I have chosen to complete the art track assignment for research project assignment. I intend to recreate a the late Byzantine icon of Archangel Gabriel which is housed at the St. Catherine Monastery in Sinai, Egypt. (below)
The catalogue of the icons at St. Catherine's gives the following as a description of this icon:
"One of the masterpieces of Byzantine art, this icon shows the archangel Gabriel as a youth of extreme beauty. His graceful posture and harmonious gestures, along with the calmness of his face, are evocative of classical art.According to the eleventh-century writer Michael Psellos, a fillet such as that around the curly hair signified the purity, chastity and incorruptibility of the angels. Gabriel's function as a messenger is indicated by the walking staff he holds in his left hand, while makes a gesture of adoration and supplication with his right hand. This icon is undoubtedly part of larger group, probably forming a Deesis. It was not unusual for angels to part of Deesis ensembles. The Sinai Gabriel would have been paired with an icon of the archangel Michael, which is also located today in the bema of the basilica at the Monastery of Saint Catherine.The dating of the icon is problematic. It is very likely that the icon was painted in Sinai, but this cannot be confirmed. In any case, the high quality of the work indicates a greatly skilled and talented artist, trained in a major artistic center."(http://www.thecityreview.com/byzant.html)
I must mention here that a Deesis, or Deisis, is an icon depicting Christ in Majesty or Christ Pantokrator, enthroned. He is shown carrying a book, the liturgy, with Mary and St. John the Baptist at his side. Often other saints and angels are included, all facing towards Christ their hands raised in supplication. This icon was likely part of a group of icons forming a Deesis.
It is my intention that whenever possible I will use traditional methods and material in the writing of my icon. An interesting note here is that is icon is "written" not "painted" and that one viewing an icon is said to "read" it. The terminology reinforces the the rules that icon writer must follow. An artist doesn't write an icon with a personal creative effort. Rather a set of rules, expectations, are followed. Everything included in an icon has meaning, and as such the icon is read, the viewer reading the images and understanding their symbolic meaning.
I will use The 'Painter's Manual' of Dionysius of Fourna as well as the Trinity Cathedral's Iconography Institute as sources for the physical recreation of the icon. Other research sources I am using are Constantine Cavarnos' Guide to Byzantine Iconography; Kurt Weitzman's contributions in The Icon, and Likeness and Presence by Hans Belting.
I will update this blog as I move through the process, sharing what I have learned along the way and will include photos of my work in progress. Note that blog entries will be viewed from most newest to oldest.
Amended Bibliography
The 'Painter's Manual' of Dionysius of Fourna. Translated by Paul Hetherington. London: The Sagittarius Press, 1974.
Belting,Hans . Likeness and Presence a History of the Image before the Era of Art. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994.
Cavarnos,Constantine. Guide to Byzantine Iconography. II, Boston: Holy Transfiguration Monastery, 2001.
Cavarnos,Constantine. Orthodox Iconography. Belmont: The Institute for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies, 1977.
Cormac,Robin. Icons. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2007.
