Crossing the Frozen Mississippi River - by CCA Christensen - Available Framed

Crossing the Mississippi Feb 1846 – by CCA Christensen

This piece is printed on high quality Museum Giclee Canvas and is offered framed or unframed,

Choose from 3 Frame Styles.

• Antique Gold 2”, Solid Wood

• Black Cove 2.75”, Laminate

• Brushed Mahogany & Gold 2.5”, Solid Wood

• Please note that framed artwork can take up to one week to ship due to our production time. If you have any question or concerns, feel free to reach out to us to discuss them.

Carl Christian Anton Christensen (1831-1912) studied at the Royal Academy of Art in Copenhagen and, as one of the first generation of Latter-day Saint artists, produced the largest body of historical religious paintings in early Utah. Christensen is best known for his Mormon Panorama, a series of 23 large paintings that depict the history of the Church and were painted on huge sheets of canvas that the early Pioneers used to cover their wagons.

A Danish-born convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, he drew from his own pioneer experiences for his paintings’ subjects, choosing to tell the stories of the early pioneers through his art.

Described as “the most significant first-generation genre painter of the Mormon people” by Richard G. Oman, curator of the LDS Church’s Museum of Church History and Art, Christensen depicts in his painting the exodus from Nauvoo across the frozen Mississippi River in February 1846. The painting was included in the museum’s 2002 exhibit “Early Images of Historic Nauvoo.” Christensen also painted several of the murals in the Manti and St. George temples and produced paintings for the Manti Tabernacle. ( text credit to Deseret News)

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SOME BACKGROUND REGARDING THIS WORK OF ART

In the mid-1800s, Boston mayor and nationally known writer and publicist Josiah Quincy wrote: “At some future time the question may be asked, What great American has done more to mold the minds and destiny of his countrymen than any other man upon this continent? Absurd as it may seem to some, it is not improbable that the answer to this question will be, Joseph Smith, the Mormon prophet!”

Confused about religion during a time of revival in the state of New York where he lived in 1820, 14-year-old Joseph read a passage in the New Testament and went to the woods to pray. This event is referred to by Latter-day Saints as the First Vision. Joseph records that God and Jesus Christ appeared to him. “I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head,” he wrote, “above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.” Within that light, he saw two personages — one of whom spoke Joseph’s name, pointed to the other, and said, “This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!” Church members refer to this experience as the “First Vision.” It forever changed Joseph Smith and has become a central tenet of Latter-day Saint belief. It began the work of restoring the Church of Jesus Christ to the earth. This work of art is a depiction of Joseph Smith’s First Vision.