I was out exploring and saw an interesting building on State Street in Salt Lake City, just south of 1300 South and on the west side of State Street.   I stopped to take pictures outside and ended up meeting Ralphael Plescia.   He had turned that place into a kind of museum of his art, mostly religious art, about Jesus and his mother.  Very different and interesting stuff.  He told me stories until I had to leave, I’d love to go back and hear more.

Ralphael is quite the artist and also quite the musical instrument expert, he told me of building them from wood that had been soaked in salt water and all kinds of interesting things I didn’t know much about.

I enjoyed all the religious art too, lots of interesting works about Jesus, Satan, Christ’s Heavenly Mother and all kinds of deep stuff.  I really like that kind of thing so it was fascinating to see what he created and then hear his explanations of it. He calls it his theory of creation. He said if they can have a theory of evolution why can’t he have a theory of creation? He has a book documenting the theory but said he’d have to get more copies made someday.

If you want to go I’d suggest parking at “Wayne’s Corner,” a gas station on the corner and then walking next door to his place, the outside is cool enough looking but if you get inside and ask to look around hopefully he’ll be as willing to show you as he was me.

The actual address for Ralphael Plescia’s Christian School is 1324 S State St in Salt Lake.

Ralphael told me that the building was his father’s auto parts store, built in 1930 and the store opened in 1934, that’s the main taller brick building. It had big garage doors on the front and back so cars could pull thru. The brick building next door to the south he said was used to sell the apples from the huge orchard that was behind the buildings. He spoke of the canal that ran along where 1300 South is and how his father often had to pull cars out of the canal. Ralphael never worked at the store but inherited it when his father was killed in a car accident and started converting it into what it is now.

To me this is one of the most interesting and unique places in Salt Lake, even in Utah.

Located at 1324 South State Street in Salt Lake City, Utah

After his passing I went to the estate sale when they were cleaning out the place (April 2023), you can see that here: Revisiting Ralphael Plescia’s Museum