A project to endow St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto with beautiful, handwritten icons, in celebration of the 2026 centenary of the parish.
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THE ICON: An Introduction
The Greek word eikōn simply means “image,” but the word has come in Orthodox tradition to mean much more than simply a pictorial representation of a religious subject. Every icon, whether it depicts Christ, the Word and Son of God, Mary the Mother of God, a saint, or a biblical scene or feast, represents a confession of faith and a witness to the Incarnation. This is because the icon is a symbol, which manifests something greater than its physical limits allow. Like the written word, an icon expresses divine truth in a manner that humans can perceive and understand. As St. John of Damascus asserted in the eighth century, when Orthodox Christians “venerate images, it is not veneration offered to matter, but to those who are portrayed through matter in the images.”* Nor is the appreciation of this transcendent power limited to the initiated: when St. Volodymyr sent emissaries from Kyiv to Byzantium, it was the power of icons that opened their hearts to the conversion of Rus’.
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HOLY ICONS: Form and Meaning
An “icon” usually means a portable wooden panel, painted either with encaustic wax (especially before about the seventh century) or with egg tempera. However, the term refers in its widest sense also to the images portrayed in frescoes or mosaics on church walls, on sacerdotal vestments, altar vessels, Gospel and liturgical book covers, crosses and other media. Panel icons may be made not only on wood, but also on ivory, metal, textile and many other materials. Icons may serve decorative or pedagogic purposes, in addition to acting as liturgical or devotional objects. All of these forms of icons, however, share one important characteristic: they offer a window into eternal meaning and are thus worthy of honour and devotion. Such honour is not offered to the icon itself, but to what it represents.*
“Then the Greeks led us to the edifices where they worship their God, and we knew not whether we were in heaven or on earth. For on earth there is no such splendour or such beauty... We only know that God dwells there among men.”
— The Primary Chronicle, St. Nestor the Chronicler
St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto
Icon Project
In preparation for the 100th Anniversary of the founding of the parish in 1926, St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto is embarking on a mission to adorn the temple seat of the Bishop of Toronto and the Eastern Eparchy with beautiful, worthy, handwritten icons of the major feasts of the Church. The project is an expression of the community’s gratitude to God, our Saviour, for his abundant mercies over the tumult of the past century: a period of persecution, war, genocide, trauma, displacement; but also of renewal, rediscovery, regeneration, revival. The parish calls on current and former members, regular worshippers and those whose in-person participation is constrained by realities of this present life — anyone who feels a sense of connection to this special place of prayer and worship — to give generously in support of this project.
“An icon is not simply a religious picture designed to arouse appropriate emotions in the beholder; it is one of the ways whereby God is revealed to us. Through icons, the Orthodox Christian receives a vision of the spiritual world.”
“Brightly Adorned with Glory!”
Veneration of Icons
When not resting on the tetrapod (a small table near the centre of the church) on their respective feast-days or festal periods, the finished icons will remain available to the faithful for prayerful veneration. They will be mounted on the walls and columns of either kliros — the north and south alcoves of the church.
Quality Glass
Shadow Box
Vigil Lamp
Completed icons will be framed in custom-built shadow boxes under museum-quality glass. This non-glare surface blocks up to 99% of UV rays, affords optimal light transmission and brighter appearance of colours while also protecting the tempera and gilding from wear. The warm light cast by overhanging vigil lamps will serve to remind worshippers that Christ is “the Light of the world” (Jn 8:12).
Sacred Art and Worthy Ministry
Beginning with pious prayer and with reference to images from holy tradition, the iconographer prepares a sketch of the icon’s subject.
A hardwood board is sanded, sealed and covered in even layers of brilliant white marble gesso.
The gesso is burnished until perfectly smooth. Ornaments, handcrafted from paste and powdered marble, are painstakingly added; and a red clay bole is applied in preparation for gilding.
With great patience and care, the delicate process of gilding is undertaken. Squares of gold leaf, barely 0.5 microns thick, are applied to the icon’s surface until no area that will remain untouched by the iconographer’s brush is bare.
In layers of pigment mixed with egg tempera binder, the iconographer begins to pull colour, hue, highlight and shadow from his brush onto the icon’s surface, giving the image form. As a final step, inscriptions are added.
Once completed, the icon is varnished. When dry, it is transferred to the Holy Table in the temple where it will rest, suffused with the prayers of the Divine services, until it is blessed into use.
“Keeping the laws of the Church that we have received from the Fathers, we paint icons of Christ and His saints, and with our lips and heart and will we venerate them as we cry aloud: O all ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord!”
