At St Columba’s Church, Longtower, Derry, the parish has been involved in a five-day workshop on sacred iconography, led by master iconographers Panagiotis and Demetrios Christodoulou from Thessaloniki, Greece. Organised by the Honora School of Iconography, in partnership with the Association of Iconographers in Ireland and St Columba’s Parish, the gathering has brought together people across many denominations and backgrounds.
On the opening day, Sharon Dunne, Pastoral Worker in the Archdiocese of Armagh, was present to represent Archbishop Eamon Martin and offer greetings on behalf of the diocese. But the spiritual resonance of the event runs much deeper than formalities.
According to Anne Karakatsanis, one of the organisers, the idea began as a providential friendship, as she says. “A group of us from the Irish Association of Iconographers visited Thessaloniki two years ago. We stopped by the Christodoulous’ studio and they kept us for hours,” she laughed. “We just clicked. Two years later and here they are in Derry.”
Ms Karakatsanis, originally form Derry, lives in Boston and has long worked to build bridges between Ireland and the Orthodox world, especially following the establishment of an Orthodox metropolis of Ireland and increased immigration from Orthodox countries such as Ukraine and Romania.
“The people here are responding with joy,” said Doreena Boyle, another organiser. “At Vespers, we invited all the Christian denominations in the city. And the Greeks, they feel something ancient here. One of them said it was like Mount Athos, you can feel the faith in the ground.” And given Derry’s history both recent and ancient there was the sense of playing a part in a grander story.
“Iconography speaks deeply, I think, to the tradition of illuminated manuscripts, the work in Irish scriptorium, and the word, and I mean the word in all its loaded significance, it speaks deeply to that culture.” Said Ms Boyle, “I think it speaks deeply to Derry’ s most recent history and ascension history as a place of dialogue and peace, fundamentally – healing and hope.”
Referencing as well the evidence that the church is built upon an old monastic site.
The organisers made it clear that participants were not merely studying icons but encountering them. Ethna McDermott, chair of the association, emphasised that “it’s about the encounter. It’s not just art. You can have a perfect icon, but if there is no room for Christ, what’s the point?”
That sentiment was echoed throughout the workshop. “Too much focus on technical skill can strip the soul,” Ms Karakatsanis explained. “The Christodoulous are here to remind us that it’s about feeling, prayer, the presence of the person you’re painting for.”
On Friday, the public will be invited to a demonstration of a large 2×2 metre icon of Christ’s face, a parting gift to the church, and perhaps a symbol of a tradition rekindled.
“None of us know why this came together so perfectly,” Ms Karakatsanis said. “But it feels like Providence.”
