John Chan:

Shares His Conversion and His Art

www.johnchanart.com

Question: 

What was your background before joining the church?  What did you believe?

Answer:

I was a newly immigrant from Communist China (age 10) who came to Canada by myself to live with my paternal grandfather whom I never met.  He lived in Medicine Hat 

I had no religious upbringing but knew there was a supreme being who would answer prayers.

Question:

How did you first hear about the church?

Answer:

I participated in church sporting programs. I was about 13 at the time .  I was living with my grandfather in Medicine Hat.  It was not Church Scouting that we were involved but church sporting activities like the movie "Church Ball ".  We were invited out to participate in flag football.

After numerous attempts to meet with missionaries, myself and two other friends took up their invitations to be taught.  All three of us were baptized.

Question:

What was it about the church and the gospel that touched or rang true to you?

Answer:

Too many parallels in the Bible to Chinese culture which still practiced today but probably didn't understand the origin.  I actually gave a fireside on the origin of some Chinese characters that connected back to Biblical ties. The emphasis on families which is an important cultural aspect to the Chinese.

Question:

How have your family members accepted your conversion?

Answer:  Yes they accepted what I did.  Unfortunately many still did not accept to be taught.

Question:

When did you start drawing?

Answer:

I started drawing when I was very little.  Couldn't tell you the age at the time.  Probably before formal schooling.

Question:

When did you start drawing temples?   Why did you choose temples?

Answer:

I started temple drawing of the Cardston temple when I served as a bishopric member in 1997.

The reason was that we the bishopric got many wedding invitations to celebrate the young adults commitment to one another in the House of the Lord.  I did not have financial means to buy presents to everyone who send an invitation to me.  I decided to draw the temple which I could make prints to give away as presents. 

After I was released from the YA ward as a member of the bishopric, I continued with the drawings of the Salt Lake Temple and Mt. Timpanogos Temple.

Question:

Why those temples?  Particulalry Mt. Timpanogoas?

Answer:

Mt. Timpanogos was a brand new temple that we accidentally found out about the open house on the very last day.  As all temples impressed us.  I thought I would start the Utah series with the Salt Lake Temple, then Mt. Timpanogos.  The other temples that I listed would like to do were architecturally beautiful to me and would like to add to my series.  Salt Lake temple is of course THE TEMPLE because of the historical significance for the saints in Salt Lake. 

Secondly, my youngest daughter was married and sealed in the Salt Lake temple.  My goal was to draw all the Utah temples and a few of my favorites such as San Diego , Washington DC, Hawaii and Arizona temples.  Now Canada has a  number of temples.   I guess I could turn my focus on them as well.

Question:

Which temples have you drawn?  In order to draws them to your satisfaction - do you have to be there or will a picture do?

Answer:  I have drawn Salt Lake temple, Cardston temple, Mt. Timpanogos.  Presently working on the Mesa temple.  I usually do my pictures from photos.

Question: 

What other things have you drawn? 

Answer:

I started a series of pointillism (dot art) featuring dead rock and roll artists such as Jerry Garcia, Bob Marley, John Lennon.

I also like charcoal drawings as well which I have done two:  Jimi Hendrix and Bruce Lee

I also a self taught Chinese watercolorist.  I have number of watercolor paintings for sale.

Question:

I saw that you have the pictures in the Cardston Book store.  Are they in the other Alberta stores?

Answer:

My Cardston Temple picture is also sold in both Lethbridge LDS bookstores.

Question:

Are they in the US stores?

Answer:

Not yet, I would market them after I have sufficient number ot them done.  Right now, I am working on the Mesa Temple because my son was married & sealed in that temple.

Question

How did you happen to start selling them?

Answer

It was the entrepreneur spirit in me.  I saw an opportunity to market them and it did exceptionally well.