Elspeth C. Young's Blog, page 5

This My Son featured in New Era magazine

This My Son by Elspeth Young appears in the March 2014 issue of the New Era magazine, published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On the magazine's Facebook presence, the image received 2,364 likes and 715 shares.

The new painting is the 14th original artwork in the Studios' Book of Mormon Fine Art Collection, and the 158th image in the Studios' commercially available fine-art portfolio.

Eleven sizes of open-edition prints of the painting (on paper or giclee canvas) are available online at www.alyoung.com -- exclusive retail outlet for all of the artworks and publications produced by the artists of Al Young Studios.

81st issue of The Storybook Home Journal now available

The Enchanted April The Enchanted April issue of The Storybook Home Journal is now available from Al Young Studios.  This issue features these regular sections:

Gardening - Wisteria And Sunshine
Hearth - If She Doesn't Paint
Kitchen - An Excellent Cook
Storybook Decorating - Next Door To Heaven
Workshops - A Net Over Her Bed
The Writer's Garret - Being My Own Whiskers

Beauty is an international language that speaks
directly to the heart. As is clear in the story
of what happens to the guests at San Salvatore,
different people comprehend it in varying
depths and in differing shades of nuance, but
beauty is still there to be viewed, contemplated,
explored, and wrapped-up in. In this
installment of Storybook Decorating, we glean
ideas from both the simple and exquisite rooms
in the story for the purpose of making any
home feel as if it’s next door to heaven.
-- Image courtesy of cc-by-sa, Sailko The Enchanted April is the 81st issue of the Journal, published bi-monthly since November 2000.  All 81 issues remain in print and are available individually or in groups directly from Al Young Studios.
     These are other issues of the Journal that feature things Italian (check issue summaries at the following links for detail because some issues may contain only one article focused on Italy while another issue may be entirely devoted to the subject). All issues are for sale at www.alyoung.com, exclusive retail outlet for the artworks and publications of the artists and writers of Al Young Studios:

Little Dorrit (vol. 13 no. 6)
Betsy And The Great World (vol. 11 no. 2)
What Katy Did Next (vol. 5 no. 2)
I Promessi Sposi (The Betrothed) (vol. 4 no. 6)

Bedpost easel

By Al R. Young

Just like the willful professors in competing courses during any given semester, painting projects don't always stay in line or behave well if they do.  And sometimes an artist's ability to respond to conflicting demands depends not so much on stamina, speed, or skill as on whether studio space or the way the studio is organized can respond.

The bedpost easel--so named because the horizontal bar at its center was originally a bedpost)--grew out of the need to use the $10 easel to work simultaneously on two paintings.  This recurring circumstance sometimes involves paintings of very different sizes.  The following photograph shows such an arrangement.  Of course, masking the under painting may be necessary, but that is easily achieved by placing a panel behind the outer painting.


The following photo shows detail from the side, such as clearance, support and joinery for the joints in the frame, the ledge against which the base of the foreground painting rests, and the manner in which the easel clamps to the sides of the $10 easel.  The ledge (or tray) on which the smaller panel rests is a used section of balustrade base rail.

Clamp-on mahl stick

By Al R. Young

Although I enjoy the flexibility of positioning allowed by my aspen mahl stick, I sometimes spend several hours engaged in very close work on a relatively small area of a painting.  For such sessions, I enjoy the freedom of a clamp-on hand rest such as the accessory shown, here, designed specifically for the $10 easel.

On the easel: The Syrophoenician Woman

By Elspeth Young Artwork by Elspeth Young; Photographs by Tanner M. Young This woman has long been a hero of mine. The greatness of her faith and the stature of her spiritual strength are, to me, on a par with the centurion who besought healing for his servant. Both exemplify implicit faith in and a knowledge of the divinity of the Son of God, and do so without the help of the covenants, teachings, and culture surrounding the house of Israel. To both individuals, the Savior not only mercifully granted the miracle for which they petitioned, but bestowed a commendation for their great faith (see Luke 7:0 and Matthew 15:28). Such commendations echo other scriptural examples of cultural outsiders who sought for and recognized truth, such as the widow of Zarephath, Naaman the leper, the Queen of the South, and King Lamoni's wife.

