Longtime patrons of Brigham Young University’s Museum of Art already know the name James Tissot well.
In 2010, the museum hosted a major exhibition titled “The Life of Christ,” with more than 100 Savior-themed works by the 19th-century French artist that commemorated Christ’s mortal ministry.
Now Tissot is making an encore of sorts at the Church-sponsored school—and his return comes at the perfect time for Latter-day Saints exploring the wonders of the Old Testament in this year’s “Come, Follow Me” curriculum.
A new BYU-MOA exhibition—“Prophets, Priests, and Queens: James Tissot’s Men and Women of the Old Testament”—features 129 watercolor illustrations depicting scenes, stories, and figures from the Hebrew Bible.
James Tissot’s art was beautifully featured in Rob Gardner’s Lamb of God live virtual worldwide sing-along, which live-streamed originally on YouTube in 2020.
Tissot created so many depictions of Christ’s life that the live stream was able to draw solely on his art to provide visuals for the nearly hour-and-a-half virtual event that focused on the Savior’s life.
A DVD of the film was also released last year.
While the new Tissot/Old Testament exhibition opens at a timely moment for “Come, Follow Me” students, curators at the museum have been working on “Prophets, Priests and Queens” since 2014.
“The Life of Christ” Tissot exhibition and its vivid depictions and perspectives on the life of the Savior “really resonated with our audience,” said Ashlee Whitaker, the museum’s Roy and Carol Christensen Curator of Religious Art.
Read more about the exhibit, including how to view a simplified, digital version of the exhibition, in the full article on Church News.
