King David was the greatest king of Israel, author of the psalms, father of Solomon and noble ancestor of Our Lord. This powerful 15th century Russian prototype was originally part of the prophet’s tier of an icon screen and is kept in Moscow’s Tretyakov Gallery. This is one of the best and highest examples of the Moscow school of Russian Orthodox Iconography.
In this sacred art workshop students will make a shoulder length copy of the face, crown and upper robe on a flat 8” x 10” gesso wood panel. After making a careful drawing in ink, students make their own paint by mixing egg yolks with natural pigments. We parallel the model’s historical technique step by step, applying color in several successively brighter layers.
One technical challenge is the long rays of light in his crown and collar. Strong but fine calligraphic lines define the overall drawing and final system of parallel highlights in the hair, beard and face. His elderly face is creased with wisdom. Its glowing forms are revealed with several layers of softly blended transparent passages of tone, building to a full opacity in the brightest areas. Each brushstroke is accompanied with the prayer “Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me a sinner”.
All materials and tools needed to complete an icon are provided. Students attending the workshop need to arrive with basic brush skills, a familiarity with the color wheel and experience mixing colors.
This week-long workshop’s studio time lasts five consecutive days. Check in begins Sunday night at 4:30. Dinner is served at 5:30 pm for students and instructors. Dinner is followed by a workshop introduction and conference, which ends at 9:00 pm. Hands-on instruction begins early Monday morning. The last meal is lunch on Friday. The art studio will be available Friday afternoon to complete your icon.
About the instructor: Marek Czarnecki is an artist, iconographer, restorer and community scholar for Connecticut’s Polish-American Community. Originally from Bristol CT, Marek graduated from the School of Visual Arts in New York City.
An unexpected commission began his three decades studying historical Byzantine iconography. In 1996, the Connecticut Commission on the Arts awarded him its Painting Fellowship, which he received for a second time in 2004.
An apprenticeship grant from the CT Traditional Arts program allowed him to study for 15 years under noted Russian Orthodox icon painter Ksenia Pokrovsky, with whom he taught workshops nationally. His icons are marked by a loyalty to canonical criteria, historical materials and a high level of craftsmanship. They serve many diverse ethnic communities, building an ecumenical bridge between east and west.
His icons hang in homes and public spaces across the US, including the Franciscan University of Steubenville, The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Springfield IL, St. Thomas More Chapel at Yale University and St Meinrad’s Seminary. the United States Council of Catholic Bishops choice his icon of “Jesus Christ the Eternal High Priest” to commemorate the year of the priest; over a million copies were printed and distributed internationally. He has restored hundreds of church statues, murals, and lectures on the importance of sacred art in American immigrant communities, which disappear with each church closing.
He has curated several exhibitions on the art and material culture of Connecticut’s Polish community and was featured in the WGBY documentary “Sharing Stories: Polish Life in Our Valley”. Interviews and articles about the iconographer have appeared in the New York Times, The Hartford Courant, CT Public Radio, The St Anthony Messenger, The Catholic Digest, Our Sunday Visitor et al. He continues to work and teach out of his studio in Meriden CT.
More info about the event:
Email: info@endersisland.org
Phone: 860-536-0565
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/St-Edmunds-Sacred-Art-Institute/61555944520588/
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