Open AccessDouă tehnici, un singur iconar: Savu Moga
Author(s) -
Alexandra Ligia Balan
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
transilvania
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.186
H-Index - 5
ISSN - 0255-0539
DOI - 10.51391/trva.2021.01.10
Subject(s) - painting , art , style (visual arts) , icon , visual arts , aesthetic value , value (mathematics) , order (exchange) , conservation , work (physics) , art history , aesthetics , computer science , engineering , philosophy , mechanical engineering , finance , machine learning , environmental ethics , economics , programming language
This article brings to attention the work of Savu Moga, a famous icon painter who lived and worked in the 19th century in Transylvania. His artistic talent was native and his greatest skills were revealed by his icons painted on glass, but he also painted icons on wood, a less known fact. Brâncoveanu Monastery from Sâmbăta de Sus, Brașov county, owns 10 icons painted on wood, which are in the process of restoration and research. The technique of painting on wood brings to Moga certain difficulties, which he tried to solve. Although the supports and techniques are different and the order of the stages is reversed, the style of work is very much alike. The colours, the way he writes, the vegetal and architectural elements and the faces of the characters are the same. Also the pigments and the binder used are the same for both types of painting. Regarding the conservation and restoration aspects, the icons that have been properly preserved are generally in good condition, which means he achieved his purpose. Those icons that were used in the church for a long period of time are much more degraded. Every single piece is carefully investigated and treated as a patient. After completing the restoration process of these icons we will have an overview on Savu Moga’s work on wood, compared to his work on glass. Untill then, we are sure of the value of his entire artwork.