I c o n s

by

Marja-Liisa Alm

I was born in Karelia in Finland, but I have been living in Sweden since 1981 and the last 20 years on the island of Gotland.

To me, the choice was easy, when I rather late in my life, had the chance to learn the skills of painting icons. It had been my dream for a long time. I strongly felt it was the right way for me. Constantly I worked with the contents of the icons, and I partcipated in courses to learn more. My background as Bachelor of Arts and also my work as a restorer of paintings on wood, mainly in the medieval churches of Gotland, have helped me on my way to become an icon painter.

The icon painting technique has been practiced in the same way since more than one thousand years. In my work I use wooden panels, egg tempera and gold-foil.

I let my work talk to me, let my paintings wait. I want to see the icons depths, only the icon exist to me, the picture, the expression and the signifikation. The serenity and concentration my work gives me also gives me great pleasure.

"The icon is not only a simple picture or decoration, not even a biblical illustration. It is used at worship and is part of the liturgy." (The Theology of the Icon, by Leonid Ouspensky, 1992)