[GonzoII]

"Remember, iconography has no room for artistic imagination: facial features must be canonical."

Annalex, can you recommend a book that helps one understand icons; one more spiritual than technical.

[annalex]

This website is, I believe, an entry level university course, and a good place to start: Alexander Boguslawski

Guide to Byzantine Iconography (Paperback) by Constantine Cavarnos (Author) is a terrific book that also points out how the spiritual is intertwined with the technical. Cavarnos would describe the canon for a particular icon, then explain the scriptural and theological basis for it, and relate it to Orthodox hymnody.

I would start by reading about it on the internet, there is plenty in English that has lately become available.

I know more than the average bear about icons, feel free to ask. I enjoy explaining them.