This lavishly illustrated guide to iconography explains through words and pictures the history, meaning, and purpose of Christian icons as well as the traditional methods that religious painters use to create these luminous, spiritually enlivened works of art. / Solrunn Nes, one of Europe's most admired iconographers, illuminates the world of Christian icons, explaining the motifs, gestures, and colors common to these profound symbols of faith. Nes explores in depth a number of famous icons, including those of the Greater Feasts, the Mother of God, and a number of the better-known saints, enriching her discussion with references to Scripture, early Christian writings, and liturgy. She also leads readers through the process and techniques of icon painting, illustrating each step with photographs, and includes more than fifty of her own original works of art. / Deeply inspiring and utterly unique, The Mystical Language of Icons serves to inform both those who are familiar with the rich tradition of religious art and those who are not. Even more, it is a powerful devotional resource that Christians everywhere can turn to again and again. / This beautifully illustrated book provides the reader with an excellent guide to understanding icons. . . . For anyone interested in the production and meaning of icons, this book will be essential reading. Theological Book Review / Solrunn Nes has produced a fine guide to iconography in her Mystical Language of Icons. The book is lavishly illustrated in full color throughout with Nes's own icons, each in the style of one of the various schools with which she is most conversant. All are striking and luminous and fully in accord with the objective canonical tradition. Her work reveals how one committed prayerfully to the latter can nonetheless produce art of obvious creativity. This book is unreservedly recommended. Touchstone"

Distinguished religious artist Solrunn Nes in this volume explores the beauty and truth found in icons of Christ's transfiguration. As Nes observes in her introduction, the transfiguration of Jesus Christ is an especially rich subject in the abundant iconographical tradition of the Eastern Church. In weaving together iconographical representations and theological interpretation, The Uncreated Light is itself a beautiful exploration of this subject. Structured according to the biblical account of Christ's transfiguration, the book is divided into three main parts. The first, corresponding with the ascent up the mountain, presents the iconographical theme in four representative works of previous centuries. The second section focuses on the "vision of light" and considers the Orthodox interpretation of the event based on a selection of art and texts. The third and final section parallels the descent back down the mountain; here Nes goes back to the icons themselves, interpreting them anew in light of the insights gained under the "vision of light." Including full-color plates of the icons discussed and a lengthy appendix, The Uncreated Light is a testament to the author's own artistic grace and to her deep understanding of iconographical art as an expression of faith.