Artist Profile
Iconographer
Alex Mezentsev was born in Kyiv, Ukraine. Earning his Master’s degree from the National Academy of Arts, he worked for 30 years as an illustrator. Moved by the piety and power of Orthodox icons, Alex began studying ancient iconographic practices and techniques after emigrating to Canada in the 1990s. Shortly after arriving in Toronto, he worked closely with Emil Telizyn to restore graphic elements on the walls, ceilings and windows of St. Volodymyr Cathedral.
Alex expanded his study of sacred art through pilgrimage to monasteries in North America, on Mount Athos, in Greece, Italy and the Holy Land. In 2010, he founded St. Luke Icon Studio in Toronto, writing icons and frescoes, designing windows and mosaics for parishes across North America; and leading iconography workshops. Among his works is the very fine Deisis at the Chapel of All Saints of Ukraine in Oakville — a large triptych depicting Christ Pantokrator flanked by the Most-holy Theotokos and St. John the Baptist.
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An Offering That Endures
Icons as a Legacy
Icons endure. Even in less than ideal conditions, the gold, inorganic pigments and binder with which they are created are remarkably resilient. The gesso base — a combination of natural adhesive and white marble dust, applied to a seasoned and sealed hardwood board — forms an incredibly stable support, resisting the efforts of heat, cold and humidity to deform the surface. Examples of icons from the first three centuries after the birth of Christ still exist.
Properly cared for and protected, icons approach the permanence in this world that those who contemplate the truth behind their painted surfaces cannot pretend to. As an offering of thanksgiving, as a sacrifice of praise, as a prayer of supplication and entreaty; in remembrance of those we yearn to meet again in that world, the icon has few equals.
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“Let Your grace sanctify and dwell within this icon, that it may edify and inspire those who gaze upon it and venerate it; that in glorifying the one depicted, they may be repentant of their sins and strengthened against every attack of the adversary.”
– from the Prayer After Completing an Icon
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Icon Project
Details and Costs
Works commissioned under the auspices of the St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto Icon Project will maintain a unity of form and design in terms of style, ornamental motifs and pigments used. Most icons will be of two dimensions: a larger size (19x13.75” ≈ 48x39cm) and the “standard” size (17x13” ≈ 43x33cm); with only the icon of Holy Pascha conspicuously larger (16x20" ≈ 41x51cm), as befits the Bright Resurrection of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. While complexity of the subject dictates the time and materials required to execute each work, icons of this size generally take between 2–3 months to complete. The effort required by more complex compositions also affects the cost of the completed work. Designs for the icons of the Meeting of the Lord and the Descent of the Holy Spirit (Pentecost) are already being prepared.
Through the generosity of our suppliers and vendors, St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto is pleased to have been able to arrive at a uniform pricing structure. The cost of one complete set — icon, shadow box, museum-quality glass and vigil lamp is $2,500.
Donations made to advance the parish’s mission through the Icon Project are income tax deductible.
St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto
Sponsor An Icon
The parish has committed to commission icons for Holy Pascha, the Duodenary cycle (the twelve major feasts of the Lord or Theotokos) and services of the Lenten Triodion – feasts marked by the Church with a particular sense of anticipation, joy, solemnity or sorrow:
The Bright Resurrection of Christ, Pascha of the Lord
1. Nativity of the Most-holy Theotokos (Sept. 2 | Sept. 8)
2. Exaltation of the Life-giving Cross (Sept. 27 | Sept. 14)
3. Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (Dec. 4 | Nov. 21)
4. The Nativity of our Lord and Saviour (Jan. 7 | Dec. 25)
5. Holy Theophany (Jan. 19 | Jan. 6) – completed
6. The Meeting of our Lord (Feb. 15 | Feb. 2) — In process
7. The Annunciation (Apr. 4 | Mar. 25)
8. The Entry of our Lord into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday)
9. The Ascension of our Lord, God and Saviour, Jesus Christ
10. The Descent of the Holy Spirit (Holy Pentecost) — In process
11. The Transfiguration of our Lord (Aug. 19 | Aug. 6)
12. Dormition of the Theotokos (Aug. 28 | Aug. 15) – completed
The 12 Major Feasts of the Orthodox Church
13. Jesus Christ, “The Bridegroom” – completed
14. Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy
15. Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas – completed
16. Sunday of St. John Climacus
17. Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt
The Lenten Triodion
…Sanctify those who love the beauty of your house…
Donation Instructions
BY CHEQUE
Please make cheques payable to “St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto” and please specify: “Icon Project.”
Mailing Address:
St. Volodymyr Cathedral of Toronto
400 Bathurst St. Toronto ON M5T 2S6
ONLINE
You can also pay online through our donation portal at Canada Helps by clicking on the button below.