Rare exhibition of sacred icons in Shrewsbury
A rare exhibition of sacred icons is to take pace in Shrewsbury, featuring the work of 15 contemporary icon painters, including Aidan Hart who is considered one of the leading liturgical artists in the Western world.
Curated by Aidan, and with more than 70 works of art available to view, it will be the largest icon exhibition ever to take place in Shropshire. Aidan will have 19 icons in the exhibition.
‘Eternal Light: An exhibition of Holy Icons’ runs from May 24 to June 6, at St Julian’s Church, Wyle Cop, Mondays to Saturdays, 11am – 4pm. Evening openings will take place Tuesday May 27 and Thursday June 5, 7pm – 9pm.
Aidan, who lives in Shrewsbury, has icons, frescoes, mosaic and sculpture in churches, cathedrals and private and royal collections in more than 25 countries of the world. He was the designer of the Anointing Screen used at the Coronation of King Charles III and is an author and international speaker.
He will also give a series of talks during the exhibition. These will take place at St Julian’s Church on May 24 at 11am, May 27 at 7.30pm, May 31 at 3pm and June 5 at 7.30pm. Entry to the talks and exhibition is free.
Other exhibitors include the Greek Orthodox nun Sister Theovouli, who has been a painter and teacher of iconography in Britain for more than 40 years; the artist and print-maker Markos Kampanis, from Athens, who has held solo exhibitions around the world; Tamara Penwell, from Bath, who has been painting icons for 30 years; and young talents, such as the London-based iconographer Joseph Craveiro and the artist, illustrator and wood carver Ewan Craig.
Icons – more traditionally associated with the art of eastern Christianity – have become popular in the West in recent decades and are now often seen in churches and cathedrals, including Westminster Abbey. Old and new icons are also popular among private collectors.
“Icons, of course, are not merely an eastern Byzantine phenomenon. Britain’s early Christian tradition was iconographic, producing countless masterpieces of Celtic, Saxon and Romanesque sacred art,” said Aidan.
“The unusual stylistic forms of icons also inspired many of the great artists of the early 20th century, including Matisse and Kandinksky.
“Henri Matisse described how their luminosity and spiritual power made a profound impression on him, as though he had ‘discovered a new world of colour and expression’.”
The exhibition is part of the Nicaea 2025 festival that is taking place in the town in May and June, bringing together people of faith and the wider community to mark the historical significance of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea, held in 325 AD.
The council was a historic gathering of 318 bishops, from across the Roman Empire, in the ancient city of Nicaea, now in modern Turkey. Held shortly after the legalisation of Christianity, it played a critical role in shaping the theological foundations and unity of Christianity.
The 1700th anniversary of the council is being commemorated by Christians around the world. Pope Leo XIV and the Eastern Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew are planning a visit together to the site of the council in modern day Iznik.
For further information about the exhibition visit https://shrewsburyorthodox.com/nicaea25/iconexhibition/.
