J. Gordon Anderson - Contemporary Art

I read this obituary about one of America's famous iconographers, Demetrios Dukas , and felt vindicated when I read this quote of his about icons: "It's a great art. It's a religious art, but it prefigures modern art. It has elements of Cubism, Expressionism, it has everything. … It's an art that transcends nationalities and speaks to everyone." A number of years back I had a show of some icons, religious works in oil, and cityscapes in South Carolina. One person who came out could not understand how I could have religious works and icons in the same show as my cityscapes, because the former are 'realistic' and the latter are very 'abstract'. I told him on the contrary that the religious art that I do - especially icons - are very abstract, so there was actually a lot of similarity between the pieces. He looked at me as though he didn't understand or agree. The quote above vindicated me in a sense, because icons especially contain all...

From July 9th - 12th my my icons will be on display at our annual diocesan synod . This year the synod takes place in Annapolis, MD, which is right in my backyard. Consequently I will have a large number of them on display. Please do come and check them out! (Pictured: St John the Evangelist, based on a Russian icon of the Novgorod school, 9" x 12", egg tempera on panel)

We recently were on holiday at a posh resort in a villa owned by my dear in-laws. While I should have found it relaxing, I was eally more stressed than ever. Honestly, I have no use for vacations. I absolutely love what I do, and love my life... why would I want to take a holiday from it? Holiday means, among other things, that I do not have access to my library and my studies, I cannot paint in my studio, I cannot practice my classical guitar, I cannot celebrate Mass, and I cannot work in my gardens. To be separated from all that I love (minus my family, of course, who is here with me) is stressful... not relaxing. Whenever we go on holiday I can't wait for it to be over. I loathe all holidays... unless they are Church holidays (holy days), such as Christmas and Easter.

Last night I spent some time looking at the websites of a number of artists, known and unknown, whose work I enjoy. It had been while since I'd done that, and I really enjoyed myself and felt excited afterwards... full of new ideas and ways to think about things and look at the world. For the longest time I stopped studying at other artists' works because I would become so enamored with it that I would unintentionally (or 'intentionally') begin to copy it, or mimic it. That was a good thing for me to do, because I am the type of person who loves to be influenced by others. But that mentality can be problematic for those, like myself, who desire to hone their own technique and build their own body of work. So that is why I took a break from studying other artists for a few years. It was very helpful. Now, after this "fast," I think I can look at other artists' works and enjoy it, and be influenced by it in positive ways, but not try to emulate it or cop...

This winter my studio has been so cold that it simply has not been fun for me to be over there and work. It is sort of insulated, and I have a space heater, but it is still freezing. So finally at some point in January I decided to just not do any work over. While I used to able to stand painting in a freezing place, or sweltering place, the older I get the less I can tolerate it. So until I can better insulate the studio, or build a new one (preferably with a wood burning stove), I will reserve the coldest months of the year for smaller work that I can do in my nice, climate controlled office. By this I suppose I mean icons... and maybe some smaller watercolors. One of the most important aspects of the artistic life is discipline. And part of discipline is knowing what to do when, and what works best in a given situation. That's what this is for me. I simply can't do my best work if I am physically uncomfortable, so there is no point in me painting anything in the frigid c...

Lately I have been working on a bunch of icons lately and hope to have at least 20 for sale at diocesan synod in Annapolis, MD this summer. These are the best icons I have ever done. The really exciting, though, is simply working in egg tempera. Today I realized just how much I enjoy this medium. I have to say that were it not for iconography I probably would never have tried egg tempera. It is a great medium in which to work because it is both rigid and flexible... sort of in between watercolor and oil. The amount of detail you can get is staggering, and I really like the matte look of the paint. For now this medium is so closely aligned with iconography in my mind I would never use it for anything else. I once painted some landscapes in tempera and only one of them came out okay. The problem was I was not painting icons! It just didn't work. I love egg tempera, so that means I will be painting icons for many years to come. Perhaps one day I will branch out and try some additional...

It occurred to me recently what the most controversial art I have ever created has been. It has been my icons! Never, when I began painting them, would I have thought that these works would be so controversial. In the shows I have had with them and my secular work, and comments I have received from people who have looked at my work online, the icons have always provoked the strongest reaction. Not from icon "purists," mind you, who don't approve of my technique, but from non-religious and atheists! The reaction has never been negative... just a strange sort of... "I am really drawn to these icons for some reason," sort of thing. Invariably the person cannot explain why he is drawn to them when he should be repulsed at them. Even those with no interest in religion find them to be fascinating and intriguing. Does this point to some inherent grace and power in the language of the icon? Who knows. (NB: I should add that my icons also get many positive reviews as...