I was recently commissioned to paint a portrait of St. Thomas Aquinas, the patron saint of education and universities, in the Eastern Catholic style. Needless to say, I jumped at the opportunity to try my hand at the ancient art form of icon painting.
Although the history and practice of icon painting is steeped in methods and techniques involving prayers and rituals beyond my own capacity, I do believe it is important to bring some kind of ritual and meditative aspect into any form of art making. That said, I think this commission goes hand in hand with my recent body of work and shares some of my own ideas about the mystic practice of painting and drawing.
More news as the painting develops, as of now, I've just completed the underpainting, so I'll be working on glazing up the face and hands to bring out the "glow" of the flesh, and then working at the clothing and the dove.
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