Lenten Zoom Retreat
The Iconography of Holy Week and Pascha
with Fr. Andrew Tregubov
Two Sunday afternoons:
- April 11th & April 18th
- 4:00pm - 5:30pm
Zoom link will be sent as we get closer to the date.
From Fr. Steven:
We will be hosting a Zoom Lenten Retreat on Sunday April 11th & Sunday April 18th (4:00pm - 5:30pm both afternoons) with Fr. Andrew Tregubov to discuss the Iconography of Holy Week and Pascha.
Fr. Andrew is our own parish Iconographer. This retreat will be enlightening for all and a great way to prepare for Pascha! Fr. Andrew is one of the premiere Orthodox iconographers "writing" icons in America today, so our parish is blessed with a large number of his icons adorning our iconostasis, altar area and walls in the nave... His wife, Galina, hand stitched our burial shroud that we venerate during Holy Week.
Scroll down for a brief bio of Fr. Andrew, as well as a wonderful YouTube video, explaining the traditional method and theory behind icon painting. Quite fascinating. It is relatively short and very nicely produced.
For more on Fr. Andrew's iconography and Matushka Galina's embroidery, see the following links to their website:
- Tregubov Icons - Orthodox Iconography
- Fr. Andrew's Icon Galleries
- Watch Fr. Andrew's Video Presentations on Iconography
- Matushka Galina:
Use this form to sign up for the retreat. Sign up today!
https://forms.gle/FqyfTwiPTkMed5qK9
From Fr. Andrew's iconography website, with a selection from Holy Trinity Cathedral, San Francisco (OCA, Western Diocese):
Andrew Tregubov was born in Moscow, Russia, in 1951. Since his childhood he had been drawn to the images of ancient Christian art which he saw in museums and churches. As he grew older the mystical and philosophical aspects of Christian teaching revealed by this art became more and more the focus of his interest.
Andrew and his wife Galina decided to emigrate to the West in 1974. They arrived in America in 1975, and the following year Andrew entered St. Vladimir's Theological Academy in Crestwood, New York. Academic studies truly became for Andrew a fulfillment of many years of his pilgrimage toward the Orthodox Church. At the same time his artistic pursuits focused firmly on iconography, the authentic form of Christian art that encompasses 2000 years of Christian history and is present in all ancient Christian cultures. At St. Vladimir's Seminary he had a wonderful opportunity to study with such famous teachers as professors Serge Verhovskoy, Veselin Kesich and John Erickson, V.Rev. John Meyendorf and V.Rev. Thomas Hopko, and most especially Protopresbiter Alexander Schmemann, a renowned international scholar and very prominent leader of the Orthodox Church in America.
Studying theory and history of iconography at St. Vladimir's, Andrew began to convert his artistic skills to practical work in painting icons. In the absence of reputable schools of iconography in northern America, he had to gather the knowledge of different techniques and styles from a number of well-known professional iconographers of that time, especially Leonid Ouspensky, Maria Struve, and Elizabeth Osolin, all from Paris, France.
Andrew was ordained into the priesthood of the Orthodox Church and was assigned a parish in Claremont, New Hampshire, in 1979. The Nobel Prize winning Russian writer, Alexander I. Solzhenitsyn, and his family became parishioners and close friends of Father Andrew and his wife, Galina. In the same year, on a trip to France, Fr. Andrew made a very important personal discovery of the works of a genius iconographer of the 20th century, Fr. Gregory Kroug. This discovery was a turning point in developing Fr. Andrew's individual style in traditional egg tempera iconography. In 1984 Fr. Andrew and Galina received a grant from the Russian Social Fund of Solzhenitsyn to make a comparative study of ecclesiastical arts in Orthodox communities in France and England. The result of this project was a big collection of slides made of the iconographic works of Gregory Kroug and a number of other contemporary masters of iconography.
Upon his return from Europe, Fr. Andrew began to lecture on iconography before different audiences such as church communities, schools and universities around the US. In 1990 Fr. Andrew wrote a book The Light of Christ - Iconography of Gregory Kroug published by SVS Press.*
Since the late 70s Fr. Andrew, in addition to being a parish priest, has continually worked as a professional iconographer, receiving commissions from individuals and church communities all over the US. His larger projects include, among others, St. Nicholas Church in Norwich, CT; Christ the Savior-Holy Spirit Church in Cincinnati, OH; All Saints of America Mission in Salisbury CT; New Skete Monastery in Cambridge, NY; St. Gregory of Nissa Church in Wappingers Falls, NY; St. George Church in Trumbull, CT; Christ the Savior in Woodbury, CT; SS. Cyril and Methodius Church in Terryville, CT; St John of the Ladder Church in Greenville, SC; Holy Resurrection Church in Clinton, MS; and St. Andrew''s Church in Delta, CO. Fr. Andrew has also made a few mosaic icons in ancient Byzantine style, most notably for Christ the Savior Church in Pearl River, NY.
In 1995 he was awarded the New Hampshire Council on the Arts, Discovery Award. In his nomination, Burt Feintuch, Director of the Center of Humanities at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, wrote, "Celebrated in American church communities, passionately devoted to his art, Fr. Tregubov is not known widely in the secular world. We should 'discover' this excellent artist, recognizing and appreciating his very significant contribution to a highly valued art form..."
In 1997 he was a visiting lecturer at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in Crestwood, NY. There are a few icons of Fr. Andrew's at the chapel and the library. They also published a number of theological books with his illustrations. For example, The Incarnate God contains over a hundred of them.
Fr. Andrew has many students across the US and has conducted two iconographic conferences in Claremont in addition to a number of workshops.
* Now out of print, with used copies selling for hundreds of dollars on Amazon, a digital reproduction of the book can be viewed on Fr. Andrew's website.