- Details
- Category: Maxim
"A Story of Sonya Marmeladova’s Love", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
Π. Σταμάτης Σκλήρης
Πορτραίτο Σόνιας Μαρμελάντοβα, ηρωίδας Ντοστογιέφσκι, Bishop Maxim, 2022
Καλοχτισμένη η αρχιτεκτονική των αξόνων του όλου πίνακα. Το αριστερό μισό καταλαμβάνει η πρωταγωνίστρια και το άλλο μισό είναι το περιβάλλον της ιστορίας της, του αφηγήματος που μας ξεδιπλώνει.
Π. Σταμάτης Σκλήρης
Πορτραίτο Σόνιας Μαρμελάντοβα, ηρωίδας Ντοστογιέφσκι, Bishop Maxim, 2022
Καλοχτισμένη η αρχιτεκτονική των αξόνων του όλου πίνακα. Το αριστερό μισό καταλαμβάνει η πρωταγωνίστρια και το άλλο μισό είναι το περιβάλλον της ιστορίας της, του αφηγήματος που μας ξεδιπλώνει.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“St. Porphyrios Greeting Us”, acrylic on canvas, by Radmila Vasiljevic, 2022
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Alexander Schmemann: Fr. Paschal Eucharist”, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
At Pascha during the service before the closed doors of the chapel, everyone noticed how his face would entirely transfigure and be full of light.
Alexander Dmitrievich Schmemann (1921-1983) was an influential Orthodox priest, theologian, and author who had most of his career in the United States. Born in Estonia to émigrés from the Russian Revolution, he grew up primarily in France, where there was a large émigré community in Paris.
At Pascha during the service before the closed doors of the chapel, everyone noticed how his face would entirely transfigure and be full of light.
Alexander Dmitrievich Schmemann (1921-1983) was an influential Orthodox priest, theologian, and author who had most of his career in the United States. Born in Estonia to émigrés from the Russian Revolution, he grew up primarily in France, where there was a large émigré community in Paris.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
Alexei & Polina, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
“Every now and then I would glance at Polina Alexandrovna, but she paid me no attention; until eventually I became so irritated that I decided to play the boor… Polina was not at all pleased with my questions; I could see that she was doing her best to irritate me with the brusquerie of her answers. But I took no notice of this… Again, therefore, I put to myself the question: ‘Do I, or do I not love her?’ and again I could return myself no answer or, rather, for the hundredth time I told myself that I detested her.” Through The Gambler Dostoevsky rationalized his dependence on gambling. From that point on, the novel can be considered as some kind of self-condemnation and excuse.
“Every now and then I would glance at Polina Alexandrovna, but she paid me no attention; until eventually I became so irritated that I decided to play the boor… Polina was not at all pleased with my questions; I could see that she was doing her best to irritate me with the brusquerie of her answers. But I took no notice of this… Again, therefore, I put to myself the question: ‘Do I, or do I not love her?’ and again I could return myself no answer or, rather, for the hundredth time I told myself that I detested her.” Through The Gambler Dostoevsky rationalized his dependence on gambling. From that point on, the novel can be considered as some kind of self-condemnation and excuse.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Kallistos Ware", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
Peaceful look, without the need to control. As if experiencing the weight of the blessing given to him, the Bishop lifts the blessed weight of the Divine gift he has received and says: “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Kallistos Ware is an English bishop and theologian of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Since 1982, he has held the titular bishopric of Diokleia in Phrygia, later made a titular metropolitan bishopric in 2007, under the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. From 1966 to 2001, he was Spalding Lecturer of Eastern Orthodox Studies at the University of Oxford.
Peaceful look, without the need to control. As if experiencing the weight of the blessing given to him, the Bishop lifts the blessed weight of the Divine gift he has received and says: “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Kallistos Ware is an English bishop and theologian of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Since 1982, he has held the titular bishopric of Diokleia in Phrygia, later made a titular metropolitan bishopric in 2007, under the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. From 1966 to 2001, he was Spalding Lecturer of Eastern Orthodox Studies at the University of Oxford.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Young Georges Florovsky from his hometown Odessa, through Paris to New York", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
Young Florovsky is immersed in his thoughts, while on the horizon are discerned his hometown Odessa in flames of a then distant war, Paris and New York. Georges Florovsky was born on August 28, 1893, in Elisavetgrad (the city of Kirovograd in present-day southern Ukraine) and grew up in the cosmopolitan city-port of Odessa. He moved between different European centers-Sofia, Prague, Paris, and Belgrad. In 1925 he became a professor of patristics at the St. Serge Institute of Orthodox Theology in Paris. He spent his working life in Paris (1920–1949) and New York (1949–1979). With Sergei Bulgakov, Vladimir Lossky, Justin Popović, and Dumitru Stăniloae he was one of the more influential Eastern Orthodox Christian theologians of the mid-20th century.
Young Florovsky is immersed in his thoughts, while on the horizon are discerned his hometown Odessa in flames of a then distant war, Paris and New York. Georges Florovsky was born on August 28, 1893, in Elisavetgrad (the city of Kirovograd in present-day southern Ukraine) and grew up in the cosmopolitan city-port of Odessa. He moved between different European centers-Sofia, Prague, Paris, and Belgrad. In 1925 he became a professor of patristics at the St. Serge Institute of Orthodox Theology in Paris. He spent his working life in Paris (1920–1949) and New York (1949–1979). With Sergei Bulgakov, Vladimir Lossky, Justin Popović, and Dumitru Stăniloae he was one of the more influential Eastern Orthodox Christian theologians of the mid-20th century.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Madeleine Was Still an Enigma to Her", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
"TWO GIRLS
A canvas that came out simply and gave the unpretentious sophistication of the sloppy young people with great success. Their expression and attitude are very natural and convincing. Clothes with SIMPLICITY express immobility and, at the same time, restrained movement.
