The Icons of Their Bodies

Rating:
Summary: A detailed, high quality study of Iconography
Review: Please take the time to peruse the sample pages. They give a better overview of the book than I can attempt here. However, I learned a great deal about the influences of various iconographers and the religious reasons behind their various approaches to writing icons. While not a devotional book per se, it does contain a great deal of hagiographical information that an Orthodox would find beneficial.

Some insights that I learned in the reading:

In chapter three there is a discussion on the question of naming the saint in the icon and the need for proper, accurate representation. The author contends that after the iconoclastic period, the theology of the icon shifted to take the "power" or agency away from the image itself, the actual physical piece of wood and paint, to the one who is represented. This meant that the images had to be labeled with the saint's name to enable the viewer to communicate with the saint behind the image. I would argue that while this is true, it is not entirely true. Speaking as an Orthodox Christian, too much can be made of the label. The oil that weeps from icons heals even the atheists of diseases, without faith on their part. Likewise, speaking theologically, the basis of Christian iconography is the dual natures of Christ- fully human and fully God. Christ's universal power in the particular saints operates accordingly. The universal is given even if the particular is not understood or, perhaps, willingly approached. To a non-Christian, or even a non-Orthodox, this statement may sound ridiculous. But then again, the icons are not meant to be in museums, but rather in the homes and churches of the faithful. Icons in museums, unvenerated and without their candles, are truly fish out of water. Henry Maguire, I would say, supports this understanding in this book. On a more kitsch level, it is akin to the World Market approach to selling little Buddhas to be placed on the floor in fancy homes.

I chapter four there is an interesting analysis of the use of detail in painting with the curious observation that "the less the important the imagery, the richer it could be in detail, and conversely, the higher its status, the more it should be deficient" (166).

This book reaffirms that while secular art has its own philosophy, Orthodox iconography must be approached from its own unique perspective.

Another highly recommended work on Iconography is the beautifully bound and illustrated "The Resurrection and the Icon" by Quenot. Very well done!