Just finished

[SpiritlMuse]

I am putting things together for a prayer corner. I have incense and candles and now I just finished painting my first icon. Now do I need to have this blessed? I think so, but not sure how this goes, and then hang it up. It took a lot of time, couple of months all together (did not work on it everyday of course) it's not perfect but it means a lot to me, and I learned much as I went along for my next one. I am very happy with it for myself.

 

[ArmyMatt]

well, for starters, beautiful icon!

yeah, it'd prolly be best to get it blessed. so you should take it to the priest before Liturgy (prolly better Vespers before), and let it stay there til Liturgy is done, and then he will bless it with Holy Water.

 

[Dylan Michael]

Beautiful! Is that in the Romanian style?

 

[Dorothea]

I don't know the protocol, but how lovely!

 

[SpiritlMuse]

Thank you all for the wonderful comments. It is actually done in the Greek (Byzantine) style with acrylics. I worked out of the books from Peter Pearson "A Brush with God An Icon Workbook" and his 2nd book "Another Brush with God Further Conversations about Icons" and I also used Solrunn Nes "The Mystical Language of Icons".

I have found some mistakes that I can fix and I am going to do that.
I talked to my Priest and he says that it is not an icon because it is not done by someone who is an Iconographer and can only be done in the proper way. Mine was not painted in egg tempera. I was very sadden and felt it means more to me than purchasing a print or a copy of a print from a printer, of a icon painted in egg tempera, glued to a piece of wood. I only painted on my icon when I had time and was praying to God though out the whole process.

He did say that he will look into having a man named Zimmer I believe that does icons and conducts workshops later this year and then that workshop icon would be a icon that could be blessed.

I still plan on fixing my mistakes on this one and the next icon I plan on is going to be done in the Coptic style in acrylics also. I am sticking with acrylics because I know that there are real iconographers that use them. I don't plan on being an iconographer but I don't see why I can not paint my own icons for my own prayer corner.

 

[Joseph Hazen]

I'd be interested in what your priest thinks of our Iconostas then, which is entirely acrylic, as are the icons in the altar.

If he wanted to focus on the fact that you didn't devote yourself to the Icon entirely, fasting and praying the entire time, fine, but what the Icon is made out of doesn't matter. Why it matters if you want to paint Icons for your own private use, so long as God doesn't stop you I don't know...

I guess I should stop talking.

 

[Kristos]

Nice job!

 

[Dylan Michael]

At any rate, it's beautiful.
Better than what I could've done.

 

[buzuxi02]

He might be refering to the colors and their hues. Its also possible your priest would of wanted to see some inscriptions etc. I really dont see how the use of acrylics would disqualify it from being blessed, but improper colors, mechanical and/ or robotic looking depictions, and other stylistic liberties could.

My constructive crticism is that for your first icon i think its good, just the colors of the veil and Jesus clothes are abit off to me, and if you can add some more detail and expression to the faces, i cant see how any priest wouldnt bless it .

 

[ikonographics]

Sadly, priests are often very ignorrant regarding iconography. While I don't like the use of acrylics, it is certainly not what makes something an icon or not. I do recommmend that if you want to paint icons, that you take lessons and have the blessing of your spiritual father. It is not something that someone just decides to do as a spiritual meditation. There are specific painting techniques required and you need to have an understanding of how the byzantine way of painting works and its meaning and purpose. And for an icon to be an icon it also needs to have the proper inscriptions of the name of the person depicted and "Ὁ ὬΝ" in the halo of Christ which is probably why the priest will not bless this particular painting.
If you have the opportunity to have lessons, go for it!

 

[Ortho_Cat]

I am putting things together for a prayer corner. I have incense and candles and now I just finished painting my first icon. Now do I need to have this blessed? I think so, but not sure how this goes, and then hang it up. It took a lot of time, couple of months all together (did not work on it everyday of course) it's not perfect but it means a lot to me, and I learned much as I went along for my next one. I am very happy with it for myself.

I like it I can really notice the inner gaze on the Theotokos

 

[rusmeister]

I'll repeat what Ikonographics said about it being really important to be trained. Definitely do NOT attempt it icon writing on your own!!!

 

[Protoevangel]

SpiritlMuse,

You have some great advice in this thread. I also found your first Icon to be beautiful.

These words of ikonographics should be heeded. She is an experienced Iconographer (in case you didn't already know).

Sadly, priests are often very ignorrant regarding iconography. While I don't like the use of acrylics, it is certainly not what makes something an icon or not. I do recommmend that if you want to paint icons, that you take lessons and have the blessing of your spiritual father. It is not something that someone just decides to do as a spiritual meditation. There are specific painting techniques required and you need to have an understanding of how the byzantine way of painting works and its meaning and purpose. And for an icon to be an icon it also needs to have the proper inscriptions of the name of the person depicted and "Ὁ ὬΝ" in the halo of Christ which is probably why the priest will not bless this particular painting.
If you have the opportunity to have lessons, go for it!

 

[Joshua G.]

Your icon is very beautiful. I can definitely see how you would feel torn.

Look at it this way. icons have a long-standing tradition behind them that have specific rules to express specific meaning. They are different from prayerful paintings since they have that added aspect of following canonical (or at least long-standing tradition) guidelines in order to teach a common people.

So, I can understand why your priest might be reluctant to treat something that certainly looks like an icon to me! but that is not done by someone trained in all the ins and outs.

That said, I don't believe that means you can't keep it to pray with and certainly doesn't mean that God can't and doesn't work through it. I've told this before here (so I apologize for harping on this story) but I remember going to a Cathedral somewhere in Spain (I believe it was in Madrid) and in one of the side chapels there was an almost life-size statue of Christ-- hands tied and head crowned in thorns. It genuinely moved me to a place near repentance (I suspect if it moved to true repentance I would have lost it right there). Certainly God worked through that statue.

