Casey Childs, a renowned portrait artist based in Pleasant Grove, Utah, was handpicked by Jeffrey R. Holland of The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles to paint his portrait.
Ever since Childs’ first LDS project, “Greater Love Hath No Man,” Childs has emerged as a sought after LDS artist.
The diptych depicting the emotional scene at Carthage jail was inspired by the account of John Taylor. Taylor wrote a very lengthy personal account on the events that unfolded on the day of the martyrdom, and Childs was inspired by Taylor’s agonizing account.
“‘Greater Love’ started out as a personal project. My hope was that the visual image of this story would communicate something to the viewer and the viewer would want to find out more,” Childs said. “Later, I showed one of the panels at the Church History Museum, and they liked it so much that they commissioned me to finish it. After that it sort of snowballed.”
As a result of the painting, Childs was promptly enlisted to paint Brigham Young and Wilford Woodruff for the St. George Temple, which he completed last year.
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