I can not understand how this painting expresses a real relationship between the two friends while they have turned their backs. Their FRIENDSHIP is imprinted on the canvas with tremendous conviction." (Fr. Stamatis Skliris)
"TWO GIRLS
A canvas that came out simply and gave the unpretentious sophistication of the sloppy young people with great success. Their expression and attitude are very natural and convincing. Clothes with SIMPLICITY express immobility and, at the same time, restrained movement.
I can not understand how this painting expresses a real relationship between the two friends while they have turned their backs. Their FRIENDSHIP is imprinted on the canvas with tremendous conviction." (Fr. Stamatis Skliris)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Madeleine Was Still an Enigma to Her", detail, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Madeleine Was Still an Enigma to Her", detail, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"My Foundations Are in the Mountains" (Elder Vasileios of Iveron in Sedona, Arizona, 2012), acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
My foundations are in the mountains (Odysseus Elytis, Axion estin)
My foundations are in the mountains
and people carry the mountains on their shoulders
and memory is burning on top of them
like an unburnt bush.
Memory of my people your name is Pindos, your name is Athos.
My foundations are in the mountains (Odysseus Elytis, Axion estin)
My foundations are in the mountains
and people carry the mountains on their shoulders
and memory is burning on top of them
like an unburnt bush.
Memory of my people your name is Pindos, your name is Athos.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Shakespeare”, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
A strong portrait, nice posture, especially the face, weighty, thinking, with a discrete smile. The paper he reads has tremendous success as a little crumpled, maybe a little stained. However, on paper, imprints of lived time, the portrait brings to life the inanimate time. The garment is as convincing as it is of its time. Тhe horizontal strokes of Shakespearean clothing point to a writer who meditates and walks, a little bent over and is the intellectual who writes the history of the spirit, and does not need uniforms, medals, and crowns. The background discreetly but expressively reveals the inner spiritual storms that Shakespeare lived while fighting with the spirits.
A strong portrait, nice posture, especially the face, weighty, thinking, with a discrete smile. The paper he reads has tremendous success as a little crumpled, maybe a little stained. However, on paper, imprints of lived time, the portrait brings to life the inanimate time. The garment is as convincing as it is of its time. Тhe horizontal strokes of Shakespearean clothing point to a writer who meditates and walks, a little bent over and is the intellectual who writes the history of the spirit, and does not need uniforms, medals, and crowns. The background discreetly but expressively reveals the inner spiritual storms that Shakespeare lived while fighting with the spirits.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Vladika of Herzegovina", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
"Тhe painting of Bishop Athanasios of Herzegovina--like all the works of Bishop Maxim--is a completed work. He has succeeded the Elder’s indescribable dynamism and calm power, a challenging combination. It is a painting with complex risks, a piece with difficult keys." - Fr. Stamatis Skliris
"Тhe painting of Bishop Athanasios of Herzegovina--like all the works of Bishop Maxim--is a completed work. He has succeeded the Elder’s indescribable dynamism and calm power, a challenging combination. It is a painting with complex risks, a piece with difficult keys." - Fr. Stamatis Skliris
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"The Old Mostar Bridge and the Cathedral of Resurrection", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2022
A city with a pink sky is another approach as a naif, like a painting of a willingly childish soul. It has the features of Matisse with a balanced perspective. A very personal, authentic expression that approaches the world and the landscape with optimism. - Stamatis Skliris
A city with a pink sky is another approach as a naif, like a painting of a willingly childish soul. It has the features of Matisse with a balanced perspective. A very personal, authentic expression that approaches the world and the landscape with optimism. - Stamatis Skliris
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"St. Sebastian of San Francisco and Jackson", detail, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"St. Sebastian of San Francisco and Jackson", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2022
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Father Dumitru: The Theologian of the Prisons", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
Fr Dumitru “sits in silence, with no wish to speak” (Saint Silouan), recalling the joy of life in prison described by Elder Sofian Boghiu: “I can say that I had days, many days, in prison that were more joyful than outside, because joy comes from within, not from outside". He remembers entering his cell and seeing other inmates writing biblical verses from memory on their boot soles–verses which he as a professor of theology had not yet inscribed on the tablet of his heart; he longs for the unceasing prayer God granted him amidst the inhumane tortures and deprivations; he gazes upon God’s suffering people, wishing to console them through the living, grace-filled theology welling up in his heart, through the experience of Christ Whom he met within the four walls of a prison cell.
Fr Dumitru “sits in silence, with no wish to speak” (Saint Silouan), recalling the joy of life in prison described by Elder Sofian Boghiu: “I can say that I had days, many days, in prison that were more joyful than outside, because joy comes from within, not from outside". He remembers entering his cell and seeing other inmates writing biblical verses from memory on their boot soles–verses which he as a professor of theology had not yet inscribed on the tablet of his heart; he longs for the unceasing prayer God granted him amidst the inhumane tortures and deprivations; he gazes upon God’s suffering people, wishing to console them through the living, grace-filled theology welling up in his heart, through the experience of Christ Whom he met within the four walls of a prison cell.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Beethoven 2", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
This is a surprising "Beethoven". Hair flies from the urge of inspiration. The eyes - the strongest point of the painting - are in ecstasy. The red cow also participates in ecstasy. A book, a keyboard, and a clock - everything floats, terrified by the invisible waves of fate. The presence of a floating clock is important, indicating the connection between the mystery of time and the mystery of music. Beethoven's wide gaze and the semicircular keyboard indicate the comprehensiveness, enormous energy, and great momentum which envelops the drama of existence, from the germ of the Big Bang to the future mystery (Eschaton).
