Talk on Western Styles of Iconography by Peter Murphy in Calgary, August 10th

Peter Murphy, who is a master iconographer from Canterbury, England, will be teaching a workshop for the newly establish Sacred Arts Guild of Alberta, from August 7-11.While in Calgary, Peter will be giving a special free illustrated talk, which will be open to the public, on August 10th at 7 pm, in the parish hall of St Stephen the Protomartyr Ukrainian Catholic Church, located at 4903 45 St. in Calgary. Peter will be talking about his research on Western forms of sacred art, in an effort to answer the question whether there is a distinctive English or western style of iconography. Mark Charlton, who is the founder and inspirational force behind SAGA, writes:

One of the challenges facing iconographers in the west, particularly those who are not Orthodox, is the question whether they are limited to drawing just on Greek and Russian models. Or is there a distinctive western tradition of iconography that can inform their work? Peter will draw on his extensive research on Italo-Byzantine mosaics and panels and English Romanesque manuscript illuminations to develop a distinctive English style of iconography. Peter will illustrate his lecture with photos from his many research trips as well as examples of his own work.Peter Murphy is the founder of the St. Peter’s School for Sacred Art, Canterbury, U.K. He regularly teaches iconography and egg tempera and gilding workshops throughout the United Kingdom as well as leading art history study tours to Italy. He has received many commissions throughout England, including Twekesbury Abbey and Hereford Cathedral. Peter is very active in the British Association of Iconographers.You will also have an opportunity to see the beautiful work that the workshop participants have been creating during the week under Peter's direction and meet members of the Sacred Arts Guild of Alberta.Join us for refreshments and discussion after the talk. We hope to see you there.

Peter’s work is exceptional, I think, and you can see in it how he draws on traditional Western forms.