How Icons are Made

"The icon requires a dry, well-aged, knot-free, non-resinous wood, for example, lime, alder, birch, or cypress, or pine with little resinous content. Two horizontal wedges of a hard wood are often inserted in the back of the panel to counteract warping. Frequently a recessed area is made in the panel, the margins serving both as a frame and protection for the image.

The surface of the wood panel is lightly scored so that it can better hold the material that will be attached to it, as the icon is painted not directly on the wood but on an intermediate surface. Often a piece of loosely woven linen or cheesecloth is glued on, or the board is just "sized" with a mixture of gelatine and hot water with a small amount of chalk or alabaster whiting added. This provides a base for what will follow - careful application of five to seven thin layers of gesso without air bubbles or any other irregularity or contamination. Each layer must dry slowly for at least twelve hours before the next layer is applied. The process of simply preparing the surface takes at least a week."

-from Praying with Icons by Jim Forrest

Writing icons is gaining popularity in the US, as more and more people are discovering Orthodoxy. One such iconographer from Ohio, I referenced in an earlier post. A good friend, Nicolai Tsai is a very gifted iconographer, and has been commissioned to write icons for numerous churches in Alaska.

Glory to God for those that are helping us to pray by their artwork.