This is a surprising "Beethoven". Hair flies from the urge of inspiration. The eyes - the strongest point of the painting - are in ecstasy. The red cow also participates in ecstasy. A book, a keyboard, and a clock - everything floats, terrified by the invisible waves of fate. The presence of a floating clock is important, indicating the connection between the mystery of time and the mystery of music. Beethoven's wide gaze and the semicircular keyboard indicate the comprehensiveness, enormous energy, and great momentum which envelops the drama of existence, from the germ of the Big Bang to the future mystery (Eschaton).
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"King Peter I of Serbia and Yugoslavia" No 6, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"King Peter I of Serbia and Yugoslavia" No 5, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Melody of Waters”, acrylic on canvas, by father Stamatis and bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Metropolitan John (Zizioulas)", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2021
INTERPRETATION OF THE PORTRAIT OF THE METROPOLITAN OF PERGAMON JOHN (ZIZIOULAS) by the hand of Bishop MAXIMOS (VASILJEVIC)
An invisible axis connects the gaze of the depicted Metropolitan with the spectator. This gaze looks at us seriously and thoughtfully, and together with the soft wrinkles of the forehead and the ambiguous lips, it is as if they immobilize time and look not exactly at us, but as if they are penetrating our being and exploring something deep and hidden. The painter succeeded with great simplicity in expressing something ontological: the question of the depicted about life and its meaning. The raised eyebrows of the portrait also contribute to this. After all, this very profound look is like wondering: do you really exist, spectator? Is this relationship real? In other words, they allow for hope to transpire in a relationship of the eyes that brings us into a real relationship. It is what we say in theological language: a true eschatological loving relationship of persons.
Here Bishop Maxim surpassed himself and reached the ideal of the orthodox iconographer. And we are left with the right to ask ourselves: could Maxim get there if his long patient and obedient apprenticeship in Metropolitan of Pergamon hadn’t preceded?
In Athens on the 24th of November 2021.
Fr. Stamatis Skliris
INTERPRETATION OF THE PORTRAIT OF THE METROPOLITAN OF PERGAMON JOHN (ZIZIOULAS) by the hand of Bishop MAXIMOS (VASILJEVIC)
An invisible axis connects the gaze of the depicted Metropolitan with the spectator. This gaze looks at us seriously and thoughtfully, and together with the soft wrinkles of the forehead and the ambiguous lips, it is as if they immobilize time and look not exactly at us, but as if they are penetrating our being and exploring something deep and hidden. The painter succeeded with great simplicity in expressing something ontological: the question of the depicted about life and its meaning. The raised eyebrows of the portrait also contribute to this. After all, this very profound look is like wondering: do you really exist, spectator? Is this relationship real? In other words, they allow for hope to transpire in a relationship of the eyes that brings us into a real relationship. It is what we say in theological language: a true eschatological loving relationship of persons.
Here Bishop Maxim surpassed himself and reached the ideal of the orthodox iconographer. And we are left with the right to ask ourselves: could Maxim get there if his long patient and obedient apprenticeship in Metropolitan of Pergamon hadn’t preceded?
In Athens on the 24th of November 2021.
Fr. Stamatis Skliris
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Abstract Painting with a Horse", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2021
Night, with a moon and a silent starry sky above the landscape of rocks and a lake. Suddenly, a raging white horse in a dream jumps and sweetens the lonely desert landscape. The silent and peaceful presence of the night and of the lake converse with the dynamic relationship between animal and nature. The scene is pervaded by a sense of loneliness, quiet peace and of man’s awe before the indeterminism of nature. Abstract painting changes the way we look at the world around us. Rather than presenting a strict likeness abstract art focuses on achieving an effect. The shapes and colors of the various natural elements are used to form a rhythm of the composition.
Night, with a moon and a silent starry sky above the landscape of rocks and a lake. Suddenly, a raging white horse in a dream jumps and sweetens the lonely desert landscape. The silent and peaceful presence of the night and of the lake converse with the dynamic relationship between animal and nature. The scene is pervaded by a sense of loneliness, quiet peace and of man’s awe before the indeterminism of nature. Abstract painting changes the way we look at the world around us. Rather than presenting a strict likeness abstract art focuses on achieving an effect. The shapes and colors of the various natural elements are used to form a rhythm of the composition.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"St. Sebastian of Jackson and San Francisco", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Marija Receives the Light", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2018
Marija comes for the vigil on the Holy Saturday night outside the temple with wakeful and vigilant face and candles (its flame burning brightly) in her hands to celebrate Christ’s resurrection. “Come, receive the light!” is exclaimed three times as a promise that no matter how dark our world gets, the light will never be overtaken. After Holy Friday, she is transported to the moment “very early in the morning” when the light of the Resurrection is just beginning to dawn. A gladness of soul is a record of the Eucharistic experience.
Marija comes for the vigil on the Holy Saturday night outside the temple with wakeful and vigilant face and candles (its flame burning brightly) in her hands to celebrate Christ’s resurrection. “Come, receive the light!” is exclaimed three times as a promise that no matter how dark our world gets, the light will never be overtaken. After Holy Friday, she is transported to the moment “very early in the morning” when the light of the Resurrection is just beginning to dawn. A gladness of soul is a record of the Eucharistic experience.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Lydia", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2021
The wind of freedom. Flowers adorn the waving hair, and a river of fire and lava surrounds existence.
The wind of freedom. Flowers adorn the waving hair, and a river of fire and lava surrounds existence.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"King Peter I of Serbia and Yugoslavia, No 4", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"St. Porphyrius the Kafsokalyvite", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"African Child", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
Among the traditional characteristics of African children are (a) the early maturity in self-discipline, (b) the aspiration for education, (c) respect for traditional values, (d) early search for identity, and (e) a wholesome spirit of cooperation and dependence on one another.
