Features of style and iconography of the image "St. Stephen, the first martyr and Archdeacon" in the laurel icons of the XVIII century

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to define the features of the style and iconography of the image "St. Stephen, the first martyr, and Archdeacon" in the laurel icons of the XVIII century. The methodology of the research is based on the principles of systematic art-study analysis. Scientific novelty is to reveal stylistic and iconographic features of the image " St. Stephen, the first martyr and Archdeacon" in the laurel icons of the XVIII century. Conclusions. The Lavra iconography of St. Stephen has special features, such as supplementary of images by texts (the icon of 1729 from the iconostasis of St. Stephen’s chapel of the Assumption Cathedral, the murals (1734-1735) of the Trinity Gate Church, the icon of 1767 from the center of the Conception of St. Anne in the Far Caves) and extensive personal signatures ("Saint Stephen the first martyr, and Archdeacon","St. Apostle the First Martyr Stephen"). Thus, during the interaction of an image and a word, a new phenomenon appears an illustration of work: a new semantic aspect appears as a result of the existence of a work of art, which supplements and interprets a painting. For example, the text from the Second Epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians in the icon of 1729 from the Assumption Cathedral and a personal signature on the icon from the iconostasis (1802) from The Nativity of Christ on the Far Caves also demonstrate the apostolic activity of Stephen. Texts of verses in paintings (1734-1735) of the Trinity Gate Church and the icon of 1767 from the Annozachaevskaya Church emphasise not only the martyr's death but also on the meekness with which Stephen accepts death. The general stylistics and aesthetics of the image of the First Martyr on the laurel icons demonstrate the expectations of that time about the ideal, "angelic" beauty.