Icon painting appeared not as art for art’s sake, but for the Church. Thus, its content was determined directly by the needs and the purposes of the Church. These purposes were not material but spiritual. The content of icon painting was interwoven with the life, the evolution, and the whole tradition of the Church.
The Church was primarily interested in the beauty of this spiritual world and, with the means it possessed it tried to interpret that world.
When we look at icons, we are struck by their apparent simplicity, by their overemphasized flatness, unreal colours, lack of perspective, and strange proportions.
To be able to appreciate the spiritual depth of icon painting we must learn at least the basic “grammar” of this language.
ABC of Icon Painting:
| 1.
| frontality
| This frontality brings the figures in direct relationship with the viewer and gives the fullest expression to the faces
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| 2.
| indication of each sensory organ
| The faces of the saints have large, almond-shaped eyes, enlarged ears, long thin noses, and small mouths
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| 3.
| complete flatness and lack of perspective
| In order to avoid the illusion of three-dimensionality
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| 4.
| inverted perspective
| Psychological perspective; attention should be drawn to what is central and larger rather than to what is marginal and small
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| 5.
| “uncover” of events
| When painters depict an event which took place inside, in an interior, they place all the participants in the event outside, indicating in the background the walls of the house, church, palace, or city
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| 6.
| no shadows
| The only light in icons is the inner light of sacred figures and the divine light of Christ
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| 7.
| “continuous style”
| Icon has the ability to represent several moments of the same action, storyon the panel
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| | | Symbols in Christianity
Lily – an emblem of chastity (pure in word and thought), innocence and purity;
Vesica – (lat. Fish-bladder) – an emblem of glory;
Nimbus – a halo of light placed round the head of an eminent personage.
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· Icon gives information to the observer as a book to the literate;
· Icon reminds about the primary beauty and purity of a human;
· Icon leads to the thinking about spiritual world;
· Icon is filled with the divine favour;
· Icon is an item of worshipping helping to limit the pride.
Insert the missed words to complete the text:
