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Dirk Willems, Margaretha Sattler, Menno Simons Although the Anabaptist tradition has never identified “saints,”
several key 16th-century figures have inspired contemporary Mennonites,
Hutterites, and Amish – as well as others – to live lives of
faithfulness, compassion, and service. The Historical Committee
of
Mennonite Church USA is pleased to offer several limited edition sets
of Anabaptist Images, a series of hand-painted icons developed by Graber
Designs, a family-owned business specializing in international art from
eastern Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean. Graber
Designs, based in
Goshen, Indiana, has been carrying Eastern Orthodox icons for several
years, and has drawn on its best Bulgarian iconographers to produce the
Anabaptist Icons series. A portion of every sale goes to support
the
Historical Committee of Mennonite Church USA, whether purchased from
this site or directly from Graber Designs.
Already available in limited editions are icons of Dirk Willems, who
has long captured the imagination of readers of Martyrs Mirror.
Artist
Jan Luyken’s engraving of Dirk’s rescue of his pursuer from an
ice-covered pond is arguably the most recognized – and most moving --
visual image for those within the Anabaptist tradition. Bulgarian
iconographer Jivko Donkov has beautifully recaptured the Luyken scene
in vivid color. Other images of Menno Simons, Conrad Grebel,
Felix
Manz, and perhaps other early Anabaptists, also will be available in
the coming months.
Creation of icons is one of the
world’s oldest artistic
traditions, and icons can powerfully inspire spiritual
contemplation.
Although 16th-century Anabaptists rejected icons as idolatrous, images
of saints and martyrs have long adorned Eastern Orthodox and Catholic
churches, stimulating respect and memory and reminding viewers of lives
of faithful service. While Western art honors originality,
dramatic
displays of originality are inappropriate for iconographers, who strive
to make their figures look the same so that universality is stressed
over the painter’s individuality. Iconographers often trace or
“preserve” outlines from previous icons, known as prototypes, that have
been passed down for generations. In this spirit, the Willems
icon
draws directly on Luyken’s memorable engraving.
In creating the Dirk Willems image
for the Anabaptist Images
series, iconographer Jivko Donkov uses the ancient methods of his
craft. Each image begins with wood covered with gesso, which is
then
laboriously hand painted with dry pigments mixed into egg tempera
paint. The traditional gold background of the icons is Donkov’s
attempt to incorporate heavenly light, a color one rarely finds in
nature.
Dirk Willems, Margaretha Sattler, Menno Simons
The Dirk Willems image is available in a
limited edition of 100
in an 8” x 11” size, and in a limited edition of only 25 in a 12” x 16”
size (sizes may vary slightly). Cost of the 8” x 11” icon is $225
U.S., plus shipping and handling, and cost of the 12” x 16” icon is
$400 U.S. plus shipping and handling. Prices are guaranteed on
orders
made through August 2004, but there may be a slight increase thereafter
depending on exchange rates for the U.S. dollar. Depending on the
number of Willems images in stock at a given time, purchasers may need
to wait several months to receive their images since each is
individually crafted by the artist.
Each image is hand-painted, numbered, dated, and signed
by Bulgarian iconographer Jivko Donkov. To order,
see our order
form. Your
purchase of imgaes in the Anabaptist Images series will support the work
of the Historical Committee as well as iconographer Jivko Donkov and Graber Designs.
For additional products see:
Still to come
Possible Anabaptist women include:
Ursula van Essen
Anneken Heyndricks
Catherina Mulerin
Also under consideration:
Felix Manz
Conrad Grebel
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