Icon Corners

[cassc]

Hey, I recognize some of those icons!

I was thinking the same thing Nice set up Julina (How did you make the cross?) nice icons Michael!

 

[Giantsbran1227]

Ever since buying my first icon (nymphios), my prayer sessions have definitely changed. I am much more focused, and I feel as if I am able to communicate better with God. Thanks for all the help and great advice on this thread guys.

Tomorrow I will be purchasing either a bigger icon of Christ, or one of the Theotokos.

 

[Michael G]

Ever since buying my first icon (nymphios), my prayer sessions have definitely changed. I am much more focused, and I feel as if I am able to communicate better with God. Thanks for all the help and great advice on this thread guys.

Tomorrow I will be purchasing either a bigger icon of Christ, or one of the Theotokos.

If you already have one of Christ, get one of the Theotokos.

 

[Julina]

I was thinking the same thing Nice set up Julina (How did you make the cross?) nice icons Michael!

i made the cross out of some Sculpey clay, and painted it based on this design: http://www.ocf.org/OrthodoxPage/icons/clip/cross.gif

 

[Mozartboy]

Is it ok to not have an Icon corner, if there is no way you can?

 

[HandmaidenOfGod]

Is it ok to not have an Icon corner, if there is no way you can?

Of course! God is a god of grace and mercy. The most important thing is that you pray to Him.

If you cannot keep an icon corner up but have a copy of the Orthodox Study Bible, just open up to one of the icons printed in the Bible when it's time to pray. The other advantage to this is that in a sense, you have a "portable" icon corner that can be with you wherever you go.

If you don't have the Orthodox study Bible, perhaps you can purchase a small icon that you can keep in a drawer and take out when you want to pray.

If you can't do these things, well, the most important thing is to pray.

Pray, pray, pray, pray.

That is what is important.

 

[Musa80]

For those who can't afford to fully adorn an icon corner I'll throw out there what I did in the beginning. Some will not agree with this, but a poor guy has got do what poor guy has got to do. I went to the hobby store and bought some wood mounts and decoupage. Then I printed images available online, on photo paper, and mounted them myself.

I now have plenty of icons but still have some of those self-mounted prints hanging up. Thank God for good people who have given me many icons. I've only purchased one that I have kept for my own. It's an icon of Saint James Intercisus.

 

[Michael G]

For those who can't afford to fully adorn an icon corner I'll throw out there what I did in the beginning. Some will not agree with this, but a poor guy has got do what poor guy has got to do. I went to the hobby store and bought some wood mounts and decoupage. Then I printed images available online, on photo paper, and mounted them myself.

I now have plenty of icons but still have some of those self-mounted prints hanging up. Thank God for good people who have given me many icons. I've only purchased one that I have kept for my own. It's an icon of Saint James Intercisus.

For the money you spent on the wood mounts, decoupage, etc you could have had one well made icon. I would like to suggest it is the quality that matters, not the quantity. As I have said time and again, the quality of the prints you can make from the internet do not come close to the quality you can buy for under $20 from any number of icon publishers. It is better to have one well made icon, even if that icon be only a print, than to have a bunch of poorly made icons. It is not how many icons you pray before in your icon corner, but how well said those prayers are.

 

[Musa80]

For the money you spent on the wood mounts, decoupage, etc you could have had one well made icon. I would like to suggest it is the quality that matters, not the quantity. As I have said time and again, the quality of the prints you can make from the internet do not come close to the quality you can buy for under $20 from any number of icon publishers. It is better to have one well made icon, even if that icon be only a print, than to have a bunch of poorly made icons. It is not how many icons you pray before in your icon corner, but how well said those prayers are.

LOL I spent about $6 total.

 

[Sphinx777]

Who's In Your Icon Corner? PART 1
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Who's In Your Icon Corner? PART 2


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[Michael G]

LOL I spent about $6 total.

I stand by what I said. Icons are NOT a laughing matter. They are to be taken quite seriously for they are doctrine in a visual form. The creation of icons is a very serious matter, as is the praying before icons. The very fact that the Church allows the existence of mounted icon prints is itself an act of economia because until about 100 years ago the Russian Church was very strictly opposed to the existence of paper icons. If the approximately $10 each that both Nutroll and myself or any other icon publisher charges for a small mounted print is TOO MUCH to spend on one icon, then you really, really, really need to check your priorities. Again, if it is more important to you to have multiple icons to pray before than one that is well made, you need to check your priorities. Your recomendation was not a good one at all.

 

[prodromos]

I dunno. Before the invention of the printing press, the producing of copies of the scriptures was a very serious matter.

 

[HandmaidenOfGod]

I find it interesting that of the three iconographers on this forum, only one is being so vocal about this issue. I know of seminarians and priests that approve of the process that Intercisus is suggesting.

Frankly I think this is a matter that should be left for one's Spiritual Father to decide.

 

[Musa80]

I stand by what I said. Icons are NOT a laughing matter. They are to be taken quite seriously for they are doctrine in a visual form. The creation of icons is a very serious matter, as is the praying before icons. The very fact that the Church allows the existence of mounted icon prints is itself an act of economia because until about 100 years ago the Russian Church was very strictly opposed to the existence of paper icons. If the approximately $10 each that both Nutroll and myself or any other icon publisher charges for a small mounted print is TOO MUCH to spend on one icon, then you really, really, really need to check your priorities. Again, if it is more important to you to have multiple icons to pray before than one that is well made, you need to check your priorities. Your recomendation was not a good one at all.

I laugh because 1) you assume I spent more money than I would have to buy prints. 2) You assume that just because I'm not an iconographer , whatever I must have made was of poor quality. and 3) you still miss the point that some people just don't have the money to spend on these things.

