Seek
Eastertide 2014
voices from the
Episcopal Diocese of Missouri
An icon for St. Paul’s
Alert! Christ breaking into the world
Artist Evan Smith, new member at the church was asked by his priest, “Would you create something for here?” His first religious work turned out to be a 7 foot icon, now hanging above the altar.
They didn’t plan it this way. It was to be a piece of art, perhaps for a minor area of the church, based on illuminated manuscripts. But as Evan Smith and his priest, Robert Ard talked, they envisioned an image of the resurrected Jesus Christ, particularly appropriate for the parish that is experiencing a rebirth. “We looked through a lot of old English manuscripts,” said Evan, “and the illuminated Bible. Then I came up with a preliminary drawing, based on the reading we had done. Robert wanted the bright colors of a manuscript.” Many illuminations have the reds and blues, but do not have the gold that icons have. Evan sketched out his ideas and they decided to scale up the size. Priest and parishioner went to Lowe’s and bought the largest piece of wood they could find, a seven foot tall panel. The wood at home in his basement, Evan gessoed the surface like icon painters of yore. He reinforced the board, sketched his drawing on a grid and then onto the panel and began to paint in oil. Evan recounts, “Robert came over and said, ‘This is going to be really big.’ And that’s when the fear set in. For any
In a spiritual morass, Michaelene Miller travels to Taize, France, to slow down and hear Christ.
artist with a blank canvas, you have an idea of where you are going but you don’t really know for sure how it will turn out.”
Taking it one color at a time.
They wanted to incorporate the colors from the stained glass in the sanctuary. The icon colors are also bright to simulate light shining through the painting as it does through church glass. Around the border are circles patterned with a stained glass design, each different. Evan explained, “The underlying idea is we’re all different people coming together to make one church.” Each of the colors, the reds, the golds, the purples, are all done in threes. “That represents the trinity—another symbol. There are a lot of continued next page
Last year, Lent was really difficult for me. I couldn’t settle on one specific Lenten practice. My mind was all over the place because of the stress of all my responsibilities senior year. To top it off, I was a few months in to discerning a call to the priesthood with my discernment committee… and I just wasn’t feeling spiritually moved by God. At all. My life had become too loud. So, I left the country. I intentionally left the area, my work, my friends, and my family. With the last of my scholarship I went to Taize, France for spring break 2013 with the hopes of a spiritual re-awakening. Maybe it was jet-lag, but time went slowly there. I marinated in prayer three times each day. Only four of us were native English speakers. I had ample time for silence and reflection, and the few conversations I did have made me think. The presentations and bible studies were so different from my college classes that I was, for the first time in a long while, fully alert and present. The spirit of Jesus was tangible in this place. He broke into my tired, distracted heart and I was moved to pray again. continued on page 10
ph: 314-231-1220 www.DioceseMo.org Episcopal Diocese of Missouri Offices of the Bishop 1210 Locust St. St. Louis, Missouri 63103
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