Andre Raileanu is a young Romanian icon carver I have been keeping my eye on for a while now. We have already written a few articles on the amazing things happening in Romania ( here, here and here) but Raileanu’s exploration of stone carving stands very much on its own as both an exception and […]
When Jonathan Pageau and I were asked to make a grave cross for the late Fr. Matthew Baker, we were humbled by the task. Fr. Matthew was a beloved young priest, a prominent Orthodox thinker, and father of six children. His tragic death in an automobile accident on March 1st, 2015, on his way home […]
One of the complex questions that faces modern icon carving is the pervasive presence of the painted icon within the tradition of iconography. For many reasons which I hope to write about in the future, icon carving became a somewhat marginalized art form as the centuries advanced. And so for myself and the small group […]
This is post 2 of 2 in the series “The Altar and The Portico” THE SACRED AND THE SECULAR The Relationship of Orthodox Iconography and Gallery Art Part 2: Gallery Art (here for pt.1) The journey of an artist At this stage in our story, by way of illustration I would like to be […]
This is post 1 of 2 in the series “The Altar and The Portico” THE ALTAR AND THE PORTICO (PT.1) The Relationship of Orthodox Iconography and Gallery Art Part 1 (This is the a talk given at Sacred And Secular In Life And Art, Oxford, a workshop dedicated to the memory of Philip Sherrard. St Gregory’s […]
I have long felt that the iconostasis is the single most important element in an Orthodox church – perhaps more important even than the building itself. But tragically, in America, we have few really well-designed iconostases. This is especially so in mission churches, where iconostases are usually built by amateurs using plywood or worse (more […]
(Editor’s note: this article was written by Martin Earle, Aidan Hart’s studio assistant who worked to create a commission they received for a statue of the Hodogetria. Martin can be contacted at mart_earle@yahoo.co.uk. ) I always brace myself for a bit of anti-Catholic sentiment when meeting an Orthodox Christian for the first time. A convert myself, I […]
I have had the opportunity recently to make and install two choros chandeliers, a type of fixture that is of particular interest to me as a designer. I have written previously about similar chandeliers I have installed in churches in Charleston, South Carolina, and Waldorf, Maryland, and I refer readers to those articles for information […]
I have recently completed a small but highly interesting project, two years in the making, and involving several master artisans. It is a wooden cross with carved stone icons, crafted like a jewel, wholly traditional, and yet quite unlike anything seen before. This is one of those projects that grew, perhaps providentially, from an initially […]
I would like to describe an especially challenging recent project, in which I had the honor to collaborate with a master calligrapher. I was asked to create a pair of memorial plaques flanking an icon. The purpose was to commemorate donors who contributed to two separate capital campaigns benefitting Saint Nicholas Melkite Church, in Rochester, […]