Hello everyone and welcome to my website, Eternity Icons! I started this site to document my journey of learning Orthodox iconography, and also to offer hand painted commissioned icons and prints. God gave me a gift of being able to draw and paint, and the motivation to keep at it and improve over the years , so it finally became time in my life to use it for a greater purpose.
A little about myself:
My name is Maura. I’m an artist and photographer who has worked in many different mediums of art since I was little. I have experience with acrylics, oils, watercolors, pen & ink, pencil drawings, as well as digital work (both graphic design and illustration). The most recent medium I got into learning for the purpose of painting icons has been egg tempera.
Even though I would state that I’m primarily self taught, I did attend a local college and received my associates degree in Fine Art. I’ve also taken numerous online courses and studies from professional artists, including anatomy, color theory, composition, landscape design, etc. There’s no easy magic solution to creating art however, and a class can only teach you so much. It’s learned from years of experience in observation and practice!
Growing up in the church I took a lot for granted and didn’t understand enough to appreciate it. However I never forgot the time an iconographer came to our church and painted many beautiful icons of the saints on the walls. I was very impressed, and always admired them. As an adult, I came to a renewed interest in Orthodoxy, wanting to learn everything I could and fill in all the gaps in my knowledge. One of those gaps was that of the saints. As I started learning about them, I was amazed at how they lived, what they went through, their strong faith for Christ. Reading the lives of the saints is truly life changing, it’s the number one thing I’d recommend to anyone wanting to learn about Orthodoxy. They are the witnesses to the faith-orthodoxy lived out!
Because of that, icons of the saints have developed a special meaning to me in the recent years. And all those years of drawing and painting practice helped make it feel like a natural process when I was finally ready to start painting, or writing, icons. But before I began, I really wanted to understand everything I could about it. I bought a bunch of books on the subject, both theology and of the painting process, and spent many months just reading and learning because I didn’t want to do anything improperly. When I was ready, I purchased the supplies and made my first icon in egg tempera in April, 2024, Archangel Uriel. It was made specially for my husband, as his patron saint, who was being baptized on Pascha, Glory to God!
I still have a lot to improve on, and this website and my social media channels is where I’ll be sharing my progress. I hope you’ll follow along and be inspired on your own spiritual path. Always remember, the Truth is out there for those who want to find it:
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. -Matthew 7:7-8
If you have any questions for me, want to hire me for a commissioned piece, etc. feel free to contact me!
In addition to iconography, I also have another website where I share my landscape and animal artwork and designs, including pet portraits!
Why the name Eternity Icons?
I remember reading one time in C.S. Lewis’ the Screwtape Letters, “For the Present is the point at which time touches eternity.” That sentence really hit me. I thought a lot about the meaning of life growing up. Eternity, Eternal Life, is desired in all of our souls. Christ is the way to that. He is the Eternal Light of Life.
The icons are images of Jesus Christ and the saints with His Eternal Light shining forth from them(the halos are symbol of this), as they wait and pray for us in Eternity with Christ. “Reflecting the Eternal Light of Christ through images of His Saints“
Another story I heard many years ago that always stuck with me about Eternity was that of Arthur Stace, a man from Australia. Not Orthodox, but he behaved like a fool for Christ, writing the word “Eternity” on sidewalks and doorsteps all around Sydney for 35 years. You can read about his story on other sites, but in short, he gave people reminders. Making them think about what truly matters: Eternity.