Hyatt Moore at Biola University

Moore's mural "Feeding the Three Thousand" on display at Biola University

The “Year of the Arts” has invaded Biola and the university library is not exempt. Dotted with sculptures, paintings and photographs, a building usually confined to the silver color of Macs and brown pages of books is splashed with color from top to bottom. Paintings by famous artist Thomas Kinkade line the stairwells and the Thomas Macklin Bible—the largest English Bible in the world—is displayed on the main level. Upon entering the upper level of the library, several large paintings grasp your attention. These are the work of painter Hyatt Moore.

Moore’s paintings focus on people of all races, backgrounds and time periods. Several of his paintings line the walls of the library, portraits and still life especially. His paintings are not intricate or particularly detailed. His art is not noticed because of its realism or minute brushstrokes, but for the bold colors and the vivid vision in each of his pieces. There is life in his work.

Moore's paintings can be seen on all levels of the library

One mural in particular stands out from the rest, titled “Feeding the Three Thousand.” Drawing from the Biblical account of Jesus feeding His many followers, the painting shows missionaries of many races giving Scripture rolls to the thousands. The “three-thousand” aspect of the mural is the number of peoples in the world who are without written words. The expressions on the faces of the people are vague, the details of location and time unknown, but Moore makes his message clear: those with the written word must venture to those who do not. The colors of his art grab your attention but it is the concept and symbolism of the art that make you appreciate the mural itself.

Another such art piece available in the library is “The Last Supper with Twelve Tribes.” Deriving off Leonardo DaVinci’s beautiful masterpiece, Moore’s interpretation replaces the 12 disciples with 12 nationalities with Jesus Christ as the center. Moore enhances the differences between races with detail to clothing, skin tone and facial features. The acrylic painting is a tribute to the diversity of the world, with no one man standing out above the rest, all eyes focused on Christ, the only figure in bold red. It is a mural that makes you look twice. It is a familiar scene with a different meaning. His art makes you ask why.

Moore’s murals and paintings aren’t just pretty things to admire. They make you pause, stare into the eyes of a portrait or stop and find the meaning in a mural. Though the humans in his portraits aren’t realistic they are lifelike. The eyes of the woman in “Happy Mother” draws you in, the bold brushstrokes of “Two Writers” gives one a sense of appreciation for the simplistic picture of learning. Moore’s artwork is beautiful because it captures the essence of a human soul: life.