’ve only known for a few weeks?” He said, “Well you’re a Mormon, aren’t you?” I’ve never been so proud to be a “Mormon”. Robert Starling Riverton, Utah

I love this article! Over the past 30 plus years living coast to coast and in between, I have loved the people and friends I have made. I am a better person for knowing so many of them and grateful for my experiences. But there is definitely a naivety and lack of understanding regarding my re-

The DEI office at my university didn’t know what to do with me a few months ago when I submitted a complaint for a guest lecturer who claimed “religious belief is stupid but people still do it”… in a theology seminar. They’re willing but totally

unprepared.To be fair, it was cross-listed with theology and musicology, and musicologists had made the invitation. It stood out to me because it was a passing comment on the way to a different point about her topic—just her side example of how we can’t always expect historical figures to be rational actors. It was a Zoom seminar and so I couldn’t gauge how it fell “in the room” but there were multiple practicing religionists in the room. Ruth Eldredge Thomas Baltimore, Maryland

As Bridget mentions in her essay “Fire is a Chemical Reaction,” we first met in December 2019 at Vermont College of Fine Arts winter residency. We were in the same cohort, and the same writing workshop. During the workshop, Bridget asked an innocent question, “Do other religions use the term Heavenly Father?” She didn’t know it at the time, but she helped to plant a tiny seed. I had been struggling with severe mental health illnesses. I was struggling with survivor’s guilt that comes from seeing terrible things in the military. And I had just been discharged from a long-term psychiatric care facility only six months prior to meeting Bridget at VCFA. I wasn’t ready to hear the entire truth at the time, but Bridget mentioning the phrase Heavenly Father gave me a feeling of peace and comfort, which allowed me to ask her a number of faith based questions over the next couple of years. Fast forward to February 2023, my wife Kate began studying with LDS sister missionaries. I was invited to a Book of Mormon study where we covered 3 Nephi 11: 1-17. Seeing that the Nephites not only saw Christ, but got to have a personal relationship with him was incredibly comforting. I too longed for that type of relationship. So I began to study. March 25, 2023 my wife, my daughter and I were baptized.April 9, 2023 I received the Aaronic Priesthood. April 15, 2023 we went to the temple in Palmyra for the first time and performed

baptism ordinances. A feeling of comfort and joy filled me unlike any I had ever felt before. May 21, 2023 I received my patriarchal blessing and also received the Melchizedek Priesthood. On June 3, I had the honor and privilege to baptize and confirm my son WIlliam who has autism. I have seen many miracles in the past few months, and I am so thankful that I have the gift of Christ’s atonement, and the restored gospel. I am thankful for a living prophet, and I am thankful for Bridget for helping to plant the seed four years ago, even if she didn’t know she was doing it at the time. Heavenly Father placed Bridget and I in the same writing workshop for a reason.

Robert T. Atwood Rome, New York

Dear Bridget: I know very well the feelings you had when you heard your fellow students in Vermont mock Mormons. As a lifelong academic I have been similarly belittled more than once. You came up with just the right response: admission of your faith mixed with a little humor. A lovely essay all around. Thanks for sending your essay to The Season. You probably have heard that it received more responses than anything we have published. Richard L. Bushman New York, New York

Following my final M.F.A. residency, I stopped in Sharon,Vermont, the birthplace of the prophet Joseph Smith, and walked the grounds. I wondered, “How much have attitudes toward the L.D.S. religion changed in almost 200 years?” I’m awed by the responses I’ve received from readers of my essay, ““Fire Is a Chain Reaction.” Emails

from members of my cohort acknowledged the wrongful presence of prejudice and blatant bigotry.

Bridget Verhaaren American Fork, Utah

I’m inspired by the daring courage and humor utilized to confront intolerance. And I’m reminded that we each possess a gradual ripple effect of influence—“Godly Love” that can withstand discrimination.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

CONTRIBUTORS TED BUSHMAN Ted Bushman is a composer and writer currently based in the Hudson Valley. He is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, and his fiction has been published in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Metaphorosis, and Inscape.