In his “Four Studies of the Head of a Black Man” Peter Paul Rubens explored a variety of facial expressions and poses of a black person. Using a single dim source of light, he created strong contrasts of brightness and shadow on the man's skin, varying these along with the different expressions.
Among the traditional characteristics of African children are (a) the early maturity in self-discipline, (b) the aspiration for education, (c) respect for traditional values, (d) early search for identity, and (e) a wholesome spirit of cooperation and dependence on one another.
In his “Four Studies of the Head of a Black Man” Peter Paul Rubens explored a variety of facial expressions and poses of a black person. Using a single dim source of light, he created strong contrasts of brightness and shadow on the man's skin, varying these along with the different expressions.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Young King Alexander I of Before All", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"King Peter I of Yugoslavia After All", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"St John the Baptist", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
Inspiration: Rodin, Norton Simon Museum and Fr. Stamatis Skliris: http://holyicon.org/images/01/expressionism/292.jpg
Inspiration: Rodin, Norton Simon Museum and Fr. Stamatis Skliris: http://holyicon.org/images/01/expressionism/292.jpg
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Tale of Dreams That Never Die", acrylic on canvas, 2021
Existence created by light and love. A character staring at a scene with a vague outcome. Plasticity achieved by applying thick brush strokes. In this two-tone canvas a being emerges with the call of love (red) and shedding of light (white).
Existence created by light and love. A character staring at a scene with a vague outcome. Plasticity achieved by applying thick brush strokes. In this two-tone canvas a being emerges with the call of love (red) and shedding of light (white).
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Like a Horse Prepared for Battle", acrylic on canvas, 2021
The expression and body language of this swift horse with lightning-fast reflexes, communicates the wonder caused by viewer’s sudden presence. Physically refined, it is shown as jumping for joy (horse can jump 8 ft 1.25 or 2.47 m). This wonder horse, having high energy, is very powerful due to its strong muscles and leg structure. The author “immortalies” this waltzing horse on the very crust of the earth which hides a fiery maze beneath.
The expression and body language of this swift horse with lightning-fast reflexes, communicates the wonder caused by viewer’s sudden presence. Physically refined, it is shown as jumping for joy (horse can jump 8 ft 1.25 or 2.47 m). This wonder horse, having high energy, is very powerful due to its strong muscles and leg structure. The author “immortalies” this waltzing horse on the very crust of the earth which hides a fiery maze beneath.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
Dostoevsky 4, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
"Dostoevsky’s face is the face of a peasant. An ashen hue pervades the hollow cheeks, making them appear almost grimy, emphasizing the furrows caused by many years of suffering; the skin, dry and parched, is stretched tight over the bony framework, and is bereft of blood and color, sucked clean of life by the vampire which has preyed on it for a score of years. To right and left, two huge boulders jut forth, the prominent cheekbones typical of his race; a sparse moustache and a straggling beard veil the sad-looking mouth and delicate chin. Earth, rock, and forest; a tragic and primitive landscape; such are the basic lineaments of Dostoevsky’s countenance. All is dark and preeminently earthly in this unbeautiful face. I have called it a peasant’s, but I might almost term it a beggar’s, so flat and colorless is it, so lacking in brightness: a piece of the Russian steppe cast high and dry upon the stones. Even the deep-set eyes, gleaming from within their sockets, are incapable of imparting a spark of light to the grim visage, for their radiance is directed inward. As soon as the lids close over them, the face becomes a death mask, and the nervous tension which otherwise grips the frail features is relaxed into a lifeless lethargy". (Dostoevsky by Stefan Zweig)
"Dostoevsky’s face is the face of a peasant. An ashen hue pervades the hollow cheeks, making them appear almost grimy, emphasizing the furrows caused by many years of suffering; the skin, dry and parched, is stretched tight over the bony framework, and is bereft of blood and color, sucked clean of life by the vampire which has preyed on it for a score of years. To right and left, two huge boulders jut forth, the prominent cheekbones typical of his race; a sparse moustache and a straggling beard veil the sad-looking mouth and delicate chin. Earth, rock, and forest; a tragic and primitive landscape; such are the basic lineaments of Dostoevsky’s countenance. All is dark and preeminently earthly in this unbeautiful face. I have called it a peasant’s, but I might almost term it a beggar’s, so flat and colorless is it, so lacking in brightness: a piece of the Russian steppe cast high and dry upon the stones. Even the deep-set eyes, gleaming from within their sockets, are incapable of imparting a spark of light to the grim visage, for their radiance is directed inward. As soon as the lids close over them, the face becomes a death mask, and the nervous tension which otherwise grips the frail features is relaxed into a lifeless lethargy". (Dostoevsky by Stefan Zweig)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Angel Mermaid", acrylic on canvas, 2021
“It is as if he takes out his soul to give it to you, as if he is looking at you in the middle floors of Your existence, he accompanies you not to hit your foot on the rock, it is your “deacon” that the Maker of life gave you. Do not forget him, do not set him aside, do not turn your back on him. When you catch such company with your Angel, then whatever happens to you, you will be able to overcome it. His fiery hair, his fiery eyes, his fiery cheeks, remove the contour, unite with the hair color like a divine lava to smell the angelic face. And yet he is a person like a mermaid, a mermaid Angel, Angel of youth, Angel of power, Angel that we dare and paint since the Son of God took flesh!” (Stamatis Skliris)
“It is as if he takes out his soul to give it to you, as if he is looking at you in the middle floors of Your existence, he accompanies you not to hit your foot on the rock, it is your “deacon” that the Maker of life gave you. Do not forget him, do not set him aside, do not turn your back on him. When you catch such company with your Angel, then whatever happens to you, you will be able to overcome it. His fiery hair, his fiery eyes, his fiery cheeks, remove the contour, unite with the hair color like a divine lava to smell the angelic face. And yet he is a person like a mermaid, a mermaid Angel, Angel of youth, Angel of power, Angel that we dare and paint since the Son of God took flesh!” (Stamatis Skliris)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Stationary Movement", acrylic on canvas, Bishop Maxim, 2021
In eternity, the human existence will “acquire an ever-moving repose and a stationary movement”. This signifies the existential freedom from every necessity of motion or repose, the realization of existence as relation, the freedom of love as the mode of the fullness of existence. “A stationary movement that is simultaneously eternally-moving stasis, presupposes that outside of this is the Other in whom room is found: movement turns toward God and is stationary in Him. Stasis is also eternally-moving, because it is not exhausted in its limits, but turns out of itself.” (St. Maximus the Confessor)
In eternity, the human existence will “acquire an ever-moving repose and a stationary movement”. This signifies the existential freedom from every necessity of motion or repose, the realization of existence as relation, the freedom of love as the mode of the fullness of existence. “A stationary movement that is simultaneously eternally-moving stasis, presupposes that outside of this is the Other in whom room is found: movement turns toward God and is stationary in Him. Stasis is also eternally-moving, because it is not exhausted in its limits, but turns out of itself.” (St. Maximus the Confessor)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Emily from Our Town (1938)", acrylic on cardboard, 2018
In a 1938 metatheatrical play Our Town by an American novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder, an extremely interesting dialogue between Emily, one of the characters, and the stage manager takes place. Emily returns to earth to relive one day, her twelfth birthday. She watches with joy at being able to see her parents and some of the people of her childhood. Her joy, however, quickly turns to sorrow when she realizes how little people appreciate the simple joys of life. The memory proves too painful for her, and she turns toward the stage manager and asks: "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it, every, every minute?" At first, he responds, "No," but after a moment he adds, "saints and poets, maybe—they do some."
