Byzantine Icon Study: Adding Color and Detail

Overview:

Today in art class, students will continue their replication of the 6th-century icon The Virgin and Child with Saints and Angels, preserved at Saint Catherine’s Monastery on Mount Sinai.

Last week, students created a pencil outline drawing, focusing on the main shapes and forms. This week they will move into the next stage of imitation — adding details and then carefully applying color.

Students will use colored pencils to complete their icon studies, paying close attention to the use of the primary colors (red, blue, and yellow) and how these stand out in the original icon. This lesson helps students connect their understanding of color harmony with historical Christian art, reinforcing that Byzantine icons were designed not to look “ordinary,” but to offer a glimpse of heavenly reality.

Students will:

• Refine their pencil drawings by adding details (faces, robes, thrones, halos, angels).
• Apply color carefully, noting where the primary colors are placed and how they create balance.
• Continue practicing observation, imitation, and patience as they complete their icon studies.

Note: This is an in-class assignment. Final presentations will take place next week on September 25th.