KATHIE DEBENHAM Kathie Debenham is Emeritus Professor of Dance at UVU where she founded the Dance Department and was inaugural Dean of the School of the Arts. She is a member of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts’ Advisory Board and The Season Editorial Board.

MEGAN ECKERSLEY Megan Eckersley is a graphic designer based out of New York City and has worked with clients like Squarespace. She is currently at Square as a Brand Designer.

GABRIEL GONZÁLEZ Gabriel González is a native of Uruguay who has also lived in Belgium, Ecuador, and the United States. In addition, he has spent several months in Colombia, Germany, Mexico, and Spain.

GLEN NELSON Glen Nelson is an author, arts executive, exhibition curator, librettist, and scholar. Co-founder of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts, his most recent publication is the studio recording of an or-

atorio by himself and Ethan Wickman, To a Village Called Emmaus, conducted by Craig Jessop leading the American Festival Chorus and Orchestra.

JEFF PARKIN Jeff Parkin is an award-winning filmmaker and film professor at Brigham Young University. He and his wife, artist Jana Parkin, live in Provo, Utah.

KRITIN PERKINS Kristin Perkins is a Ph.D. student at Columbia University, conducting research at the intersection of queer theory, religion, and performance. She has been published in Theatre Topics, Ecumenica, SFRA Review, American Theatre Magazine, and Howlround.

ARISAEL RIVERA Arisael Rivera is an actor, playwright, and poet based in The Bronx, New York. Most recently, his poem “Jubilant Feet” was published in the anthology Love Letters to Gaia by Miro C.

MADELINE RUPARD Madeline Rupard received an MFA in Painting from Pratt Institute. Her recent paintings of the American West appeared in this years’ New American Paintings Juried-In-Print Exhibition, Issue #156.

JOËL RENÉ SCOVILLE Joël René Scoville is an actress, writer, and lyricist.

Her work includes musicals, an upcoming comic book, and her web series, Crazy with a K! She is a member of the prestigious BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop as both a librettist and lyricist. She lives in Spanish Harlem, NY with her husband, and they have three sons.

MYKAL URBINA Mykal Urbina is the Executive Director of the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts. Arizona-raised, New York-educated, Orange County transplant, current Salt Lake City resident, Mykal previously worked for the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center and Segerstrom Center for the Arts.

BENJAMIN DEAN TAYLOR Benjamin Dean Taylor is a composer of contemporary concert music. He has received professional commissions from individuals and ensembles all over the world and is one of the few living composers today making his primary income from writing and self-publishing his music.

KWANI POVI WINDER Kwani Povi Winder is an oil painter based in Utah and an enrolled member of the Santa Clara Pueblo. She’s an inspired mother, pianist, hiker, camper, who loves reading, painting and living life.

Screenshots throughout this volume were taken from The Listings, a calendar companion to The Season.

theSEASON INDEX Author Title Issue Page Alvarez, Eduardo

36th Annual Spiritual and Religious Art of Utah

November

48

Anderson, Stephen

Beloved Daughter July

297

Baker, Jenny Oaks

My Sunday: Jenny Oaks Baker

December

98

Barnes, Brigham

Sister Marguerite, Our Darling

March

151

Beitler, Kirsten A Brush With Africa January

111

Bird, Charlie Proximity Through Podcasts October

30

Blosil, Jenn My Sunday: Jenn Blosil August

311

Brown, Keith Lionel

Ammon and Liahona Olayan

53

Bushman, Peter

Brandon Sanderson April

Bushman, Richard L. Church History Museum

November

187

September

9

Are We Alike? November

45

113

The Bible and the Latter-day Saint Tradition

January

The Latter-day Saint Art World January

119

Bushman, Ted Lindsey Stirling October

33

Charlie Bird, Missionary of a More Spacious Zion

January

111

That Smiley Fella, Hit by a Bus

February

129

Call Center: The Musical April

193

Embracing the Weird: A New Moment for Latter-

day Saint Art Final

351

Buzby, Liz

The World of Mormon Podcasting

September

9

Colvin, Maddison

Composite Christ (illustration)

