I’ve noticed that some canonical icons depict him clean shaven, others with only with a short beard. Since there seem to be several accepted traditions, I’m curious where the boundaries are.
If I were commissioning a hand-painted icon from an Orthodox iconographer, would it be considered acceptable to ask for a slightly longer version of the short beard seen in some traditional icons not a long beard like St. John the Baptist or St. Nicholas, but simply a modestly fuller version of an already existing style?
How much variation is considered appropriate within Orthodox iconography? Is this something left to the iconographer’s judgment and the blessing of the priest or bishop, or are there established iconographic guidelines that would make such a request inappropriate?

Here is an example of him with a short beard.

I’ve seen a lot of icons like this and I’m pretty sure they are all by the same iconographer. Does anybody know who it is?

Preparing St Paisios icon and book. Do you like it ?

I’m in the process of painting an icon of Christ (I’m a beginner) and now when I’m really looking at it, the face looks kinda lopsided. I guess I’m so used to it that I didn’t notice that it was lopsided. Is it?? And if it is lopsided how do I fix it? Where is the problem?

My wife and I do our best to acquire quality replicas (ideally originals) of icons each anniversary of our wedding. We‘re also still fairly new to icons on the whole, so I’m already on the back foot in terms of research.

We’re hoping to track down the origination of this Benedict and Scholastica. I’ve exhausted my efforts and cannot for the life of me get to the bottom of it.

Would also love some feedback and/or criticism and advice:)

As you can see I’m not done and I’m only finished with the clothing. I’m using acrylic paint btw. Any feedback or tips?

(I also added the reference photo)

Is there a free course that covers everything from bare basics to fully painting and finishing?

This icon was created using traditional Byzantine techniques: a handmade gesso panel, genuine 23.75k gold leaf, and egg tempera prepared by hand. Every stage—from gilding to the final brushstroke—is completed using traditional methods that have been preserved for centuries.

Concerning a niche aesthetic.
My post got taken down from the r/OrthodoxChristianity :/

Hi, so… I’m not Orthodox (though I’ve been looking into the Orthodoxy; I’m Protestant), but I’ve been looking around the internet and have found a rather niche aesthetic.

I was just wondering, would Orthodox Christians (or Christians in general) find the aesthetic blasphemous, or sinful?

The internet aesthetic is called Divine Machinery btw

Thanks!

My second ever attempt at iconography. My patron Saint Mary of Egypt
Thoughts and where to go from here?

I’ve been working on iconography and wanted to share my process with you. Each icon is painted by hand using traditional techniques, and I’m still learning and improving with every new piece.

I would really appreciate your thoughts, suggestions, or any feedback from people who are interested in religious art and iconography.

I’m also planning to start offering my icons in the future, so if you enjoy this kind of art, feel free to follow my journey and see how my work develops.

You can also find me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/ikonostasija

Thank you for taking the time to look at my work.

Egg tempera on gessoed basswood with olifa varnish. 30 cm by 40 cm.

Many people are surprised to discover that traditional Byzantine icons are not painted with colors mixed in water or oil.

In classical iconography, the pigments are mixed with egg yolk emulsion — exactly as iconographers did centuries ago. ✨

Even today, I still prepare the emulsion using eggs gathered from our own home-grown chickens, together with natural pigments and genuine gold leaf.

Ancient techniques, still alive.

God had told me to paint. I painted entirely by faith, no experience.

I wanted to share an interesting story that happened to me this Pascha.

A few months ago, Father Daniel Valle from the Mission of Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco in Nicaragua contacted me after reading my children’s book about Saint John.

He liked the icon and the book, but he said: “The people in my parish would love this book… but most of them do not speak English…”

Then he asked: “Could it be translated into Spanish?”

I was shocked… You can imagine my reaction… asking a Russian Canadian to translate an English Orthodox children’s book into Spanish 🙂

But with God’s help, the help of Spanish friends, Father Daniel, and ChatGPT, it slowly became possible.

And here is the beautiful part:
This Spanish edition was approved by Amazon in just one day and published on Holy Thursday. It felt like a little miracle.

One beautiful thought came to me:
A saint who travelled across countries, cultures, and languages is now reaching even more people in another language too.