New iconography inside St. Matthew Orthodox Church in Green Bay, January 27, 2025. PC: Fox 11 Online
GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — It’s a project eight years in-the-making.
The latest round of iconography is being installed at St. Matthew Orthodox Church in Green Bay.
Officials say the tradition combines history, art, and religion.
“Everything has a meaning. And sometimes, icons are called windows into heaven. So they all tell a story about the life of Christ, and the apostles, and the saints,” said Paul Novak, St. Matthew Orthodox Church Parish Council President.
Paul Novak says the effort began on Friday.
“We’re also having two very large murals put up on the high parts of the walls, for the Nativity of Christ, and the Resurrection of Christ,” he said.
Russian-born iconographer Dmitry Shkolnik and his assistant are once again doing the work.
“It is going very well yes. As previously, the canvas is done in a studio. And here, we’re doing the installation, gilding, inscriptions, and ornamentations. It is an artwork, but I’m not creating this art. I’m using the prototypes which have been used for 2,000 years of the Christian tradition,” said Dmitry Shkolnik, Iconographer.
The iconography also honors a priest’s wife, and midwife, Saint Olga of Alaska.
“She’s going to be made a saint here, just in a few months. She’s credited for helping many, many women through many, many difficult times. She’s the latest and first woman saint in the Orthodox Church in America,” said Novak.
Is there room for more? Paul Novak says maybe.
“We’ve pretty much filled the wall spaces that we had planned to. There always could be more, but as of right now, we’re extremely pleased with where we’re at, with the completion of this phase,” he said.
The iconography is scheduled to be completed by Tuesday.
Comments