The technique of icon-painting

The first stage was the preparation of the panel. It was always made of dry, well-seasoned wood. The panels were stuck together and reinforced with slats, strips of wood that were either added to the reverse side or inserted in specially made grooves. The central section ("kovcheg") of the front was recessed and had raised margins ("polya") all round it. So the representation was in this recessed central area, and the margins around it formed a kind of frame. The technique for working the panel, its proportions and the relationship of the margins to the central area, the slats and the method by which they were fixed are important for attributing and dating an icon.

A piece of linen ("pavoloka") was placed on the prepared board that had been covered with hot glue. When the linen had dried, it was covered with layers of "gesso", a ground made of chalk and sturgeon glue. The gesso was then polished until the surface was completely smooth. After that the master began work on the composition. He applied the contour drawing in thin paint or with a sharp instrument. The paints were prepared from mineral pigments, for which coloured clay, ground malachite and lazurite or mercury vermilion were used. Vegetable dyes were also used. The technique for icon-painting is usually called tempera, meaning that an egg yolk was the binding agent. But icon-painters are also known to have used sturgeon glue, cherry resin and other binding agents There are some written sources, the so-called "Masterovki", that reveal the secrets of icon-painting.

The most widespread method was the "flesh tinting" method, when a dark colour was applied at first, which remained uncovered in shaded areas, then lighter shades, ending with the application of "highlights", pure white and coloured (Jots and lines. This method made it possible, on the one hand, to convey depth in the faces and figures and, on the other, to create the special effect of a luminescent paint surface. After applying the various layers of paint and adding the inscriptions, which were an essential part of the canon, the artist covered the icon with either linseed or poppy oil. This layer added a special luminescence and hardness, which protected the paint from cracking or peeling. Some types of oil intended only for particularly valuable icons contained amber that had been heated to a liquid state. This added a warm, goldenish tone. Under this layer of oil the paints, which had been prepared from semi-precious stones, shone out like the stones themselves. This symphony of colour lasted for centuries. Tempera paint hardly fades at all.

Fresco-painting

Painting a church with frescoes required a high degree of skill. The technique of fresco-painting, i.e., painting on wet plaster, is a particularly difficult one. The artist has a very short time in which to produce complete compositions before the plaster dries. A carefully prepared ground was applied to the wall in one or two layers, covering a small area that could be painted in a single day. The ground dried quickly, so the master could not afford lo make any mistakes in applying both the drawing and the layers of paint. The pure blues, ochres, greens, whites, reds and cherry shades that the mediaeval fresco-painters loved so much produced a rich and impressive colour range. As the icon-painting the technique of applying the different layers of paint was strictly regulated and carefully elaborated. The main colour surfaces were applied first, then worked with consecutive applications of shaded and lit areas.

Historical sources have preserved few names of artists. The whole mediaeval period tended towards anonymity. This is explained by the fact that the very process of creation involved the use of models, canons. Artists had little independence. The important thing was the object represented, not the icon-painter or his name. Yet at the same time icon-painters enjoyed special respect in the Middle Ages. Many names of artists can be found in the 17th-century literary work "The Tale of the Holy Icon-Painters". Pride of place is giving to the founder of icon-painting in Russia, Alimpia, who lived in the 11th century. The Moscow monk Andrei Rublev, whose name embodies the whole of Russian mediaeval art, also enjoyed special fame.

The fate of mediaeval Russian painting is quite dramatic. For many centuries it was hidden from the eyes of lovers of antiquity by layers of darkened linseed oil and overpainting. Icons and frescoes were "renovated" from time to time, which meant that they were practically repainted, often with a complete change of iconography in keeping with the prevailing fashion, sometimes even of the subject as well. Old icons were often put away in attics, bell-towers, while peeling frescoes were hacked off the walls and completely repainted. The 20th century brought freedom and rebirth. At the beginning of the century restorers learnt how to clean the original painting, removing carefully all the subsequent layers. Thanks to their skill the radiant colours regained their original beauty, together with the special spiritual nobility and harmony of the images. The first exhibitions of these restored icons amazed the public. It became clear that a hitherto unknown world of great spiritual depth and potential had been discovered.