In a 1938 metatheatrical play Our Town by an American novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder, an extremely interesting dialogue between Emily, one of the characters, and the stage manager takes place. Emily returns to earth to relive one day, her twelfth birthday. She watches with joy at being able to see her parents and some of the people of her childhood. Her joy, however, quickly turns to sorrow when she realizes how little people appreciate the simple joys of life. The memory proves too painful for her, and she turns toward the stage manager and asks: "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it, every, every minute?" At first, he responds, "No," but after a moment he adds, "saints and poets, maybe—they do some."
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Čiča Draža", acrylic on canvas, 2021
Father Stamatis Skliris: "This work establishes the distinctive artistic identity of the painter Bishop Maxim. We emphasize the particular way of writing the sky that contains the warmth of red, with the glittering city in the far distance, the rivers, forests, flowers, and fields neo-Impressionist, with the houses echoing of Serbian folk art and the "hard realism" of the General's uniform and especially his face that dominates in the center of the composition. A strong face like a wood-carved bust of a hard statue, but which distills from the bluish pearly glare of his eyes and nose the sensitivity of his ideals: We fight not to kill, but to prevent impending dehumanization."
Father Stamatis Skliris: "This work establishes the distinctive artistic identity of the painter Bishop Maxim. We emphasize the particular way of writing the sky that contains the warmth of red, with the glittering city in the far distance, the rivers, forests, flowers, and fields neo-Impressionist, with the houses echoing of Serbian folk art and the "hard realism" of the General's uniform and especially his face that dominates in the center of the composition. A strong face like a wood-carved bust of a hard statue, but which distills from the bluish pearly glare of his eyes and nose the sensitivity of his ideals: We fight not to kill, but to prevent impending dehumanization."
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"King Peter I", acrylic on canvas, 2021
After the Albanian Golgotha, one of the greatest exoduses in Serbian history, King Petar I the Liberator stands upright, dignified, and honorable, while the snow-capped mountains of Albania and Montenegro, from the winter of 1915/16, can be seen behind him, during the First World War.
After the Albanian Golgotha, one of the greatest exoduses in Serbian history, King Petar I the Liberator stands upright, dignified, and honorable, while the snow-capped mountains of Albania and Montenegro, from the winter of 1915/16, can be seen behind him, during the First World War.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Klara Olsufyevna” (The Double, by Dostoyevsky), acrylic on canvas, 2021
In the novel The Double, Klara Olsufyevna, “pale, tired and sad, but richly dressed”, gradually becomes a “enchantress” for Goliadkin’s bipolar personality. Klara is Osulfy Ivanovitch’s only daughter. Engaged to marry a Prince she doesn't want to marry, Klara contacts Golyadkin and asks him to take her away.
