Iconography Apprenticeship for Adults, Year 1 & 2 Combined

The Apprenticeship Year 1 focus will be on faces, and students will complete an icon of the face of Christ. Additionally, students will complete many practice studies on toned paper, in their sketchbooks, and on small practice claybords.

The Apprenticeship Year 2 focus is on the askance face. While painting the same icon with the 1st year students, 2nd-year students are expected to work on slightly-turned faces with assignments given to them by the instructor and for their Spring project.

As with the Workshops, the Apprenticeship Program approaches icons as a “prayer of the hands” and uses the traditional media of egg tempera and after the first year, hand-gessoed traditional boards and real gold (gilding). Students who take this course receive instruction in both the theology of iconography (sometimes called icon writing to stress the kinship with theology) and the artistic practices intrinsic to traditional iconography.

The Apprenticeship is “skills-based,” meaning we will do plenty of preliminary exercises to learn and internalize the skills before applying paint to the board. Since iconography is a living tradition, students will learn about the dynamic relationship between using historic models and understanding for themselves the aesthetic and theological principles of iconography. Therefore students must gain an understanding of color, composition, the iconographic “style” as it manifests in facial features, and how to “draw on the right side of the brain.”

Eligibility and Expectations

The Iconography Apprenticeship Program requires a significant commitment of time and scholarship skills. In addition to the 75-minute class each week, there are sketchbook assignments and other homework assignments (see below), as well as acquiring and organizing supplies. Depending on individual speed, the student should expect to work 60-90 minutes between classes.
Traditional iconography requires a commitment to acquiring and maintaining the materials. While I have put a great deal of effort into sourcing materials that are inexpensive, students should also recognize that investing in supplies is part of the commitment required of the liturgical art of iconography.

See the full syllabus here.

Required Materials:
Books and supplies are not included in the purchase of the course.

Please see the required course materials here.

Randi Sider-Rose

[email protected]

Randi Maria Sider-Rose's journey into iconography began in Russia and Latvia, where she had been a highschool exchange student, college student, and after college- Fulbright Scholar. In 1998 she came back to the states and was able to travel to learn from different iconography teachers. Since then, she has married Michael Sider-Rose and completed an MDiv, specializing in iconography, at the University of Chicago Divinity School.

As well as taking commissions from churches and individuals, Randi (aka Maria, as in Saint Maria of Paris) loves to walk with students aged 9-97 on the journey of learning to see better and more intentionally, using this “prayer of the hands” to grow in holiness, with God’s grace. Michael, Maria, and their 5 kids attend Saint Moses the Black Orthodox Mission Church in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she has been blessed by His Grace Bishop Thomas to serve in the ministry of iconography.

Computer: You will need a stable, reliable computer, running with a processor with a speed of 1 GHz or better on one of the following operating systems: Mac OS X with Mac OS 10.7 or later; Windows 8, 7, Vista (with SP1 or later), or XP (with SP3 or later). We do not recommend using an iPad or other tablet for joining classes. An inexpensive laptop or netbook would be much better solutions, as they enable you to plug an Ethernet cable directly into your computer. Please note that Chromebooks are allowed but not preferred, as they do not support certain features of the Zoom video conference software such as breakout sessions and annotation, which may be used by our teachers for class activities.

High-Speed Internet Connection: You will also need access to high-speed Internet, preferably accessible via Ethernet cable right into your computer. Using Wi-Fi may work, but will not guarantee you the optimal use of your bandwidth. The faster your Internet, the better. We recommend using a connection with a download/upload speed of 5/1 Mbps or better. You can test your Internet connection here.

Webcam: You may use an external webcam or one that is built in to the computer. Webcam Recommendations: Good (PC only) | Best (Mac and PC)

Headset: We recommend using a headset rather than a built-in microphone and speakers. Using a headset reduces the level of background noise heard by the entire class. Headset Recommendations: USB | 3.5mm

Zoom: We use a web conferencing software called Zoom for our classes, which enables students and teachers to gather from around the globe face to face in real time. Zoom is free to download and easy to use. To download Zoom:

Visit zoom.us/download.
Click to download the first option listed, Zoom Client for Meetings.
Open and run the installer on your computer.
In August, students will be provided with instructions and a link for joining their particular class.

Scanner: In this class, students frequently submit homework assignments by scanning pages from their workbooks. Students and/or their parents should have easy access to a scanner and the ability to use it.

Z

Step 1

Z

Step 2

Z

Step 3

Z

Step 4

Explore our courses!

First, read the available course descriptions, noting prerequisites, target grades, and course objectives. If you think your student is prepared for the course, go ahead and register. After registration, a placement assessment may be provided to students, depending on the course and the student’s previous enrollment with Scholé Academy. Registration is finalized when the student’s placement assessment has been returned by the course instructor with placement confirmation.

All Courses | By Grade

Read the Student-Parent Handbook.

Please take careful note of our teaching philosophy, our technology requirements, our school policies, the parent agreement, and the distinctions between our grade levels.

Double-check the course section dates and times.

Make sure they don't conflict with other activities in your schedule or other courses you are purchasing. Our system will not catch double-bookings!

You're ready to add course selections to your cart!

Our Assistant to the Principal will be in touch with you after your enrollment to help you with next steps, including any placement evaluations that may be required for your course selections.

This registration will be finalized when the student's placement assessment has been returned by the course instructor with placement confirmation.