boston lds temple commission

Boston Temple Study III, 9 x 12, oil on panel

About a month ago I was approached to paint the Boston LDS Temple (from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) as a commissioned piece to be auctioned at an annual LDS Artists gallery night near Boston. I participated last year, and it was a huge success for me, opening some new doors and giving me lots of encouragement. This year the gallery night will be in November, and I need to have this painting finished by October. There will be prints made of the painting. I'm very happy to do it, but it will prove to be a challenge for me I believe! As you know if you've followed my art for any length of time, I am a landscape artist almost exclusively. Architecture is not my strength. But it has been good to stretch myself a little bit, to sketch more, to study and practice painting the straight lines and abrupt angles of the structure, to figure out a pleasing composition. In the end I feel my painting will most likely be a landscape painting that includes the temple...hopefully conveying the message that the temple is a beautiful and sacred place, a piece of heaven on earth. Also, hopefully my final composition will give the idea to the viewer that we need to keep our hearts steadfastly turned to the temple, as we travel through life. In my faith the temple is a place of peace, a place to make promises with God, a place where I can feel His presence and find clarity. It is a special place to all members of my faith! I feel honored to have the chance to do this painting. All of the images in this post are studies I've done. Perhaps one of these compositions will turn out to be the right one, but I still have some playing around to do before I know for sure. Once I choose one, I may list some of these studies in my shop, so if you are interested stay tuned!

Boston Temple Study I, 5 x 7, oil on panel

Boston Temple Study II, 5 x 7, oil on panel