The posts of this blog will focus primarily on the Mormon artistic efforts taking place at BYU and the surrounding area for two reasons. First, our bloggers are all currently based at BYU, so naturally the things that we can write about tend to be a little BYU-centric. This is not out of chauvinism but out of necessity. Second, we will focus on BYU-based efforts because so much is happening here in terms of experimental Mormon art that just never reaches an audience outside the university. Even with the BYU community, few are aware of all the innovations being attempted.

That said, we do not necessarily limit ourselves to BYU-affiliated events; we would like to cover all avenues of Mormon artistic expression. Also, simply because the events we discuss are taking place at BYU doesn’t mean the artistic principles we learn from them will be limited by the bounds of the campus. We believe the discussion of these specific events can be helpful in advancing the cause of Mormon art in general.

Examples of topics we hope to discuss include:

• Theatre: BYU Experimental Theatre group, New Play Project
• Art: BYU student art exhibits, BYU Museum of Art exhibits, independent Mormon art shows
• Film: Final Cut (BYU’s student film festival), LDS Film Festival, various film screenings
• Literature: BYU’s English department reading series, student journals, writing contests, current publications by LDS authors
• Tradition: Mormon Literature and Creative Arts (MLCA) database, Mormon items in the BYU library’s special collections, resources for Mormon arts scholarship
• Criticism: BYU Studies, meetings of the Association for Mormon Letters, other Mormon studies papers

When reviewing works of Mormon art, we hope not to simply summarize a piece, but to examine it within the continuing Mormon Renaissance. For example, we could discuss what qualities make a certain painting Mormon art, rather than just art. We might discuss how a recently published Mormon novel relates to the classics of Mormon literature, like Virginia Sorensen’s A Little Lower than the Angels. Or we might relate a film to the concepts discussed in critical articles recently published in BYU Studies. In all cases, the idea is to both examine the piece for its artistic qualities and also to place it in the context of the Mormon Renaissance.

However, we will not limit ourselves to discussing only tradition. The spirit of a renaissance is one of learning from the past and attempting to apply those principles to a different situation. Though we hope to learn from studying the tradition of Mormon art, we will also explore new innovations of the field.

Finally, the tone of this blog will be one of friendly, informal scholarship. By friendly, we mean that this blog is not the place for a pejorative view of Mormon culture, be it popular or avant garde. Though we recognize its flaws, we do not condemn Mormon art for its imperfections. Instead, we focus on the positive achievements of Mormon art. We look at the things that have been done well, in hopes that as we examine and praise them, they can be refined and perfected.

By informal, we mean that anecdotal evidence and personal experience are completely valid points to jump off into an evaluation of Mormon art and its impact on our experience as Mormons. Lists of what we had for breakfast, personal pet doctrines, and other traditional blog fare are not appropriate topics for this blog. However, if these things lead into a discussion of Mormon art, letters, or culture, then they become valid to include, although the art/letters/culture should be the focus. The tone of our posts ought to be similar to a personal essay, or better yet, an opinion editorial.

By scholarship, we do not mean that this blog is meant to replace the thought and effort that goes into a peer-reviewed journal. Our citations will not be exhaustive or even necessary.However, we believe that the blogging format can add to the conversation exactly through this informality, that the casual ideas we throw around have the potential to turn into full fledged discussions and perhaps even scholarly studies.