The painting in progress. Research for this artwork
began in January 2009.While this story has been the topic of much controversy among many scriptural students and scholars, my depiction of this Biblical scene is an attempt to present a hopeful view of the miracle recorded by Matthew and Mark. Some who read each account are distracted by a seeming racial slur in the Savior's statement that I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel . . . It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs (Matthew 15:24-26). Instead, I see this as nothing more than a riddle-like parable testing her understanding.

She passes the test of faith with flying colors--immediately shaping the parable to suit her urgent desire: Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table (Matthew 15:27) and she is just as immediately and graciously rewarded. As one writer declared: The woman's commendable persistency was based on the faith that overcomes apparent obstacles and endures even under discouragement. (See Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1916, p. 356) Surely, such is the quality of the faith we all seek regardless of race or culture. Indeed, as another ancient prophet inquired--speaking even to those who would have been considered children of the covenant: Are we not all beggars? (Mosiah 4:19)

Clearly, this woman demonstrated her ability to receive whatever gift the Savior might choose to give her. He not only praised her for her faith, but added the gracious promise: Be it unto thee even as thou wilt. (Matthew 15:28)

Accordingly, the posture of the Syrophoenician within the painting is not abject, but worshipful. The Greek words used in both Biblical accounts to describe her behavior as denoting devotion. Hope and anticipation are bright in her eyes, not misery. She looks upward with sincere belief in a loving and merciful Savior. True, she has humbled herself enough to cast herself upon the floor with the dogs, but her attitude is like the humble faithful who succeed in attaining the fruit of the tree of life, described as those who did press their way forward, continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree. (1 Nephi 8:30) She, too, recognizes the source of all goodness and falls down at His feet.

In Matthew and Mark, the woman is described as a Canaanite, Greek, and Syrophoenician who located the Savior while He visited the gentile borders of Tyre and Sidon (then under Roman rule). These facts create a wide variety of possibilities for her nationality and appearance. There is, therefore, great latitude in depicting both the figure as well as her surroundings. I chose costuming that lavishly echoes traditional Phoenician dress, a model of Caucasian race since the the races of Phoenicia are supposed to be descendants of Shem, and a background inspired by wall paintings and the stonework of home interiors in ancient Greece and Rome.

Elspeth's under-painting of greyhoundThe dog by her side is an elegant Italian greyhound. Such whippets and greyhounds are known to date back to ancient Egypt, and also frequently appear in Roman mosaics.
Some of Elspeth's preliminary sketches of greyhounds

On The Easel: The Syrophoenician Woman

By Elspeth Young Artwork by Elspeth Young; Photographs by Tanner M. Young This woman has long been a hero of mine. The greatness of her faith and the stature of her spiritual strength are, to me, on a par with the centurion who besought healing for his servant. Both exemplify implicit faith in and a knowledge of the divinity of the Son of God, and do so without the help of the covenants, teachings, and culture surrounding the house of Israel. To both individuals, the Savior not only mercifully granted the miracle for which they petitioned, but bestowed a commendation for their great faith (see Luke 7:0 and Matthew 15:28). Such commendations echo other scriptural examples of cultural outsiders who sought for and recognized truth, such as the widow of Zarephath, Naaman the leper, the Queen of the South, and King Lamoni's wife.

The painting in progress. Research for this artwork
began in January 2009.While this story has been the topic of much controversy among many scriptural students and scholars, my depiction of this Biblical scene is an attempt to present a hopeful view of the miracle recorded by Matthew and Mark. Some who read each account are distracted by a seeming racial slur in the Savior's statement that I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel . . . It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs (Matthew 15:24-26). Instead, I see this as nothing more than a riddle-like parable testing her understanding.

She passes the test of faith with flying colors--immediately shaping the parable to suit her urgent desire: Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table (Matthew 15:27) and she is just as immediately and graciously rewarded. As one writer declared: The woman's commendable persistency was based on the faith that overcomes apparent obstacles and endures even under discouragement. (See Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1916, p. 356) Surely, such is the quality of the faith we all seek regardless of race or culture. Indeed, as another ancient prophet inquired--speaking even to those who would have been considered children of the covenant: Are we not all beggars? (Mosiah 4:19)

Clearly, this woman demonstrated her ability to receive whatever gift the Savior might choose to give her. He not only praised her for her faith, but added the gracious promise: Be it unto thee even as thou wilt. (Matthew 15:28)

Accordingly, the posture of the Syrophoenician within the painting is not abject, but worshipful. The Greek words used in both Biblical accounts to describe her behavior as denoting devotion. Hope and anticipation are bright in her eyes, not misery. She looks upward with sincere belief in a loving and merciful Savior. True, she has humbled herself enough to cast herself upon the floor with the dogs, but her attitude is like the humble faithful who succeed in attaining the fruit of the tree of life, described as those who did press their way forward, continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree. (1 Nephi 8:30) She, too, recognizes the source of all goodness and falls down at His feet.

In Matthew and Mark, the woman is described as a Canaanite, Greek, and Syrophoenician who located the Savior while He visited the gentile borders of Tyre and Sidon (then under Roman rule). These facts create a wide variety of possibilities for her nationality and appearance. There is, therefore, great latitude in depicting both the figure as well as her surroundings. I chose costuming that lavishly echoes traditional Phoenician dress, a model of Caucasian race since the the races of Phoenicia are supposed to be descendants of Shem, and a background inspired by wall paintings and the stonework of home interiors in ancient Greece and Rome.

Elspeth's under-painting of greyhoundThe dog by her side is an elegant Italian greyhound. Such whippets and greyhounds are known to date back to ancient Egypt, and also frequently appear in Roman mosaics.
Some of Elspeth's preliminary sketches of greyhounds

Photography gallery added to Al Young Studios

A new photography gallery at www.alyoung.com features original works by Tanner M. Young. Images in this gallery are available as either Luster Prints or Canvas Giclees in a variety of sizes.

Image categories in this portfolio include:

Architecture
Belgium
Black and White
Landscape
Macro
Object
Panorama
Sunset
Switzerland
Timpanogos

Purchases are routed through our shopping cart with the same shipping rates, quantity discounts, order tracking, and other services already available for products from Al Young Studios.

Periodic additions to this gallery will be announced on this blog as well as our social media.

79 bookmark options now part of Studios' product line

Full-color, printed bookmarks are now available for most of the original artworks in our commercial fine art portfolio.  The price per bookmark starts at $1.50 (plus shipping) with quantity discounts built-in to our shopping cart at www.alyoung.com

Each bookmark measures 2.2 in. x 8.5 in. (55.88mm x 215.9mm) and is printed on sturdy 9pt (110#) paper with a gloss finish.  A full-color image of each artwork, cropped to fit the vertical format of the bookmark appears with accompanying text.  The full selection includes images from each of our fine art collections:

Book of Mormon Collection --  All artworks
Women of the Bible Collection -- All artworks
The Messiah Collection
     And Martha Served (Martha)
     As It Began To Dawn (Mary Magdalene)
     At The Going Down Of The Sun (Nephi the Disciple)
     Bearing A Child In Her Arms (Mary and the Christ Child)
     Go Forth To Meet The Bridegroom (A Wise Virgin)
     I Say Unto Thee, Arise (The Daughter of Jairus)
     I Shall Be Whole (The Woman with an Issue of Blood)
     Living Water (The Samaritan Woman at the Well)
     Martha, Martha
     One By One (The Messiah)
     She Is Come Aforehand (Mary of Bethany)
     So They Brought Their Little Children
     That Good Part (Mary of Bethany)
     The Miracle Of Forgiveness (The Woman Taken in Adultery)
     The Windows Of Heaven (A Certain Poor Widow)
     Unto The City Of David
     Upon Awakening (Pilate's Wife)
     We Heard Him Pray For Us (The Messiah)
     Will Ye Not Now Return Unto Me (The Messiah)
Pioneers of the American West Collection -- All artworks
High Valley Collection
     Bedtime Story
     Den Kommende Varen (The Coming Of Spring
     Den Kommende Vinteren (The Coming Of Winter
     Enchanted Stillness
     Far Away In The West
     In The High Valley
     Journey's End
     Legend
     Sara Crew
     St. Gallen
     The Grey Havens
     Village Study

On the main page for each artwork at www.alyoung.com, the Bookmark option appears at the bottom of the panel of prints and giclees available for the image.With the availability of these print-on-demand bookmarks, the Studios can still produce custom bookmarks, but only with the addition of a design fee adapted to the requirements of each custom project.

The addition of these 79 bookmark options brings to 2,462 the total of open-edition print and giclee canvas options available at www.alyoung.com -- exclusive retail outlet for all of the artworks produced by the artists of Al Young Studios.

New painting by Elspeth Young features forgiveness

This My Son
by Elspeth Young This My Son (Alma the Younger and Corianton) is the newest oil painting to be added to the Book of Mormon Fine Art Collection of original artworks from Al Young Studios.  Eleven fine-art print styles and sizes of this new image are now available at www.alyoung.com, ranging in price from $4.10 (4 in. x 5.5 in. poster print) to $115 (11 in. x 17 in. reproduction giclee canvas).

Click here to see a larger image of the new painting, read the artist's commentary, and look at the selection of available prints.

Alma the Younger was a prophet of God in the Americas during the two centuries immediately prior to the birth of Jesus Christ. The story of Alma's own waywardness and subsequent repentance as a youth—-resulting in a greatly altered life—-is a story of hope to all who earnestly seek forgiveness when it seems that forgiveness is impossible; nevertheless, this painting is concerned with the forgiveness that this repentant father extends to his wayward son, Corianton.

This My Son is the 14th original artwork in the Studios' Book of Mormon Fine Art Collection, and the 158th image in the Studios' commercially available fine-art portfolio.

The 11 open-edition prints of this new painting bring to 2,244 the number of prints and giclee canvases available at www.alyoung.com -- exclusive retail outlet for all of the artworks produced by the artists of Al Young Studios.

New pioneer painting by Elspeth Young features Abigail Thorne

Angels Of Peace
by Elspeth Young Angels Of Peace (Abigail Thorne) is the newest oil painting to be added to the Pioneers of the American West Fine Art Collection of original artworks from Al Young Studios.  Eleven fine-art print styles and sizes of this new image are now available at www.alyoung.com, ranging in price from $4.75 (4 in. x 7.25 in. poster print) to $195 (16 in. x 29.25 in. reproduction giclee canvas).

Click here to see a larger image of the new painting, read the artist's commentary, and look at the selection of available prints.

In 1837, sixteen-year-old Abigail Thorne was the first in her community in New York state to be baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Upon emigrating to Nauvoo, Illinois, she became personally acquainted with Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum. After the martyrdom of the Prophet and his brother, and after the persecutions that followed, she and her husband, Samuel Russell, along with most of the population of Nauvoo, were driven from their homes to embark in the dead of winter cold on an exodus to the Rocky Mountains. Abigail suffered every kind of privation and her health was severely compromised. She gave birth to her first daughter, Frances Russell, in the wretchedness and bitter cold of a camp in Nebraska. Not until the following autumn did she and her family arrive in the Salt Lake Valley. It was then that her husband abandoned her to follow the California gold rush.

Angels Of Peace is the 9th original artwork in the Studios' Pioneers of the American West Fine Art Collection, and the 157th image in the Studios' commercially available fine-art portfolio.

The 11 open-edition prints of this new painting bring to 2,233 the number of prints and giclee canvases available at www.alyoung.com -- exclusive retail outlet for all of the artworks produced by the artists of Al Young Studios.