Although it has not always been at a conscious level, I have some sort of connection to icons that I can't seem to shake. They are a form of expression and devotion that informs much of what I do visually. I think that some of it is in my bones. My father is Greek. My Baptism and earliest church affiliation was in the Greek Orthodox Church. The love of liturgy and symbolism is central to my faith and my art. But sometimes I find that I play with the imagery a bit more than Orthodoxy would like. (Cats, dogs and goats are not part of the usual lexicon of iconic subjects.) It is important to note that this does not come from a place of sacrilege or disrespect. For me, the Divine is manifested all around us, and the manifestation needn't be ponderous or profound. We can find God in the simplest of things and epiphanies are not limited to religious practice or serious devotion. They can spring up when we least expect it and aren't consciously searching.

A bit about icons and their meaning: Traditionally, the icon is considered to be a window to the Divine, a door through which we experience the Holy. This is in contrast to an idol, which is valued and worshipped in and of itself. Icons have been part of Christian worship from the earliest days of the faith, and were instrumental in instructing believers in the stories and teachings of the Christian tradition. Obviously the language of the icon is the image, and is therefore symbolic. It can touch us at a deeper level than words, since it speaks to the unconscious as well as to our conscious mind.

It is obvious that the icon does not seek to represent physical space and time. Its venue is heavenly space and its time is eternal. The depth of field is flat, light is from within and above, perspective is reversed, and figures tend to lack substance (Zoe the cat being a notable exception). In earlier times, people knew the language of the icon and were able to read the images in the same way which we read words. For this reason, an icon is said to be written rather than painted since it is visual Word of God.

BIOGRAPHY
Kathrin Burleson has lived in Humboldt County, for 22 years, and has been a full-time artist for most of that time. She was a potter for over ten years, but now focuses on two-dimensional work, primarily watercolors and acrylics. Her work is shown at numerous local galleries, in Washington DC, and in Ashland, OR. Her work has won numerous awards, and has been commissioned by individuals and corporations.

Her art education includes study at UC Berkeley, where she received her BA in French, and studies in Art History at the Sorbonne in Paris. She holds a Masters degree in art from Humboldt State, and a Masters degree in psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute.