'Sacred Gifts' Paintings Bring Rich Christian History, Stories to Utah

DESERET NEWS
By Emmilie Buchanan-Whitlock

"Christ and the Rich Young Ruler" by Heinrich Hofmann.

UTAH---Just as each painting coming to Brigham Young University's new exhibit, "Sacred Gifts: The Religious Art of Carl Bloch, Heinrich Hofmann, and Frans Schwartz," is unique, the stories and history of each work of art are equally varied. Whether it’s lasting through World War II or the destruction of San Francisco in 1906, many paintings bring a rich legacy with them to the walls of the BYU Museum of Art in Provo. This painting, done by Hofmann in 1888, was a favorite of the artist’s wife. After her death, Hofmann elected not to sell the painting but rather to keep it in his studio. “Hofmann had a very generous heart,” Pheysey said. “He was always thinking of the poor. In his studio, there was a donation box with a handwritten note that read, ‘For the orphans of Dresden.’ ”[link]