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TK421
Guest
Anybody here pursue any kind of art (secular art too) either as a profession or as a hobby? How do you recommend a curious person get started practicing & experimenting?
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Bluebright
Guest
Well I paint, I always have. I studied it in uni many moons ago. I didn’t do it as a career but became sick and lost my career and am now retired. So among my main jobs (resting and being ill 
) I occasionally paint, often seascapes and portraits amongst my family…however because of my love of God, my paintings have begun to reflect this over the last few years (I have only been retired and back to painting 4yrs). I wouldn’t really say my paintings are iconography though perhaps my understanding of the term is limited. My paintings are usually very realistic and ‘emotional’ and are often mysteries of the rosary or of Mary. My avatar pic is one of the Garden of gethsemane.
As for getting started, practice is the way to go. Our parish has lessons specifically in iconographic art, ask around perhaps there may be some in your area? or google them and see if youtube has lessons. This goes for both general and iconographic art. Practice is key, it’s like learning a new language, the more effort you put in the better you’ll get. You cannot expect to be great from the off, even if you have talent. So don’t give up. Good luck
) I occasionally paint, often seascapes and portraits amongst my family…however because of my love of God, my paintings have begun to reflect this over the last few years (I have only been retired and back to painting 4yrs). I wouldn’t really say my paintings are iconography though perhaps my understanding of the term is limited. My paintings are usually very realistic and ‘emotional’ and are often mysteries of the rosary or of Mary. My avatar pic is one of the Garden of gethsemane.As for getting started, practice is the way to go. Our parish has lessons specifically in iconographic art, ask around perhaps there may be some in your area? or google them and see if youtube has lessons. This goes for both general and iconographic art. Practice is key, it’s like learning a new language, the more effort you put in the better you’ll get. You cannot expect to be great from the off, even if you have talent. So don’t give up. Good luck
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Benadam
Guest
If you already understand the symbolic language that underlies the truths of faith, the language of symbols that are universal expressions of Sacred Scriptures and Tradition. If you know that and some history of the art, I think if you know a little of those things you can start painting. Practicing the traditional styles would be necessary too.
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midori
Guest
For something that’s as abstract and symbolic as iconography (not to mention, expensive!!!), I’d definitely suggest signing up for a formal class for your first three/four/five icons, just to give you an idea as to the basics-- how to handle your pigments (are you going for the Russian petit-lac method, or the Greek crosshatching method?); do you know how to use clay bole to gild; are you using egg tempera vs acrylic; are you using a flat panel vs a board with a kovcheg; do you understand how to layer your colors; do you understand how to handle your lines; do you understand the symbolism of the shapes of different lines; etc.
Then, once you’re getting into more intermediate levels, you have the education and the experience to work intelligently, rather than blindly.
So, for example, there’s a class in Santa Fe, NM, June 11-16, 2018. You might try emailing the coordinator and asking how often they have other classes in addition to that one. It will probably be either six days straight of painting 9 am - 6 pm Mon-Sat in a classroom setting, or a Th/Fri/Sat x 2 of 9-6 work. It will probably be about $100-$150 in materials (the board, gold, possibly brushes, use of the class pigments) plus about a $550’ish instructor’s fee. (Not bad for about 50 hours’ worth of work.)
Likewise, I know of a Russian icon class that happened earlier this spring over at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Las Cruces. You might connect with them on FB and see if there’s anything scheduled for 2018.
Anyhow, the guidance the first few (several!) times is definitely worth it.
(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)
Then, once you’re getting into more intermediate levels, you have the education and the experience to work intelligently, rather than blindly.
So, for example, there’s a class in Santa Fe, NM, June 11-16, 2018. You might try emailing the coordinator and asking how often they have other classes in addition to that one. It will probably be either six days straight of painting 9 am - 6 pm Mon-Sat in a classroom setting, or a Th/Fri/Sat x 2 of 9-6 work. It will probably be about $100-$150 in materials (the board, gold, possibly brushes, use of the class pigments) plus about a $550’ish instructor’s fee. (Not bad for about 50 hours’ worth of work.)
