Samuel Brannan

My painting of Samuel Brannan won third place in the California Pioneer Heritage Art Competition. Jeffery R. Holland attended the opening reception with his brother, Dennis Holland, who is president of the Society. I didn't get to shake his hand or anything but it was surreal standing less than 10 feet away from him!

One of the greatest challenges of this competition was deciding who to paint. There were many influential California Pioneers that I was drawn to, but I finally decided on Samuel Brannan. If you are interested in learning more about him I've included a brief history of this controversial pioneer:

Samuel Brannan was a young printer in New York when he was selected by Orson Pratt in 1845 to lead a large group of Saints on one of the longest religious voyages in history. The Ship Brooklyn sailed from the Brooklyn Harbor to San Francisco, a voyage that took nearly six months! He played a key role in starting the Gold Rush of 1849 by his waving a vial of gold around the streets of San Francisco and announcing the discovery of gold at Coloma, on the American River, and announcing it in his California Star that he hired riders to carry east to the states. He became one of the state’s first millionaires, was instrumental in developing the Napa grape and wine area, helped finance the railroad over the Sierras, and owned considerable real estate.

Unfortunately he was later excommunicated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After abandoning his beliefs and the principals of his religion, his life style changed to the degree that his wife divorced him and his life continued to spiral downward until he died penniless in San Diego. His body lay unclaimed in the county morgue for two years until his nephew came forward and buried him.

His story is a tragic reminder that worldly wealth is fleeting and that we must keep our eyes fixed on eternity. He could have done so much to build the kingdom of God with the opportunities he was blessed with. I hope that we will all use our talents and opportunities to further the work of the Lord, and that we will acknowledge the Lord's hand in all things.

I took some photos of my painting along the way. I wanted the painting to look period appropriate so I painted it all with clean, hard edges, kept the colors muted, and went as realistic as my three-week time limit allowed. I'd say that everything about the process, except drawing the map, was pretty fun.