Mahonri Young works in his sculpture studio at Weir Farm.

The well-known, award-winning sculptor Mahonri Young (1877-1957) a native of Utah and a grandson of Brigham Young, married J. Alden Weir’s daughter Dorothy in 1931. From that time until his death he lived and worked at Weir Farm.

Young was a prolific painter, watercolorist and etcher, as well as a sculptor. He also produced thousands of drawings: his depictions of scenes and activities at Weir Farm are a valuable source of information about the landscape and life at the Farm.

Defined as a social realist, Mahonri Young brings Weir Farm into the realm of 20th century artists. He sculpted small figures of laborers, boxers, cowboys and animals. His large works include the Sea Gull Monument in Temple Square, Salt Lake City, and the seated figure of Brigham Young in the Capital, Washington, D.C.

In 1939, he was awarded a long-awaited commission from the Mormon Church and the State of Utah for a monument commemorating Utah’s early history. The monument he created, entitled “This is the Place,” derives its name from the words Brigham Young said on entering Emigration Canyon, near Salt Lake City.

Mahonri Young did all the work on the sculptures in his Weir Farm studio with the help of one assistant, Spero Anargyros. Although he considered the monument his crowning achievement, it was not accomplished without frustrations: his relationship with members of the monument commission was cantankerous; World War II made travel and working conditions difficult; and he was afraid his creative powers were waning. In the end, he had to fight to be paid.

Nevertheless, at the dedication on July 24, 1947, he made the simple, poignant statement: “Next month, come the ninth of August, I will be 70 years old. This is the greatest day of my life.”