I only put it out there in case anyone might want to try something similar. You say at minimum one should have an icon of Christ, Theotokos, and a Patron. Well go check skete.com. They are typically $25 for the smallest of each of these. I won't even get into what hand painted icons cost. That would be $75. I don't know about you but there have been times in my life when $20 made the difference in whether my children eat this week or not. $75 is right out the window. God has changed things since then for sure, but it would be stupid and arrogant to forget it altogether.

 

[-Kyriaki-]

Just to add to that - it's even harder if you're not in America. Parish bookstalls have icons, but they're even more expensive here than there...and the selection is limited, and almost never in English. I don't mind my icons in Greek, but I know a lot of people who don't read Greek...

So ok, what's the solution? Sure, we can save up, and slowly get the icons we want. We can buy icons online, except you forget something - if we're not in America (and even if we are, to some degree) the shipping is incredibly expensive. To the point where the shipping can easily be the same as the cost of the icon(s). Been there, done that. But while we're doing that, what is the harm in piously making much cheaper versions? Isn't the point that we are praying, and that the icons are what they are? Surely God looks at the intentions of the person praying.

I finally managed to save up enough to get a few 'proper' icons in the last few months, but until then I had just a few small laminated icon cards and tiny mounted icons I'd been given by people. We're not all rich, and can't afford to set up "nice" icon corners to begin with. And inquirers and catechumens who are early in their walk might balk at the cost, especially if they're in college or have a young family or whatever.

I understand not wanting people to "steal" icons rather than supporting the iconographer. But very few people who make these icons never go on to set up the "nice" icon corner when they can. In time, when they have the money, they can do things the way that you want them to.

 

[Anhelyna]

Hear hear Kyriaki

I'm in the same position as you - getting things from the USA is horrifyingly expensive - and many of my books have had to come that way. My Anthology of Divine Liturgy came from Canada and the shipping cost was more than the book itself - I think the final cost was $100 . I now have the Anthology [ in constant use ] the Festal Menaion and the Lenten Triodian - I'm looking for an Apostol in English - but that is proving a problem . I can get one in French - and that has to come from Belgium.


In this sort of situation you have to do what you can .

The Icons I have are mounted prints - and all have been presents given to me .

Next time my GodPapa heads off to Ukraine he knows he is to bring me back an Icon of the Guardian Angel - his is glorious and is handwritten and I should be able to afford that.

My Parish doesn't have a stall - so if I can't get hold of mounted prints - what am I supposed to do ??

I have to say that you folk in the USA do not know how fortunate you are.

 

[Khaleas]

I find it interesting that of the three iconographers on this forum, only one is being so vocal about this issue. I know of seminarians and priests that approve of the process that Intercisus is suggesting.

Frankly I think this is a matter that should be left for one's Spiritual Father to decide.

A lot of priests and seminarians don't get the education about iconography other than the basics. We went to adult ed at church last night and even if my knowledge is very basic, Father clearly felt that I knew more about it than he did.
I've seen the process of printing and mounting icons and it isn't some quick assembly line thing. The special isn't cheap and neither is the board, so the prices aren't outrageous for something that is hand produced. The icons from Skete.com are some of the best mounted icons I've ever seen. Many iconographers don't even provide the service because it's just too tedious and cash consuming.
What I think is a rip off when it come to icons. The ones who sell the Sofrino cardboard mounted icons for 20 bucks when they've spent maybe 1.50 on it... max! Even with shipping that's stiff... I can maybe forgive it in a church but on Ebay and such... nope.

 

[Khaleas]

Hear hear Kyriaki

I'm in the same position as you - getting things from the USA is horrifyingly expensive - and many of my books have had to come that way. My Anthology of Divine Liturgy came from Canada and the shipping cost was more than the book itself - I think the final cost was $100 . I now have the Anthology [ in constant use ] the Festal Menaion and the Lenten Triodian - I'm looking for an Apostol in English - but that is proving a problem . I can get one in French - and that has to come from Belgium.


In this sort of situation you have to do what you can .

The Icons I have are mounted prints - and all have been presents given to me .

Next time my GodPapa heads off to Ukraine he knows he is to bring me back an Icon of the Guardian Angel - his is glorious and is handwritten and I should be able to afford that.

My Parish doesn't have a stall - so if I can't get hold of mounted prints - what am I supposed to do ??

I have to say that you folk in the USA do not know how fortunate you are.

I'm more than willing to check other ways of shipping if the book is shipped to me first. I do that for my friends in Finland all the time and it can be a fair share cheaper than store's shipping. Plus it's less chance of something getting stuck with customs fees. Anhelyna, esp you, when I go to FInland I can take something along and mail it from there since that's even more cheap.

 

[Mikeb85]

Well, the proper position of Prayer in the Orthodox Church is to STAND if physically able. There are times of the year where you may prostrate yourself, such as Great Lent, but standing is the norm.

Here's a good article concerning standing in the Orthodox church. http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/kneeling.aspx

Kneeling and full prostrations are fully acceptable, except on Sundays, Feasts of our Lord, and the days from Pascha until Pentecost.

 

[Mikeb85]

Hey guys. I'm working on building my own icon corner at the moment and I had a few questions.

First when praying in front of the icons, should we look at them as we pray?

If you feel it helps you pray.

Also, do you guys stand or kneel when before them?

Kneel, except on days where we are to stand.

Is their any certain icons that one should get or any restrictions?

One of Christ and the Theotokos. After that, one of your patron Saint, maybe your guardian angel or an archangel, Saints you identify with, etc... You really don't need many, just one of Christ is fine.

How many icons do you all have?

Just two.

Do you use incense?

Sometimes (right now I live with other people who don't appreciate it though ).