Review
Title: Picturing Christ: Understanding Depictions of Jesus in History and Art
Authors: Daniel Becerra, Jennifer Champoux, Mark D. Ellison, Matthew J. Grey
Publisher: Deseret Book
Genre: Religious Non-fiction
Year Published: 2026
Number of Pages: 160
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-1-63993-509-3
Price: $23.99
Reviewed by Conor Hilton for the Association of Mormon Letters
Picturing Christ: Understanding Depictions of Jesus in History and Art by Daniel Becerra, Jennifer Champoux, Mark D. Ellison, and Matthew J. Grey is a well-researched, beautifully produced, thoughtful, and gentle introduction to the intersections of art and history in depictions of Jesus. Each of the authors contributes a chapter that draws on their professional and academic expertise and personal experiences, covering the latest scholarship in the likely appearance of the historical Jesus, and other first-century Jews from Galilea; the history of artistic depictions of Jesus; a more specific history of Latter-day Saint depictions of Jesus; and finally, engagement with the value and role of art of Jesus, particularly a diverse variety of it.
The book follows on the heels of two similarly art-heavy works, Ancient Christians: An Introduction for Latter-day Saints and Approaching the Tree: Interpreting 1 Nephi 8. Like those two books, Picturing Christ is beautifully designed and typeset, with images and info boxes thoughtfully placed throughout, and overflowing with reproductions of many of the works of art that are being discussed. Picturing Christ is designed for a broad, general audience, written in clear, accessible prose that translates rigorous academic work into language that the public can understand.
The authors write in their introduction that, “we hope that considering Jesus’s appearance and studying the long tradition of artistic efforts to reflect and appreciate his likeness helps you better understand the nature of our Savior and brings you closer to him” (5). The book is written with this clear-eyed, devotional goal in mind, supporting readers in their efforts to have a spiritual connection through art.
The book is filled with interesting historical tidbits about the sorts of clothes Jesus likely wore and the evidence for them, as well as all sorts of art history trivia and insightful analyses of why certain works would appeal to certain people and certain times. A closing insight from Grey’s chapter illustrates some of the ways that the book weaves together scholarly rigor and devotional insight: “In the case of Jesus, wearing the simple tunic, mantle, fringes, and sandals of a Galilean villager mattered because he viewed the long robes of the elites and the ostentatious attire of the overly pious to be incompatible with the ideals of the coming kingdom he proclaimed” (34). Here, Grey summarizes the current consensus, as much as there ever is one, for Galilean villager attire at the time of Jesus and offers a clear reason why such historical details should matter to Latter-day Saints. The care and attention to detail in this chapter and throughout the book, paired with the effort to offer why those details are important devotionally, is admirable and helps the book accomplish its stated purpose.
I, personally, found the third chapter the most engaging, as someone very interested in Mormon/Latter-day Saint art and the ways in which it has developed over time. Champoux offers a fascinating overview of the ways that the institutional church largely prioritized artistic depictions of Jesus produced by non-LDS artists until the 1980s (including some intriguing details about David O. McKay’s belief that Latter-day Saints should not paint Jesus) and then looks at the more varied and ever-evolving landscape of depictions since then up to our present moment.
Champoux ends the chapter with what is perhaps the emotional and devotional thrust of the entire book. She writes, “there is a yearning for images of Jesus that speak to people of various cultures and races…Additionally, Latter-day Saint artists are creatively bringing their faith and personal experience together to depict Jesus in a multitude of ways…Embracing the variety in Latter-day Saint images of Jesus opens possibilities for more effective teaching, greater understanding, and increased revelatory connection with the divine” (113). On the one hand, Champoux’s work here draws attention to the diverse, powerful, tender, personal, inspiring, and moving depictions of Jesus we already have (citing artists like Rose Datoc Dall, Emile Wilson, Lina Miotta, Esther Hi’ilani Candari, and Julie Yuen Yim, among others). On the other hand, it serves as a call for artists to continue to explore new, diverse frontiers in their depictions of Jesus and for other Latter-day Saints to find, ponder, and elevate depictions of Jesus that move them and might move others.
Picturing Christ: Understanding Depictions of Jesus in History and Art is a lovely book for Latter-day Saints and Mormons interested in academically rigorous and devotional discussion of artistic representations of Jesus. The book also offers exposure to a wide range of Christian and Mormon depictions of Jesus. I hope Picturing Christ is a part of continuing the great work many Latter-day Saint artists are doing right now, depicting Jesus in all sorts of new, diverse ways, and allows us to see these various depictions with generous eyes, single to the glory of God.