In the novel The Double, Klara Olsufyevna, “pale, tired and sad, but richly dressed”, gradually becomes a “enchantress” for Goliadkin’s bipolar personality. Klara is Osulfy Ivanovitch’s only daughter. Engaged to marry a Prince she doesn't want to marry, Klara contacts Golyadkin and asks him to take her away.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“George Washington”, acrylic on canvas, 2021, by Bishop Maxim
“It's a serious work with all the seriousness they owe to the founding fathers who made the United States truly the United States of America. I like the seriousness of the lips of the nose and the paths of the face, and the scarf around his neck and the deep red background that leaves the dark model visible.” (Fr. Stamatis Skliris)
“It's a serious work with all the seriousness they owe to the founding fathers who made the United States truly the United States of America. I like the seriousness of the lips of the nose and the paths of the face, and the scarf around his neck and the deep red background that leaves the dark model visible.” (Fr. Stamatis Skliris)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“George Washington”, acrylic on canvas, 2021, by Bishop Maxim
“It's a serious work with all the seriousness they owe to the founding fathers who made the United States truly the United States of America. I like the seriousness of the lips of the nose and the paths of the face, and the scarf around his neck and the deep red background that leaves the dark model visible.” (Fr. Stamatis Skliris)
“It's a serious work with all the seriousness they owe to the founding fathers who made the United States truly the United States of America. I like the seriousness of the lips of the nose and the paths of the face, and the scarf around his neck and the deep red background that leaves the dark model visible.” (Fr. Stamatis Skliris)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Sonya Marmeladova à la Fayum", acrylic on wooden board, 2021
"This is a noble portrait, which after many centuries continues the tradition of Fayum portraits (naturalistic painted portrait on wooden boards attached to upper class mummies from Roman Egypt). It is characterized by an unspeakable aristocratic nobility, for which we cannot understand how it came about. This painting follows all the Byzantine lessons that the artist has in himself, but at the same time he has one ‘fabric’ of high artistic breath, one breath that can turn and speak to modern man. It is a portrait that we can say is contemporary, a portrait of the 21st century." (Stamatis Skliris)
"This is a noble portrait, which after many centuries continues the tradition of Fayum portraits (naturalistic painted portrait on wooden boards attached to upper class mummies from Roman Egypt). It is characterized by an unspeakable aristocratic nobility, for which we cannot understand how it came about. This painting follows all the Byzantine lessons that the artist has in himself, but at the same time he has one ‘fabric’ of high artistic breath, one breath that can turn and speak to modern man. It is a portrait that we can say is contemporary, a portrait of the 21st century." (Stamatis Skliris)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Prayers by the Lake of Ohrid and a Fish", acrylic on canvas, 2021
This is the Lake that inspired the ascetic of Ohrid to utter prayers—vibrant in their lyrical mood and characterized by a Christian view of the cosmos. It invites us to express reverently and poetically our longing for Christ, inflamed by divine eros. The fish appears as a mysterious presence.
This is the Lake that inspired the ascetic of Ohrid to utter prayers—vibrant in their lyrical mood and characterized by a Christian view of the cosmos. It invites us to express reverently and poetically our longing for Christ, inflamed by divine eros. The fish appears as a mysterious presence.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Prayers by the Lake of Ohrid 2", acrylic on canvas, 2021
This is the Lake that inspired the ascetic of Ohrid to utter prayers—vibrant in their lyrical mood and characterized by a Christian view of the cosmos. It invites us to express reverently and poetically our longing for Christ, inflamed by divine eros.
This is the Lake that inspired the ascetic of Ohrid to utter prayers—vibrant in their lyrical mood and characterized by a Christian view of the cosmos. It invites us to express reverently and poetically our longing for Christ, inflamed by divine eros.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Dostoevsky 2", acrylic on canvas, 2021
"Dostoevsky’s face is the face of a peasant. An ashen hue pervades the hollow cheeks, making them appear almost grimy, emphasizing the furrows caused by many years of suffering; the skin, dry and parched, is stretched tight over the bony framework, and is bereft of blood and color, sucked clean of life by the vampire which has preyed on it for a score of years. To right and left, two huge boulders jut forth, the prominent cheekbones typical of his race; a sparse moustache and a straggling beard veil the sad-looking mouth and delicate chin. Earth, rock, and forest; a tragic and primitive landscape; such are the basic lineaments of Dostoevsky’s countenance. All is dark and preeminently earthly in this unbeautiful face. I have called it a peasant’s, but I might almost term it a beggar’s, so flat and colorless is it, so lacking in brightness: a piece of the Russian steppe cast high and dry upon the stones. Even the deep-set eyes, gleaming from within their sockets, are incapable of imparting a spark of light to the grim visage, for their radiance is directed inward. As soon as the lids close over them, the face becomes a death mask, and the nervous tension which otherwise grips the frail features is relaxed into a lifeless lethargy". (Dostoevsky by Stefan Zweig)
"Dostoevsky’s face is the face of a peasant. An ashen hue pervades the hollow cheeks, making them appear almost grimy, emphasizing the furrows caused by many years of suffering; the skin, dry and parched, is stretched tight over the bony framework, and is bereft of blood and color, sucked clean of life by the vampire which has preyed on it for a score of years. To right and left, two huge boulders jut forth, the prominent cheekbones typical of his race; a sparse moustache and a straggling beard veil the sad-looking mouth and delicate chin. Earth, rock, and forest; a tragic and primitive landscape; such are the basic lineaments of Dostoevsky’s countenance. All is dark and preeminently earthly in this unbeautiful face. I have called it a peasant’s, but I might almost term it a beggar’s, so flat and colorless is it, so lacking in brightness: a piece of the Russian steppe cast high and dry upon the stones. Even the deep-set eyes, gleaming from within their sockets, are incapable of imparting a spark of light to the grim visage, for their radiance is directed inward. As soon as the lids close over them, the face becomes a death mask, and the nervous tension which otherwise grips the frail features is relaxed into a lifeless lethargy". (Dostoevsky by Stefan Zweig)
- Details
- Category: Maxim
Mihajlo Pupin / Michael Pupin, acrylic on canvas, 2021
This work is painted after a portrait of Mihajlo Pupin, done in 1903 by the great Serbian painter Paja Jovanović in the USA. Feeling confident in himself, Pupin has a decisive and direct look into investing in new technologies understanding the risks. The warmth of red represents the heat of the laboratory and the passion of a scientific experiment. The viewer feels the warmth in red color and the coolness in blue. Blue color of Pupin’s suits represents complete calmness, peace and tranquillity and has a pacifying effect on the entire atmosphere. Blue means responsibility and reliability.
This work is painted after a portrait of Mihajlo Pupin, done in 1903 by the great Serbian painter Paja Jovanović in the USA. Feeling confident in himself, Pupin has a decisive and direct look into investing in new technologies understanding the risks. The warmth of red represents the heat of the laboratory and the passion of a scientific experiment. The viewer feels the warmth in red color and the coolness in blue. Blue color of Pupin’s suits represents complete calmness, peace and tranquillity and has a pacifying effect on the entire atmosphere. Blue means responsibility and reliability.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“A Vase of Evangelism”, acrylic on canvas, 2021
Leaves and flowers rejoice in a transmission of joy that overflows from the vase and fills our hearts.
