An interest in icons from the tradition of eastern Orthodoxy has swept across nearly all denominations in the past two decades. Andrei Rublev’s visual interpretation of The Holy Trinity  (between 1408 and 1425) is arguably the most renowned icon of all, certainly in the West. An ‘icon’ of an icon! While old, it seems new.

Rublev (1360-1425) stands as an exception to the general anonymity of Orthodox iconographers. Yet he is only a dimly known personality. The facts of his life are fragmentary. Many know of his life from Andrei Tarkovsky’s epic film, Andrei Rublev (1966) – a great work of art in its own right. More visual poetry than precise biography, this episodic portrayal, however, is faithful to the message at the heart of Rublev’s monastic service of creating icons, namely community and love.

The allusive nature of Rublev’s Trinity icon is the source of its wonder. Its grace of lightness, clarity, harmony and elegance enthrall while compelling us to penetrate the mystery it imparts. Accounting for the details of this deceptively simple work soon accumulates a bounty of observations and even more wonder.