I. What is an icon?
An icon икона is a painting of a sacred person or event that bears religious meaning. In Greek, “icon” means “image” or “likeness.” The principle underlying the icon is the doctrine that God became visible in Christ and was thus for the first time able to be depicted. According to legend, the first icon painter was the apostle Luke. For the believer, the icon provides a means of seeing and, in a sense, communicating with the holy figure it portrays. However, while an icon is venerated, it is not itself the object of worship.
Russia inherited the tradition of icon painting from Byzantium when Vladimir adopted Christianity in the late tenth century. But it is possible to trace the roots of the icon all the way back to tomb portraits of ancient Egypt. Icon painting flourished in Russia, where several types of icons gained precedence, including one called the Umilenie or “Tenderness” icon depicting the Mother of God with the Christ child. Icon painting continued to develop in Russia throughout the medieval period and until the reforms of Peter the Great. At this time, painting was greatly secularized.
Interest in icons renewed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Icons were collected and restored, which led to newfound knowledge about the art of icon painting.
Numerous scholarly studies were made of the icon, and the history of Russian art was positively reevaluated in the light of the discoveries of the aesthetic achievements of old Russian painting. Special sections of the major art museums in St. Petersburg and Moscow were established to house and exhibit the newly restored icons.
Icons were originally used only in religious processions and in churches. However, beginning in the fifteenth century, growing prosperity allowed for the personal ownership of icons. People placed them in their homes, either in a corner of the room or over the head of the bed.
In churches, you will see icons on a special wall or screen that separates the sanctuary from the nave. This wall is called the iconostasis, a Byzantine form of church decoration which became highly developed in Russia. The iconostasis is made up of a number of tiers of icons, which depict the biblical history of the church. The order of the icons on the iconostasis does not change, but the number of tiers can vary. In the lower center of the iconostasis are the Royal Doors which lead into the altar area, reserved only for male celebrants. The icon to the left of the doors is that of the Virgin, and the icon on the right of the doors is that of the Savior.
For a detailed description of the iconostasis, see:
http://www.rollins.edu/Foreign_Lang/Russian/iconost.html
II. How are icons made?
Icons are made by icon painters, who consider themselves to be believers first and foremost and artists second. The icon painter never considers his work to be his personal, individual artistic achievement, and thus he does not sign his work. The only name that appears on the icon is the name of the saint or holy figure depicted. The icon painter works with other icon painters in workshops and abides to a canon called the Podlinnik. This is a handbook of traditional patterns or designs which are traced onto the surface of the icon in order to create the desired image. The icon painter never improvises or works arbitrarily, but rather paints purposefully, abiding by the dictates of church tradition.
While icons can be created in various kinds of material, including mosaic, the typical icon is a form of painting on wood. First, the surface of a flat wooden board is smoothed with an adze (an axlike tool with a curved blade at a right angle to the handle) and then covered with a layer of gesso (a preparation of plaster and glue). Sometimes the board is covered with a layer of canvas (a linen cloth) and then another coating of gesso. When the gesso hardens, the board is polished to create a shiny, smooth surface. Using a stencil, the outline of the desired image is traced onto the board. Next a background is applied. When this has dried, the painter creates the image or scene using pigments tempered with egg or wax. This technique is similar to western medieval tempera painting. After the painting is completed, it is typically covered with a layer of flax-seed or olive oil which temporarily enhances the colors, but after time, darkens. The surfaces of the old Russian icons were often repainted to enliven the colors, but, ultimately, this made the icons turn even darker. Restoration of icons in the early twentieth century made it possible to remove the layers of repaint and see the original, vibrant colors of the icons.
The frame of the icon is not attached separately, but consists of a flat border created by cutting back the central portion of the panel. Beginning in the fourteenth century, the finished icons were sometimes covered with highly decorated metal panels. By the seventeenth century, the metal frames had become so elaborate that they concealed all but the faces and hands of the figure depicted.
The image itself is not purely naturalistic, because the goal of the painter is not to create a realistic image, but rather one that contributes to a religious experience. The emphasis in the icon is on mystical, eternal qualities and, thus, categories of space and time are not deemed significant. A balance is sought between what is known through the senses and what is known through the emotions. An inverted perspective is used, one unfamiliar to the modern, western viewer accustomed to paintings created using rules of perspective discovered in the Renaissance. The inverse perspective used in icon painting is based on the idea that the most important figure in the composition should be dominant and centrally-placed; thus, figures are often very large and out-of-scale in proportion to their surroundings and the background. The figure are also usually removed from their interior space and moved out into the open. Another distinguishing feature of icon painting is the fact that the source of light in the icon is not a natural source, but the “inner” light of the saint himself, whose eyes are usually quite large, focusing attention on the internal world rather than the external.
For more information on the icon, see: http://www.rollins.edu/Foreign_Lang/Russian/underst.html
One of the most venerated icons in Russia is The Virgin of Vladimir, which was painted in the early twelfth century. It is one of the earliest examples of the Umilenie or “Tenderness” type of Virgin and Child. It is now exhibited in the Tret’iakov Gallery in Moscow.
III. Russia’s Most Revered Icon Painters.
A. Theophanes ‘the Greek’ (b. 1335-1405) was a famous icon painting master who came to Russia from Constantinople, where he had gained admiration for his sure technique, excellent memory of icon patterns, and the speed with which he worked. Before coming to Russia, he had painted the interiors of more than forty churches. Once in Russia, he worked in such cities as Novogorod and Moscow. Unfortunately, only the frescoes he created for the Church of the Transfiguration in Novgorod have survived until today. These were painted in 1378. Theophanes ‘the Greek’ completed his last work in Moscow in 1405. Details about Theophanes’s life are derived from one major source: a letter written in 1414 or 1415 by Epiphanius the Wise to another disciple. In the letter, Theophanes is mentioned and his work discussed.
B. Andrei Rublev (c. 1370-1430) was Russia’s greatest medieval icon painter. He worked under Theophanes at the Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Kremlin in 1405. The most extensive remnants of Rublev’s work are found in the Dormition Church in Vladimir, but the most famous icon attributed to Rublev is the early fifteenth-century Trinity Icon from the Trinity-Sergius Monastery located just outside Moscow. This work can be seen in the Tret’iakov Gallery in Moscow.
To see the Trinity Icon on-line, go to:
http://www.valley.net/~transnat/trinlg.gif
To find out more about Rublev, go to: http://amsterdam.par.org:8888/Guests/Russia/moscow/sergiev/rublev.html
For a dramatic interpretation of the life of Andrei Rublev, you may also watch Andrei Rublev, a film about the life of this icon painter; Andrei Rublev is directed by the Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovskii.
C. Dionisy (c. 1440-1500) was perhaps the most important icon painter after Rublev. His work best exemplifies the character of late-fifteenth-century painting in the Moscow region. Surviving works by Dionisy include frescoes in the Dormition in Moscow and the interior of the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin in the Ferapont Monastery in the territory of Novgorod.
For a sampling of icons with brief descriptions, see: http://www.gac.edu/oncampus/academics/russian/www-docs/Icons.html#OTTrinity
For more information on icons, see:
Hamilton, George Heard. The Art and Architecture of Russia. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1983. See esp. chapters 8-13.
Icons: Art and Devotion. Intro. by T. Talbot Rice. London: Bracken Books, 1993.
