Holy Icons of Mother Russia
2002

The icons presented in this exhibit are from the seventeenth through the twentieth centuries, a time of controversy in Russian iconography due to the influence of Western images and style resulting from Tsar Peter the Great’s "opening to the West".
As one may note when viewing the catalog, this controversy was not simply one concerning artistic style because the icon as art cannot be separated from its liturgical and spiritual significance.
Today, Russia is undergoing a new "opening to the West". In presenting this exhibit, the Knights of Columbus hopes to further understanding not only of an ancient art form, but also of its continued vitality and newness.
Indeed, we may hope that any opening that is occurring now in Russia may be a mutual one.
Western society may be at the dawn of a new "opening" to the icon and the form of contemplation and spiritual encounter it evokes.