The Trinity was painted by a Russian painter
Andrei Rublev during the 15th century in the “orthodoxy period”. This
time period is represented by the use of symbols and icons. This painting epitomizes
both of those qualities. It depicts the three angels who visited Abraham at the Oak of
Mamre -but is often interpreted as an icon of the Trinity. Each one depicted in
the picture has the same face and a partial blue garment signifying that the
trinity is one. Yet there is another garment unique to each one that signifies
their specific role in the Trinity. “The Holy Spirit” is represented by the one
on the far right. He wears a green robe representing new life. Behind his
shoulder is also a mountain that represents a place that people often encounter
God. (Moses, Jesus, etc.) The one in the middle represents Christ. He wears a
brown garment representing earth and his humanity and the gold stripe
represents his kingship. His head is also inclined towards the figure on the
left. The last figure, on the far left, is God. He has the blue for divinity
and the shimmering-ethereal robe representing his ultimate authority on heaven
and earth. Behind him is a house representing the dwelling place of God. Lastly,
what is important to note is that they are not a closed circle, but instead
they are open. This action invites us into the picture showing their love and acceptance
of us. This piece ultimately has become one of the most well known icons for
the trinity in existence.
I chose
this image because my mother loves this image. She is a humanities teacher and
each year print laminated bookmarks with this image on it for her students and
gives it to them when she is teaching about it. When I was young she gave one
to me and it has been a constant in my bible ever since. It wasn’t until I took
her class in 10th grade that I understood the full interpretation of
it.
I chose
the snowflake as my second image because I love the notion that everything is
created by God and has a unique design and purpose. You can even see His
fingerprints in something as small and minute as a snowflake. The care and
complexity He took when creating us is unfathomable.
It is difficult to compare my image with these because
I created my image as an interpretation of the Trinity. I chose that image to represent God, then I melted crayons using the significant colors and photographed that. Therefore, my image mostly interprets God in a similar way that the Trinity does with the symbolism and the involvement of the onlooker. The snowflake is more a representation of God’s care and complexity rather than an image of Him.
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