Likewise, I know of a Russian icon class that happened earlier this spring over at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Las Cruces. You might connect with them on FB and see if there’s anything scheduled for 2018.
Anyhow, the guidance the first few (several!) times is definitely worth it.
(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)
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Hereiam
Guest
Read and deeply ponder scripture and words of Fathers and Doctors of the Church…and write, write, write…because icons are not painted, they are written, making iconagraphers authors first and foremost!
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ColorMomma
Guest
I’m an art teacher currently working on my masters degree in art education. I have also painted large scale murals in parks and other public places. I would recommend signing up for some beginning classes at a community college or museum. Sometimes a city parks and recreation department or art stores will have classes for adults. There are lots of great books and youtube tutorials out there. I painted this St. Joseph and Infant Christ at a local Catholic school. (Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)
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edwest211
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Get some good books on human anatomy, with drawings, not photos. Learn how to draw different materials like cloth, wood, metal, etc. realistically. That way, the shapes can be modified to suit a particular type of iconography. Art classes in most schools are usually a waste of time. Art, today, is mostly about distortion and throwing paint against a canvas. No good. Pointless. Art is a communication medium. If I can’t figure out a bunch of random shapes then nothing is communicated.
I would recommend taking Industrial Design, now called Product Design, classes. You will learn how to draw different materials, lighting, perspective, and why different colors affect us in different ways. Regular art classes still suffer from the distortion culture or random shapes have meaning (somehow) culture. Make sure the class will cover all of these things before signing up.
As an assistant art director, I see a lot of art from different people. I’m called in to quickly assess and explain why four pencil roughs for a cover work or don’t work. Design elements, how to guide the eye through an image, static versus dynamic, and specific elements that ‘tell a story’ that need to be part of the image or should be. I have to know all of these things and it’s difficult to grasp a lot of this without a solid foundation in realism. I have to do the same with black and white illustrations. Combining creative font choices into a cover image is a specialty. The wrong shapes and sizes will complement or ruin an image. A recent example was a cover that was well-drawn but the headline/title was not working. My suggestion was to put a soft edged, white outline on the title. It worked because the title was "sticking’ to the background and the outline gave it just enough separation. Our head art director and our assistant graphic designer agreed and the cover was approved for publication.
I would recommend taking Industrial Design, now called Product Design, classes. You will learn how to draw different materials, lighting, perspective, and why different colors affect us in different ways. Regular art classes still suffer from the distortion culture or random shapes have meaning (somehow) culture. Make sure the class will cover all of these things before signing up.
As an assistant art director, I see a lot of art from different people. I’m called in to quickly assess and explain why four pencil roughs for a cover work or don’t work. Design elements, how to guide the eye through an image, static versus dynamic, and specific elements that ‘tell a story’ that need to be part of the image or should be. I have to know all of these things and it’s difficult to grasp a lot of this without a solid foundation in realism. I have to do the same with black and white illustrations. Combining creative font choices into a cover image is a specialty. The wrong shapes and sizes will complement or ruin an image. A recent example was a cover that was well-drawn but the headline/title was not working. My suggestion was to put a soft edged, white outline on the title. It worked because the title was "sticking’ to the background and the outline gave it just enough separation. Our head art director and our assistant graphic designer agreed and the cover was approved for publication.
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Mary888
Guest
Iconography and religious painting are two different things. In iconography you have to learn how to copy and not alter existing icons. You must also pray before and during painting them. It is a ritual.
In religious art you just have to know how to paint and learn religious themes, read the Bible for inspiration. Any art class will do. What you need it for is that you have one observer - teacher - to inspect if your proportions are correct because she/he has the eye trained. In time you will get a trained eye. But you need some guidance in the start.
All great master painters had teachers. Go for it and enroll. They will tell you what materials to buy.
God bless
In religious art you just have to know how to paint and learn religious themes, read the Bible for inspiration. Any art class will do. What you need it for is that you have one observer - teacher - to inspect if your proportions are correct because she/he has the eye trained. In time you will get a trained eye. But you need some guidance in the start.
All great master painters had teachers. Go for it and enroll. They will tell you what materials to buy.
God bless
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edwest211
Guest
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