November

59

Croxton, Brent

Sister Marguerite, Our Darling (illustration)

March

151

Debenham, Kathie

Godspell April

188

Conversation for a Summer Afternoon August

314

Author Title Issue Page Debenham, Kathie (continued) Life Itself Final

359

Denison, Mike LeBron April

190

Doxford, Emily Larsen was this the face October

32

Love Your Lineage November

51

Brandon Flowers: Stories and Songs March

162

Duggan, Christopher The Expanding World of Michelle Dorrance (photograph) October

26

Fletcher, David Schmigadoon! April

191

Simply Three April

192

Fowles, Ena Proper Romances February

135

Virtually Me February

137

Geilman, Megan Knoblock and Sam Zauscher

Are We Alike (photograph)

Giddins, Kevin Jones My Sunday: Kevin Jones Giddins

November

45

June

269

Goldberg, James

Darlene Young April

187

González, Gabriel

Latin American Abstraction January

112

I Have No Tears, And I Must Cry February

132

Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree April

191

Translated Praise July

293

Mormon Literature in Spanish: Current Developments

and Outlook/ La literatura mormona en español: situación y previsiones Final

341

Grimshaw, Jeremy

11

Harris Fine Arts Center September

Hall, Andrew Levi S.. Peterson April

195

Hebdon, Brontë

29

Meet Marianne October

Hicks, Michael Chris Bacon March

162

Ireland, Geoff Inside the Art: Geoff Ireland May

237

Johnson, Caroline

192

Wit and Vision April

K Dawn K Dawn Follows February

140

My Sunday: K Dawn February

138

Kearney, Greg My Sunday: Greg Kearney November

56

Kershisnik, Brian

86

Holiday Benefit Print

December

Author Title Issue Page Loosli, Blake

That Smiley Fella, Hit by a Bus (illustration)

February

129

McBaine, Neylan

My Sunday: Neylan McBaine

March

166

Neylan McBaine: Classical Music March

168

Montani, Mario R.

My Sunday: Mario R. Montani

36

Morris, William

My Sunday: William Morris January

Nelson, Glen

Brandon Flowers’s Pressure Machine

November

117

September

5

Ricardo Rendón September

13

The Expanding World of Michelle Dorrance October

25

Rat Fink November

50

Waiting for The Chosen November

59

Food Culture December

88

The Brilliant Darkness! March

164

Prejudicial Restraint March

171

Returning to Mountain Meadows May

228

Let’s Write a Hymn July

277

Donald R. Marshall July

282

324

What Just Happened: The Season in Review

Final

Tis the Season Final

368

Nelson, Jessica

February

135

Parkin, Jeff Native Media Theory October

29

193

SUMA: The House That Jimmie Built Zions Indie Film Festival 2023

April

Timeless Fruit Final

324

Peck, Steven L. Book Roundup September

16

Perkins, Kristin

Democracy, Religion, and Commerce

163

Embracing the Weird: A New Moment for Latter-

March

day Saint Art Final Perkins, Luisa

351

Many Eternal Rounds–The Lord of the Rings:

The Rings of Power September

11

Just One More March

164

The Fiction Kitchen Trio Cookbook March

164

The Legacy of Anne Perry (1938-2023) May

229

Author Title Issue Page Perkins, Patrick

Copyright and Fair Use, Andy Warhol, and Price.

Is the Supreme Court About to Declare That

the Transformative Test’s 15 Minutes Are Up?

