Saturday, September 29, 2012

St. Hilda Icon

I call it "Holy Woman, With Geese" :-).

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

St. Kateri Tekakwitha Icon

A snapshot of my recently completed icon of St. Kateri Tekakwitha. Prints are not yet available through redbubble.com or FineArtAmerica.com, but they are available by donation through this blog (see previous post) in a special handmade frame.

Adding to that previous post,  I also want to offer unframed prints: 8x10 for a donation of $25, 11x14 for $40 and 16x20 for $70.  Of course, any level of donation is welcome: Just let me know what you have in mind, and I am open to any request for an item you would like to have out of my stock of prints and cards.

My next icon: A nativity scene for the upcoming Christams season, and/or a special commissioned picture for a Catholic parish (working out details on that presently).

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Monday, September 24, 2012

It's New! It's Great! It's a Donate Button!


  My mother, who passed away several years ago, had a saying:  "It don't hurt to ask"--a bit of wisdom, for sure, that's applicable in many life situations--and a general idea endorsed by Jesus himself when he said, "Seek and ye shall find; knock and the door shall be opened; ask and it shall be given."

So, with my mother and Jesus behind me, I'm asking.

I'm asking for your support of my ongoing work making Catholic icons.  In return for your donation,you will receive a specially framed quality art print of one of my icons, of your choice.

A donation with a reward!  If it's good enough for Public Broadcasting, I guess it's it's good enough for me.

You could say this is just a different way to sell my art work, but it's more than that--in the same sense that you don't give a hundred bucks to PBS just to get that coffee mug or DVD of Celtic Women.  Sure, you'll enjoy your nice "thank-you gift," but you're also giving to support what you think is a worthwhile cause.

And how would I describe my my work and my cause?

Making Christian icons has always been more than just an artistic venture.  My icons are non-traditional in some ways, but I definitely see myself working in that centuries-old spiritual tradition of making icons as specifically religious objects--"windows into heaven" that allow us to communicate in a real sense with the holy person represented in the picture.

If all this is starting to sound overly theological or mystical, it is just as valid to say that the cause of my work is simply to promote the cause of the Christian faith in a specific way: by lifting up and celebrating in art the lives of those most exemplary Christians whom we call Saints.

For a donation of $125, I'll send along to you a framed 8x10 icon print of your choice (11x13 frame); for a $175 donation, an 11x14 framed print (14x17 frame).

The wooden frame (shown above) is handmade by myself, and not available elsewhere.  The interior cove molding is painted gold, and the outer part stained red-brown.  The print is affixed to a wooden panel and  protected with two sprayed coats of polyurethane.

You can choose from any of my icons shown on this blog or shown at redbubble.com, plus the Kateri Tekakwitrha icon (not yet available at redbubble.com).


To donate, just use the PayPal button at right, and let me know your icon selection via email, raberdavid@yahoo.com.  Or, you can inquire by email and we can make another payment arrangement.

 I also invite inquiries about special commissions or ordering multiple copies of unframed prints.