Theophanes the Greek was a Byzantine Greek

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 artist and one of the greatest icon

Icon

An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...

 painter

Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...

s, or iconographers, of Muscovite Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

, and was noted as the teacher and mentor of the great Andrei Rublev

Andrei Rublev

Andrei Rublev is considered to be the greatest medieval Russian painter of Orthodox icons and frescoes.-Biography:...

.

Life and work

Theophanes was born in the capital of the Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

, Constantinople

Constantinople

Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

. In 1370 he moved to Novgorod, and in 1395 to Moscow

Moscow

Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

. His style is considered unsurpassed in expression achieved by almost mono-colored painting. Some of his contemporaries observed that he appeared to be "painting with a broom", in reference to the bold, broad execution in some of his finest fresco

Fresco

Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...

s (see St. Makarios of Egypt), which are unique in the larger Byzantine tradition

Byzantine art

Byzantine art is the term commonly used to describe the artistic products of the Byzantine Empire from about the 5th century until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453....

. Theophanes was described by the Muscovites as "learned in philosophy", a reflection on his broad education and erudition. A hint of this might be gathered from his panel icon of the Transfiguration of Jesus

Transfiguration of Jesus

The Transfiguration of Jesus is an event reported in the New Testament in which Jesus is transfigured and becomes radiant upon a mountain. The Synoptic Gospels describe it, and 2 Peter 1:16-18 refers to it....

, where the arresting geometry and brilliance of the figure of Christ

Christ

Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...

 is balanced against the ordered disarray of the earthbound Apostles, strewn about doll-like in the uncreated Light of Mount Tabor

Mount Tabor

-Places:*Mount Tabor, a hill in Israel near Nazareth believed by many to be the site of the Transfiguration of ChristIn the United States:*Mount Tabor, Indiana, an unincorporated community...

. The balance of mathematical harmony in line and shape, wed to a master's use of an earthtone palette and precious gold leaf

Gold leaf

right|thumb|250px|[[Burnishing]] gold leaf with an [[agate]] stone tool, during the water gilding processGold leaf is gold that has been hammered into extremely thin sheets and is often used for gilding. Gold leaf is available in a wide variety of karats and shades...

, evokes a spirituality that is immensely powerful, and speaks to the genius of this relatively unknown painter.

Church works

Theophanes decorated in fresco the walls and ceilings of many churches including:

• the Church of the Transfiguration on Ilin Street
  Church of the Transfiguration on Ilin Street
  The Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior is a former Russian Orthodox Church that stands on Ilin Street in Novgorod the Great just east of the Marketplace. The current building was built in 1374 and frescoed by Theophanes the Greek in 1378...
  
   in Novgorod (1378)
• the church of Nativity of Mary (1395) of the Moscow Kremlin
  Moscow Kremlin
  The Moscow Kremlin , sometimes referred to as simply The Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River , Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square and the Alexander Garden...
  
   together with Semen Chernij)
• Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin (1399)
• the Cathedral of the Annunciation
  Cathedral of the Annunciation
  The Cathedral of the Annunciation is a Russian Orthodox church dedicated to the Annunciation of the Theotokos. It is located on the southwest side of Cathedral Square of the Moscow Kremlin in Russia, where it connects directly to the main building of the complex of the Grand Kremlin Palace,...
  
   of the Moscow Kremlin, in company with Andrei Rublev and Prokhor of Gorodets (1405).

Icon works

He created panel icons as well. However, based on historical evidence, works attributed to Theophanes have lately become a topic of intense academic debate. Until recently, he was traditionally considered the author of famous panel icons, notably:

• Our Lady of the Don (1380?)
• Dormition of the Virgin Mary (1392)
• The Virgin Mary and John the Baptist from the iconostasis
  Iconostasis
  In Eastern Christianity an iconostasis is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a church. Iconostasis also refers to a portable icon stand that can be placed anywhere within a church...
  
   of the Cathedral of the Annunciation
  Cathedral of the Annunciation
  The Cathedral of the Annunciation is a Russian Orthodox church dedicated to the Annunciation of the Theotokos. It is located on the southwest side of Cathedral Square of the Moscow Kremlin in Russia, where it connects directly to the main building of the complex of the Grand Kremlin Palace,...
  
   in the Moscow Kremlin
  Moscow Kremlin
  The Moscow Kremlin , sometimes referred to as simply The Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River , Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square and the Alexander Garden...
  
  (1405?)
• The Transfiguration (1408)

External links

• The school of Theophanos the Greek in medieval Crimea

Some Works

Frescoes

Panel icons - these attributions are now controversial