SACRED ARTS
In the Orthodox tradition, art in all its varieties is intended to portray the beauty of the created world and God's continuing love for all mankind. Iconography is a special form intended to teach as well as to adorn. Many Orthodox artists express their spiritual journey by creating pieces that speak to the Truth as they have experienced it, rather than portraying specific teachings of Church doctrine.
Tatiana Nikolova-Houston, Ph.D
Tatiana was born in Bulgaria in 1961. She studied Landscape Architecture and designed parks and spaces for recreation and meditation. In 1990, she came to America, married, and received a Master’s degree in Religious Studies and in Library and Information Science, studying and preserving South Slavic (Bulgarian) medieval manuscripts. Her doctoral dissertation revealed the 'secret history' of the Balkans during Ottoman rule (1393-1878) by studying manuscript marginal notes.
"In 2008, I started to re-create and re-interpret Byzantine and South Slavic iconography and manuscript illuminations, teaching Western audiences about the simple and meaningful illuminations created by Slavic scribes. I use the materials that they would have used: gold and metallic inks and acrylic paints, embellished by Swarovski crystals. The illuminations reflect the joy of spirituality, emphasizing the themes of the Light within and without and the Tree of Life as major inspirations. Her catalog currently includes more than 500 titles.
Scott McManus--Soviet Era Russian Painting Exhibit
This exhibit displays a range of paintings that reflect the history of Soviet restrictions on depicting churches and other images. For example, for a certain period, artists could not include crosses in their paintings of churches and monasteries. As a result, the domes were often depicted in a way that obscured them. Many of the non-religious works also reflect Byzantine influence in perspective and lighting. Each painting will include an informative abstract about the artist and its significance. The exhibit host will be available to answer questions for patrons, exploring topics such as :
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Communism/Socialism leveraging art as sacred image to push humanism and propaganda
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Western vs Byzantine art style reflected in Soviet art
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Folk art as cultural proxy for the Orthodox icon
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Censorship, expression, official art in all of the arts