May

219

Perry, Janice Kapp

My Sunday: Janice Kapp Perry

July

289

Ransom, James Gift Guide (photographs) December

74

Summer Guide (photographs) June

253

Ricks, Steven Michael Hicks November

49

Rivera, Arisael I AM: The Journey September

12

Jonna October

33

Ryan Hamilton November

51

Luis Fernando Puente at Sundance January

113

Search for Atabei Final

337

Rueckert, Rachel

My Sunday: Rachel Rueckert

September

14

Rupard, Madeline

Brandon Flowers’s Pressure Machine (illustration)

September

6

Daniel Everett October

34

Jesus Painting Painting May

236

Inside the Art: Madeline Rupard May

232

Living Waters Final

361

Sabey, Benjamin

Re: Leroy Robertson July

291

Scoville, Joël René

Chris Bacon November

48

A Couple of Bands You Should Know

134

February

Artivism and Christianity Final

364

Sowa, Joseph Dylan Findley November

49

Staff Lyuba Prusak September

10

September

17

The Osmonds: A New Musical September

10

The Player October

31

Brian Kershisnik October

34

Saving Me October

30

Come, Follow Me Resources October

38

43

Books You Might Have Missed in 2022

What albums or songs are currently playing?

October

Peek Back November

54

Author Title Issue Page Staff (continued)

Insta-Artists November

55

Deus Regis December

94

Gift Guide December

75

Gift Guide: Children’s Books December

76

Gift Guide: Food December

78

Gift Guide: Music December

80

Gift Guide: Fiction & Non-Fiction December

82

Gift Guide:Virtual Classes December

84

Annie Poon December

93

Becoming Wayfare December

93

Deus Regit December

94

Holiday Premieres December

94

Kiersten White’s Latest December

94

The Gift of Self: 10 Artists Who Take Portrait

Commissions December

97

It’s Never Too Late December

100

The Tom Brady of Composers January

114

In Memoriam January

115

Celestial Navigation February

134

The Carl Arrington Archive February

136

Esther May

228

La Guitarrista May

228

Proveau Salon May

229

The Weight of Everything May

231

What Are You Reading? May

249

Summer Guide June

253

Picture Books June

254

Middle Grade Books June

256

Young Adult Books June

258

Beach Reads June

260

Picnic Basket June

262

Road Trip June

265

Author Title Issue Page Staff (continued)

Summer School June

267

100 Places to See After You Die July

282

Bandoneona July

282

Isla de Lechuga July

283

Perpetual Garden July

283

Relative Space: An Atypical Musical July

283

The Last Caravan July

284

Music Resources on churchofjesuschrist.org July

285

What Is Your Favorite Hymn and Why? July

300

(At) Wrist August

308

Christian Asplund August

308

Lansing McLoskey August

303

Mike Whiting August

309

New York’s Burned-over District August

309

309

The Abduction of Betty and Barney Hill

August

The Fairbanks Family August

310

What Podcast Are You Listening to? August

320

Taylor, Benjamin Dean Game On!: LDS Composers Writing Video Game Music Soundtracks January

105

Joseph, the Oratorio March

163

Detroit Underground Final

358

Thornock, Neil

Inside the Art: Neil Thornock May

241

Threlfell, Timothy

My Sunday: Timothy Threlfell April

199

Tonga, Kalani My Sunday: Kalani Tonga May

244

Turley, Julie

Musicking In and Out of Mormonism: the Making

of Heavy Music Mothers: Extreme Identities,

Narrative Disruptions April Turley, Shelley

Musicking In and Out of Mormonism: the Making

of Heavy Music Mothers: Extreme Identities,

202

Narrative Disruptions (illustration) April

202

Urbina, Mykal What Is “The Season”? September

18

The National Parks Tour October

31

Author Title Issue Page Urbina, Mykal (continued) Stories and Songs April

183

Will There Be a Season 2? Final

369

Verhaaren, Bridget

Fire Is a Chemical Reaction

303

Winder, Kwani Povi

The Undraped Artist January

August

113

Winder, Kwani Povi (continued) My Mother, a Living Legend February

143

The Story Teller Final

336

Winegar, Warren

205

What I Am Seeing Right Now

April

theSEASON ISSUES 2022-2023