Eleousa 2
When I started to take lessons in icon painting I was eager to practice, so I bought a second shelf to paint on. I practiced at home at both paintings. Every week I went to my teacher and he tought me the next step. And I finished it fast, so not to be bored I worked on two pieces.
Here you can see how different two of the same icons can be.
To me many of the icons have a kind of sad and serious expression on their face, which can be beautiful, but not always necessary. So I wanted to make them softer and friendlier. And you can see the difference between my first and second Eleousa.
After a while I’ve given this icon to a dear friend.
And he, some years later, gave it to a Catholic priest from Croatia. The man had been working here in The Netherlands for some years and meant a lot to my friend.
So now this icon lives somewhere in Sarajevo.
I've seen quite a lot of icons, but I've never seen any other icon with such beautiful, almost heavenly bright colours with the purest gold. Those wings of the archangels! The spiritual seagreen of the robes of both the archangels is reinforced by the orange-red robe of Mary Magdalene. Everyone who visits my home for the first time, walks straight to this icon. Genuine respect, respect, respect.
Frank van Rooij
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