Leaves and flowers rejoice in a transmission of joy that overflows from the vase and fills our hearts.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
Blaise Pascal, acrylic on cardboard, 2021
Pascal was a brilliant child prodigy, who went on to become one of the greatest mathematicians, physicists, inventors, and writers of the seventeenth century. The author of Pensees and the Provincial Letters has said, “Eloquence is a painting of the thoughts.” This work of older Pascal, with long and curly hair, seated and facing to the left, is painted after a portrait done by French painter Philippe de Champagne (1602-1674). Adopting an ascetic lifestyle, Pascal wrote eloquently about the insoluble paradoxes of the human condition, blending stoic and skeptical arguments to bring his readers to a point of confusion and despair, at which they would accept his famous wager and embrace God.
Pascal was a brilliant child prodigy, who went on to become one of the greatest mathematicians, physicists, inventors, and writers of the seventeenth century. The author of Pensees and the Provincial Letters has said, “Eloquence is a painting of the thoughts.” This work of older Pascal, with long and curly hair, seated and facing to the left, is painted after a portrait done by French painter Philippe de Champagne (1602-1674). Adopting an ascetic lifestyle, Pascal wrote eloquently about the insoluble paradoxes of the human condition, blending stoic and skeptical arguments to bring his readers to a point of confusion and despair, at which they would accept his famous wager and embrace God.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“The Elder Atanasije Breaks Through The Darkness Of Night With Prayer”, acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
Divinity emanating through his expression, the broad shoulders and the blessed peace of mind of the Elder Atanasije describe the balance between physical and spiritual strength.
Divinity emanating through his expression, the broad shoulders and the blessed peace of mind of the Elder Atanasije describe the balance between physical and spiritual strength.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Dostoevsky”, acrylic on cardboard, by Bishop Maxim, 2021
Father Stamatis Skliris:
Did you see the charm of the dark background? "Dostoyevsky" is very nice, the design stands and the expression is serious, as it should be. The jacket with two touches brush is finished and is complete, with a clever artistic gesture. I especially like the atmosphere or the mentality. A serious man, thinking eyes, troubled, and a jacket spaciously wrapped around his body that betrays his Van Goghian suffering and existential difficulty to be caught by existence, to be clung to and not to fall into non-existence.
Father Stamatis Skliris:
Did you see the charm of the dark background? "Dostoyevsky" is very nice, the design stands and the expression is serious, as it should be. The jacket with two touches brush is finished and is complete, with a clever artistic gesture. I especially like the atmosphere or the mentality. A serious man, thinking eyes, troubled, and a jacket spaciously wrapped around his body that betrays his Van Goghian suffering and existential difficulty to be caught by existence, to be clung to and not to fall into non-existence.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Mihajlo Idvorski Pupin - Michael Idvorsky Pupin", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, april 2021
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"A Patient of 2020", acrylic on canvas, by bp. Maxim
This acrylic painting conveys vulnerable human beings' battles with the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is not yet contained, leaving suffering and death in its wake. Yet, coexisting with Covid-19 implies faith, hope, dreams...
This acrylic painting conveys vulnerable human beings' battles with the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is not yet contained, leaving suffering and death in its wake. Yet, coexisting with Covid-19 implies faith, hope, dreams...
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"The Hagia Sophia", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, 2020
The Hagia Sophia is а marvelous building that transcends time and still impacts Christianity’s history. Its importance came to light recently with the decision to convert it into a mosque. This acrylic painting depicts the exterior of the Hagia Sophia (“Holy Wisdom”, Sancta Sophia, Ayasofya) with the sea walls of Constantinople. It seems that Justinian’s dream of the Eastern Roman Empire’s sea power was imprinted here. The ellipticity of the dome seems to be the origin and the crowning of the peculiar light of the Hagia Sophia.
The Hagia Sophia is а marvelous building that transcends time and still impacts Christianity’s history. Its importance came to light recently with the decision to convert it into a mosque. This acrylic painting depicts the exterior of the Hagia Sophia (“Holy Wisdom”, Sancta Sophia, Ayasofya) with the sea walls of Constantinople. It seems that Justinian’s dream of the Eastern Roman Empire’s sea power was imprinted here. The ellipticity of the dome seems to be the origin and the crowning of the peculiar light of the Hagia Sophia.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Jesus Christ - Alpha and Omega”, detail, acrylic on canvas, by bp Maxim, 2020
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"St Vasilije of Ostrog", detail, egg tempera on board, by Radmila Vasiljevic, 2015
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Thanksgiving Ship", acrylic on canvas, by bp. Maxim and Radmila Vasiljevic, 2020
- Details
- Category: Maxim
St George of San Francisco acrylic on canvas, by bp. Maxim & Radmila Vasiljevic 2020
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Cactus of Elder Ephraim of St. Anthony's”, acrylic on canvas, by Radmila Vasiljevic, 2020
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Horses playing", acrylic on canvas, by bp Maxim and Radmila Vasiljevic, 2019
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Mirjana", acrylic on board, by bishop Maxim, 2019
Abstract expressionism inspired by Modigliani. The plain background offers no distractions and allows us to gaze at the model’s beauty and her serene expressions. Modigliani would not paint the model’s eyes because they were too beautiful and too intimate. Elongated, angular lines and the sculptural tranquility on the sitter’s face allows for the possibility of the grasp of model’s personality through the eyes. The blue color of the empty eyes for this case matches with the blue background color on the right side as if we see the background through the empty eyes. When Modigliani left the eyes empty, it is considered that he then had difficulties in understanding the character of the model. Every model has more characters. For the model having an ambiguous character, he blurred the eyes, or pupils. “I will paint your eyes when I find your soul.” It seems that the model looks at the world while we look into the model’s eyes to get into her thoughts.
