portfolio > icon paintings

These 23 icon paintings reflect a completed series, executed from 2006-2007. In 2005, I moved to Greece temporarily. I was immediately fascinated by the role the Greek Orthodox iconography plays in the lives of the Greeks. To them, the icons occupy the space that a living person would. The icons have a presence not just in religious spaces, but also in businesses and homes.

In Santorini, I met an icon painter who briefly demonstrated his process. He explained that icon painting, though straightforward in its readability, is actually the first example of conceptual art, as it is not the person being depicted, but the idea of the person. It took centuries to refine the iconography so it reflected the exact mythology surrounding the saint, with only a few carefully considered signifiers.

Back in the States, I began appropriating the Greek Orthodox aesthetic to examine the relationships in my own life, the relationships that I have often defined myself by. I began setting up photo shoots with friends and family. Sometimes I would approach the person with an idea, and sometimes they would arrive with their own. But most of the time, the photo shoot became a synthesis of the way I viewed the person and they way they wanted to be viewed. The aim and the result is an almost Platonic view of the person—the way they exist timelessly, in my mind, as ideas. The finished series was eventually installed in a recreation of my bedroom, filled with artifacts of these various relationships. Here I could sleep surrounded by the icons, which function as stand-ins for the people I want to keep close.

The icons are on permanent display at the L5P Music Center in Atlanta.

Dad (Crucifixion, with Lesli and Gussie)
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
13.5 x 21.75 in.
2006
Mom (Crucifixion, with David and Rachel)
Acrylic, marker, glitter and gold leaf on wood
13.5 x 21.75 in.
2006
St. Bubbie of Miami Beach, Patron saint of bagels, Bubbies and the disabled
Acrylic, marker, glitter and gold leaf on wood
14 x 11.25 in.
2006
St. Alice the Duke of Fun, Patron saint of cats and human rights
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
12 x 18 in.
2006
St. Chris the Art Lover, Patron saint of Miami and the underprivileged
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
6.7 x 7.7 in.
2006
St. Manos of Newports, Patron saint of New Jersey and ecstasy
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
11.3 x 7 in.
2006
St. Lisa of Excess, Patron saint of young girls and the insane
Acrylic, marker, lace and gold leaf on wood
6 x 7.7 in.
2006
St. Jordan with Book, Patron saint of writers, travelers and fidelity
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
6.25 x 9 in.
2006
St. Zach of Fluorescents,
Patron saint of New York, hip-hop and lox
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
7.75 x 10.5 in.
2007
St. Cliff of the Purim Party,
Patron saint of visionaries, charisma and chaos
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
7.75 by 11 in.
2006
St. Janet of Canvas and Oil,
Patron saint of artists and unmarried women
Acrylic, marker, gravel, gold leaf on wood
6 in x 6.25 in.
2007
St. Elinor of the Long Skirts, Patron saint of penitence and fertility
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
4.75 x 7.5 in.
2006
St. Mike of the Drums,
Patron saint of musicians, acceptance and calm
Acrylic, marker, gold leaf on drumhead
14.5 in. diameter
2006
St. Misha with Tea,
Patron saint of Russia, creativity and community
Acrylic, marker, gold leaf on drumhead
6 x 9.25 in.
2007
St. Damien of Office Gossip
Patron saint of models and homosexuals
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
6 x 7 in.
2007
St. Nicole of Birthday Blues, Patron saint of friendship between women
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
3.5 x 3.75 in.
2007
St. Robby, Patron saint of humor, insomniacs and brotherhood
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
3.25 x 4 in.
2007
St. Muss, the Dark Angel,
Patron saint of rockstars
Acrylic, marker and gold leaf on wood
11 x 13 in.
2006