And, check on this but I don't think there is anything wrong with you blessing it with holy water from the last feast day. it doesn't replace a priest's blessing, but it's still Holy water.

Just a thought

Josh

 

[Fotina]

Sadly, priests are often very ignorrant regarding iconography. While I don't like the use of acrylics, it is certainly not what makes something an icon or not. I do recommmend that if you want to paint icons, that you take lessons and have the blessing of your spiritual father. It is not something that someone just decides to do as a spiritual meditation. There are specific painting techniques required and you need to have an understanding of how the byzantine way of painting works and its meaning and purpose. And for an icon to be an icon it also needs to have the proper inscriptions of the name of the person depicted and "Ὁ ὬΝ" in the halo of Christ which is probably why the priest will not bless this particular painting.
If you have the opportunity to have lessons, go for it!

Is there a requirement for iconographers to be Orthodox? I think the op is still an inquirer.

 

[SpiritlMuse]

Thank you all for your kind words on my painting. I would love to take lessons, but I am not looking to become a iconographer really, at least I don't think so, only God knows what my path will become.

My priest never saw my picture that I painted, all I did is ask him, "could we paint our own for our selves and be blessed". He did not know that it was done in acrylics, it was just a flat out NO, and then he went on as to why, but did say that he would bless those done in a workshop by us taught by an iconographer that he knows. So if certain prayers are to be said how can that be so when you are being taught by someone in a 3 day or so workshop, and he would consider these icons that he would bless. Doesn't sound right to me, but that is okay, I understand that there is much more to it than I know at this time.

I know that I made some mistakes, I am thinking of fixing baby Jesus's clothes, they should be the same color as the orange/red trim on the Theotokos per the instructions in the workbook.

Rusmeiser, I am not sure what you mean by NOT to attempt to write icons. I have some icon workbooks that I am using by iconographers, and I only do what they say, I am not doing anything on my own per sa.

 

[gracefullamb]

Thank you all for your kind words on my painting. I would love to take lessons, but I am not looking to become a iconographer really, at least I don't think so, only God knows what my path will become.

My priest never saw my picture that I painted, all I did is ask him, "could we paint our own for our selves and be blessed". He did not know that it was done in acrylics, it was just a flat out NO, and then he went on as to why, but did say that he would bless those done in a workshop by us taught by an iconographer that he knows. So if certain prayers are to be said how can that be so when you are being taught by someone in a 3 day or so workshop, and he would consider these icons that he would bless. Doesn't sound right to me, but that is okay, I understand that there is much more to it than I know at this time.

I know that I made some mistakes, I am thinking of fixing baby Jesus's clothes, they should be the same color as the orange/red trim on the Theotokos per the instructions in the workbook.

Rusmeiser, I am not sure what you mean by NOT to attempt to write icons. I have some icon workbooks that I am using by iconographers, and I only do what they say, I am not doing anything on my own per sa.

First let me say it is quite lovely and I am sure as you have pointed out yourself you can fix mistakes that are present. With that said you are indeed attempting to write icons on your own and you are also not doing what your spiritual father told you to do. He gave you permission to write an icon if you go to a workshop. If you go to the workshop he will bless the icon and give you permissionto use the icon for yourself. The issue here isn't so much in my opinion about if your icon is correct or not. The issue here in my opinion is about obedience. Your spiritual father told you what to do (go to an icon workshop) now you can chose to be an obedient spiritual daughter and do it or ignore. Since you now know from this point on what you must do if you chose to ignore it you are being disobedient. I am sorry if my sating this bluntly causes offense for I do not mean to do that.

 

[Ortho_Cat]

I'm not sure if anyone has ever said this before:

It is better to paint the most simple icon out of humility rather than to paint the most elaborate one out of pride.

 

[SpiritlMuse]

First let me say it is quite lovely and I am sure as you have pointed out yourself you can fix mistakes that are present. With that said you are indeed attempting to write icons on your own and you are also not doing what your spiritual father told you to do. He gave you permission to write an icon if you go to a workshop. If you go to the workshop he will bless the icon and give you permissionto use the icon for yourself. The issue here isn't so much in my opinion about if your icon is correct or not. The issue here in my opinion is about obedience. Your spiritual father told you what to do (go to an icon workshop) now you can chose to be an obedient spiritual daughter and do it or ignore. Since you now know from this point on what you must do if you chose to ignore it you are being disobedient. I am sorry if my sating this bluntly causes offense for I do not mean to do that.

I know exactly what you are saying, it may seem that I am being disobedient by continuing to paint, I need to practice. Like I said I understand that my paintings are not icons, and I totally understand what my father said to me.

It has been about 25 years since I painted with acrylics and more with oils, I switched to charcoals and then went to water colors when I had children. The last style of painting I learned in college in 1987 (I would have been an art teacher if I had my own choice back then) was Chinese Brush Painting which uses natural inks and instead of using your hand and wrist and you use your arm and shoulder, it is a whole different style of painting. Lately I have only done a little painting making my cloth art dolls.

My Mother was an artist too, but her oils/acrylics were dried up and I just got more. Anyone who paints or draws will tell you that you need to practice to get better. I also want to learn how to paint with egg tempera paints per the "correct way" and the instructions. Now I don't think that practicing is being disobedient.

 

[SpiritlMuse]

I'm not sure if anyone has ever said this before:

It is better to paint the most simple icon out of humility rather than to paint the most elaborate one out of pride.

O, I just love that!