russian icons
November 18, 2008There's a world-class collection of Russian Orthodox icon paintings in Massachusetts. Who knew? It's called The Museum of Russian Icons and you'll find it in the small town of Clinton. And it was founded by the man I talk about at the start of this radio story, which aired today on http://www.theworld.org/.
Thanks for both your blog post and the radio story. Looks like small towns and Russian Icons are a winning match! Another major collection of Russian Icons is in Vicenza, an Italian city (80km from Venice) that counts 120.000 inhabitants only.
The collection (more than 400 ancient Russian icons from the XIII to the XX century) is regarded as one of the most important in the West for its chronological variety, its narrative themes, and the presence of some true masterpieces.
A selection of 130 icons is permanently exhibited in the Galleries of Leoni Montanari Palace and in the museum website; it can also be experienced through an immersive virtual visit.