Icons & Sacred Art
62 writings in Icons & Sacred Art. Clear
Icons & Sacred Art
Who can write icons?
Anyone can write icons, but not everyone should. There’s no ordination for iconographers. You don’t need to be a priest or a monk. Most iconographers…
Icons & Sacred Art
What is an iconographer?
An iconographer is someone who writes icons. Not paints, writes. That word matters. Icons aren’t personal artistic expressions or decorative religious art. They’re theological statements…
Icons & Sacred Art
Do iconographers have special training or blessing?
Yes, iconographers receive training and traditionally seek a blessing, though the Church doesn’t require formal credentials to write icons. The training part is straightforward. Most…
Icons & Sacred Art
What materials are used in traditional iconography?
Traditional icons are written on wood panels prepared with gesso, painted with egg tempera made from natural pigments, and often gilded with gold leaf. These…
Icons & Sacred Art
What is egg tempera?
Egg tempera is paint made from powdered pigments mixed with egg yolk. That’s it. It’s been the standard medium for writing icons for over a…
Icons & Sacred Art
Why is gold used in icons?
Gold represents divine light, the uncreated light of God that shines from eternity. When you see that shimmering gold background in an icon, you’re not…
Icons & Sacred Art
What do the colors in icons mean?
Colors in Orthodox icons aren’t decorative choices. They’re theology you can see. A common reading takes gold for divine light, blue for heaven, red for…
Icons & Sacred Art
What is the symbolism in icons?
Icons speak a visual language that’s meant to show you heaven, not photograph earth. Every color, gesture, and strange bit of perspective exists to tell…
Icons & Sacred Art
Why do figures in icons have halos?
The halo shows the uncreated light of God shining through a person who’s been united with Him. It’s not decorative. It’s theological. When you look…
Icons & Sacred Art
Why do Christ’s and the Theotokos’s garments have stars?
The three golden stars on the Theotokos’s maphorion (her veil) represent her perpetual virginity. One star sits on her forehead, one on each shoulder. They…
Icons & Sacred Art
What are the letters on icons?
The letters on icons are inscriptions that name and identify who or what is depicted. They’re not decorative. They tell you exactly who you’re looking…
Icons & Sacred Art
What does IC XC mean?
IC XC is an abbreviation for “Jesus Christ” in Greek. You’ll see these four letters on almost every icon of Christ in our church. The…
