About Edinburgh School of Icon Painting

Edinburgh School of Icon Painting was founded in September 2013. It is a small and special art school based in the artist hub St. Margaret's House in Edinburgh. The school mission is to teach icon painting (writing) to people of all different backgrounds but at the same time maintaining the ethos and essence of it's spirituality. Introducing this unique form of art to students of the school I introduce a way of practising art which is different the other forms of art and it is said to be more then just art.

Students learn egg tempera technique which has been used by painters for centuries and it is one of the most lasting painting technique. There are still reasonably well preserved orthodox icons from VI Century.

Egg tempera involves preparing own paints using egg yolk and dry pigments. Through the whole process of work we try to limit synthetic materials. Using organic materials helps to develop a connection with nature and in consequence with the Divine.

Basia Mindewicz - founder and teacher. Born in 1978. 

Graduated from The Maria Grzegorzewska Academy of Special Education, MA and College of Iconography (Policealne Studium Ikonograficzne) in Bielsk Podlaski in 2008.

She has been working for a major icon painting workshops in Poland. Organized many private workshops and residential courses.

Workshops in Poland:

Droga Ikony (The way of Icon)  http://www.drogaikony.org.pl/

Studium Chrzescijanskiego Wschodu (School of Eastern Christianity)

Workshops organized or co-organized by other organizations in UK

Retreat at Craig Lodge Family House of Prayer, may 2015.

3 day workshop at the Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre, march 2016

''Art of Icon. Art of life'' retreat at Hacienda Los Olivos in Spain, may 2016. http://www.haciendalosolivos.org/

 Member of British Association of Iconographers.

She has taken part in many group exhibitions in Poland and Scotland. She curated few.

Most important shows:

"Icon Today" Contemporary Icon (Ikona Dzis, Wystawa Ikon Wspolczesnych), Exhibition was a part of the Conference under the same title 6.06-31.07.2008 at the Monastery of Dominicans in Warsaw, Poland

"Oblicza Ikony" Ukrainian and Polish Contemporary Icon, The Museum Of South Podlasie in Biala Podlaska, Poland, 11.09-30.11.2011

''The Sacred Face'', March 2014, as a part of MESP Festival. Edinburgh. Curated.

''Doorways to the Divine'', January 2015. St. Margaret's House. Edinburgh. Curated.

''Artist as a Seer in a quantum age'', march 2015. MESP Festival. Summer Hall. Edinburgh. Curated.

Mission

The project was created to teach egg tempera and icon painting to people of all possible backgrounds. Our goal is to gather as many people as possible. People from different countries, cultural backgrounds etc. and offer time and space for dialogue through the unique art of icon.

Our aim is to introduce the world of Orthodox Iconography through the practice of the technique and learning the tradition.

Introducing egg tempera technique and preserving it's tradition is also our aim. Students can work on non religious images while exploring this technique.