Iconography
The Making of a New Icon: “Christ Breaking the Bonds of Animal Suffering”
Sometimes I am commissioned to paint an icon of a saint for whom nothing yet exists, or at least no satisfactory icon. This is usually a pre-schism Western saint. But more rarely, the subject is a new theme, a new emphasis or combination. This was the case when Dr Christine Nellist approached me to create…
Continue reading »Towards a Great Pictorial Synthesis: Interview with Ioan Popa
The following is an interview with Romanian master iconographer Ioan Popa. He’s one of the leading representatives of the contemporary icon revival in Romania, focusing in both panel and monumental fresco painting. Our conversation touches on his artistic development, aspects of the professional training of iconographers in Romania and the challenge of creative engagement with…
Continue reading »The Byzantine Sculpture of Michael Lucas
The following is an interview with sculptor Michael Lucas. Mr. Lucas is an accomplished artist who currently focuses on Byzantine-inspired carving in stone. Andrew Gould is working with Michael on an ongoing project to build a baptistery in South Carolina. A. Gould: You started iconographic carving late in your life. Tell us about your background as an artist.…
Continue reading »A Year of Exploring Ancient Carving Through Drawing
For several years already, I had known in my heart and in my hands that I needed to spend more time drawing. Because the art of icon carving had become a lesser vehicle for the traditions of iconography, it seemed pressing for me to spend more time exploring the best examples of relief art and…
Continue reading »The Mosaic Apse of Sant’Apollinaire in Classe, Ravenna
THE MOSAIC APSE OF SANT’APOLLINARE IN CLASSE, RAVENNA: A Miracle of Design Aidan Hart There is some iconography that can only be described as miraculous. Such is the sixth century apse mosaic at the basilica of Saint Apollinare in Classe, five miles from Ravenna, Italy. Such works seem to flash forth, and are never –…
Continue reading »The Drawings of Elena Murariu
There’s theory and then there’s practice. The one flows from the other and back again, unceasingly. Their interdependence is indissoluble. Likewise, there’s “inner” drawing and then there’s “external” drawing. The first unfolds and takes shape in the imagination; the latter is the former’s manifestation. A masterful drawing seems to be as if a concrete…
Continue reading »Local Colors of Conestoga: Woad Blue
This is post 1 of 1 in the series “Local Colors of Conestoga” Symeon van Donkelaar explores the meaning and methods of creating his own pigments from local material. I’ve wanted to write for a while about what I’ve learned about making local colors—especially from an iconographic perspective. With this year’s harvest of indigo blue…
Continue reading »A Double Standard? Some Clarifications on Icon Painting Theory
Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old. ‒Matt. 13:52 It is the irrational impulses that yearn for innovation. …
Continue reading »The Seventh Ecumenical Council, the Council of Frankfurt & the Practice of Painting
Editorial Preface: This article was written by Dr. Peter Brooke, an Orthodox Christian painter and writer living in Brecon, Wales. He is the author of “Albert Gleizes: For and Against the Twentieth Century,” a major biography of one of the most important pioneers of Cubism. Dr. Brooke studied painting in France with the distinguished potter…
Continue reading »Conserve or Restore? A Question of Ancestor Kisses
Conserve: To protect from loss or harm; to keep quantity and quality constant through physical or chemical reactions or evolutionary changes. Restore: To bring back into existence or use; to return to an original condition. Close in definition, the differences when applied to art treasures can be catastrophic. Consider the botched effort to “restore” Elías…
Continue reading »