Abstract expressionism inspired by Modigliani. The plain background offers no distractions and allows us to gaze at the model’s beauty and her serene expressions. Modigliani would not paint the model’s eyes because they were too beautiful and too intimate. Elongated, angular lines and the sculptural tranquility on the sitter’s face allows for the possibility of the grasp of model’s personality through the eyes. The blue color of the empty eyes for this case matches with the blue background color on the right side as if we see the background through the empty eyes. When Modigliani left the eyes empty, it is considered that he then had difficulties in understanding the character of the model. Every model has more characters. For the model having an ambiguous character, he blurred the eyes, or pupils. “I will paint your eyes when I find your soul.” It seems that the model looks at the world while we look into the model’s eyes to get into her thoughts.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Ship of Salvation”, acrylic on canvas, by bishop Maxim and Radmila Vasiljevic, 2020
- Details
- Category: Maxim
“Flathead Lake Montana”, acrylic on board, by bp. Maxim and Radmila Vasiljevic, 2020
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Summer Pascha in a Skete in the North Star", acrylic on canvas, Radmila Vasiljevic, 2020
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"The Boat we are Waiting for", acrylic on canvas, Alhambra, 2019
It is night on the island. We are waiting for the boat. It has been two days. Suddenly, the boat is approaching, coming out of the void, to take us on a voyage.
It is night on the island. We are waiting for the boat. It has been two days. Suddenly, the boat is approaching, coming out of the void, to take us on a voyage.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"A Young Man Before the Martyrdom", acrylic on cardboard box, 2004
The painting depicts the moment before the martyrdom of a man of noble blood. He is portrayed standing anxiously in modesty and courage. The painter has instilled feeling into his colors, mingling humility with bravery, two naturally contradictory feelings.
The painting depicts the moment before the martyrdom of a man of noble blood. He is portrayed standing anxiously in modesty and courage. The painter has instilled feeling into his colors, mingling humility with bravery, two naturally contradictory feelings.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Lambri", or "How the Orthodox celebrate the Night of the Resurrection", acrylic on canvas, 2019
It is a gladness of soul, a record of the Eucharist's experience, that all these years I thanked my Parish, with all these people of God who came to for the vigil on the Holy Saturday night outside the temple with smiling faces and candles in their hands and celebrating Christ who was THEIR OWN.
It is a gladness of soul, a record of the Eucharist's experience, that all these years I thanked my Parish, with all these people of God who came to for the vigil on the Holy Saturday night outside the temple with smiling faces and candles in their hands and celebrating Christ who was THEIR OWN.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
Californian Impressionism, 2019
Travel companions with creation. Creation “bends” over our “journeys.” It beautifies and enriches the journey of our life.
Travel companions with creation. Creation “bends” over our “journeys.” It beautifies and enriches the journey of our life.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Beethoven", acrylic on canvas, by Bishop Maxim, october 2017
This is a surprising "Beethoven". Hair flies from the urge of inspiration. The eyes - the strongest point of the painting - are in ecstasy. The red cow also participates in ecstasy. A book, a keyboard, and a clock - everything floats, terrified by the invisible waves of fate. The presence of a floating clock is important, indicating the connection between the mystery of time and the mystery of music. Beethoven's wide gaze and the semicircular keyboard indicate the comprehensiveness, enormous energy, and great momentum which envelops the drama of existence, from the germ of the Big Bang to the future mystery (Eschaton).
This is a surprising "Beethoven". Hair flies from the urge of inspiration. The eyes - the strongest point of the painting - are in ecstasy. The red cow also participates in ecstasy. A book, a keyboard, and a clock - everything floats, terrified by the invisible waves of fate. The presence of a floating clock is important, indicating the connection between the mystery of time and the mystery of music. Beethoven's wide gaze and the semicircular keyboard indicate the comprehensiveness, enormous energy, and great momentum which envelops the drama of existence, from the germ of the Big Bang to the future mystery (Eschaton).
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"New Mexico", inspired by Georgia O'Keeffe, Acrylic on canvas, september 2017
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Safari - South Africa" (digital painting made with Adobe Illustrator Draw, iPadPro), June 18, 2017
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Saint Sebastian of San Francisco and Jackson", by Protinica Radmila and Bishop Maxim, 2017
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Magic in the Moonlight", acrylic on canvas, 2018
Bathed by the light of the moon. When the beauty of the soul is illuminated by the darkness of pain. The heavens narrate the glory of God, and the poetry of His hands announces the firmament.
Bathed by the light of the moon. When the beauty of the soul is illuminated by the darkness of pain. The heavens narrate the glory of God, and the poetry of His hands announces the firmament.
- Details
- Category: Maxim
Jesus Christ the Merciful One, Acrylic on canvas, by Stamatis and Maxim, 2015
- Details
- Category: Maxim
"Two homelands", acrylic on canvas, 2014.
Depicting the Old Country and the New World. The Old Country is a place where you or your parents were born but do not now live. Never has it been so vital to understand how issues in the Old or New Country impact our lives, business, and... ART! A great number of Serbs who find themselves for longer or shorter periods of time spread out throughout the world – often departing after difficult deliberation – remain connected to the land of their birth or ancestry, living a 'double consciousness'... This painting somehow points to that phenomenon.
Depicting the Old Country and the New World. The Old Country is a place where you or your parents were born but do not now live. Never has it been so vital to understand how issues in the Old or New Country impact our lives, business, and... ART! A great number of Serbs who find themselves for longer or shorter periods of time spread out throughout the world – often departing after difficult deliberation – remain connected to the land of their birth or ancestry, living a 'double consciousness'... This painting somehow points to that phenomenon.
