Edwin Evans

Edwin Evans is most well-known for his landscapes and scenes of the American West. His works often are of scenes of farm life or involve farming equipment or buildings. Many of Evans’ pieces feature vibrant fall colors – such as golds, oranges, yellows, and reds. A couple of his more famous works, including Wheat Fields, capture the golden color of wheat outside on a fair afternoon, while others depict the interactions between humans and animals and are brought to life by the vivid colors of the leaves. Most of Evans’ early works are done in paint but he began to produce more watercolors later in his life.

Edwin Evans was born in 1860 and was raised in the town of Lehi, Utah. Unlike many artists of his time, Evans did not show any interest in art at a young age. In fact, Evans was well into adulthood before he was encouraged to and began pursuing art. After making the choice to study art Evans went to Salt Lake City where he studied with prominent Utah artists George Ottinger and Dan Weggeland.

After completing his domestic studies Evans became one of several artists commissioned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to travel to Europe as “art missionaries.” Other members of the group included artists such as J.B. Fairbanks and John Hafen. The artists studied at prestigious art schools in Paris and refined their own particular styles by studying and painting in nature.

After returning from Europe, Evans set to work as a full-time artist. His portfolio of projects includes working on murals for LDS temples in Salt Lake City and Canada, as well as for some public buildings in Salt Lake. However, some of Evans’ greatest accomplishments came from his career as an art teacher. He taught at a multitude of schools, including the University of Utah, Brigham Young University, and the LDS Church School – he was also the head of the art department at the University of Utah for many years and helped to establish an independent art program there.

According to his students, Evans was more concerned with teaching art rather than making friends and was sometimes merciless when it came to critiquing a student’s work. Still, Evans taught a great number of students during his career, and many of them, such as Mabel Frazer and LeConte Stewart, would go on to become respected artists in their own time. Evans continued to paint and complete works of art until his death in March 1946.