A Painter of Churches

Before starting work on an important commission connected with religious painting, I first pray to be healthy in mind and body so as to be able to put into practice what I have learned during a lifetime of painting.

– From whom did you inherit the gift of painting?

– Nobody in my family has ever painted. I must have been born with this gift, a godly gift . I started to draw when I was 13 years old, and, as I was quite good, I left home to study with the masters. 

– This was the first church you painted alone, 47 years ago. How long did it take to finish it?

– About two summers… I worked, then stopped, then worked again. Finding the money was a problem. I used to contribute too. Never had any desire to get rich. Just wanted to paint a church in my own village. The plaster for the fresco is all done by me. You prepare the plaster and then paint it metre by metre.

– What are the techniques of Byzantine painting?

– There are three main techniques: fresco, emulsion and oil-based painting. The best for buildings is fresco. It is a very difficult technique, but also the most rewarding. You first make a paste of plaster, sand and chalk. This is to smooth and straighten the wall. Then follows another layer, a mixture of 5 year old slaked lime, chalk and finely cut tow. If a little piece of this plaster fell down from the wall, you would notice that it is made of thousands of fine  threads. The plaster has to be about one centimeter thick. Before levelling it again, the wall is dampened. The slower it dries, the less I have to  hurry to finish the painting. Once dry the fresco can no longer be altered.

– What kind of colours does one use with fresco?

– Only oxides. Burned colours. Only 4 or 5 basic pigments. There is a rather limited range. By no means enough for everything one wants to do.

– What is the difference between interior and exterior fresco murals?

– Technically it?s the same. But you have more time to paint if you?re inside the church. When you are outside you?re dependent on the weather, so you have to cover eveything, especially against the wind, because wind dries the wall faster.

– What is the basic technique for icons painted on wood?

– The best wood is from the lime-tree. Alternatively, one can use fir-trees. This is better than oak. It is  important to use a soft wood. This absorbs the oil. For a gilded icon, the first thing is to apply the gold. Otherwise it can stick to the painted sections.

– Which style do you consider closer to God  –  the Byzantine or the western one?

– The Byzantine one. The western one is closer to man. In contrast, the Byzantine is stylized, more churchly, more saintly. A few years ago, we used to paint in a more realistic style. Gradually, we went back to the Byzantine tradition. But there were many things we did not know how to do. The style on the whole is overstylized, almost inhuman sometimes. So, we opted for a compromise: the neo-Byzantine style, in between the pure Byzantine tradition and the realist one.

– Are there recommended colours for painting Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary?

– As far as their garnments are concerned, yes. I cannot paint Jesus in green or brown clothes. His robes were red and blue. The same is true for the Virgin. This tradition came down in iconography and the lives of the saints.

– How does one paint God?

– Nobody ever saw God. In realist painting his image is associated with that of an old man with a white beard. Byzantine tradition however does not allow one to render images of God in churches. Christ, yes! He did live on earth, people saw him. Iconographically, he is represented with a serene forehead; he is not supposed to frown.

– When I paint the Virgin Mary I concentrate on her image more than in any other case. If  I don?t like it, I discard the image and start again. As the Bible says, she has to be the most beautiful of all women. She also has to be a likeable presence. It is said that the Virgin Mary was extraordinarily beautiful. It is more difficult to paint a scene, ?there are several characters in it..

– Who was the first saint you ever painted?

– Well, when I started painting, I first used to draw a hand, the face of a saint, or simply an eye, just one eye,  or an ear. There are a few rules to follow: for instance those concerned with the  length of a healthy man?s arm. When painting St George, for example, I calculate where the head is in relation to his feet, then I sketch a simple anatomical figure, which afterwards I dress. I paint his clothes, the armour… 

– I have never ever worked for money alone. While painting churches I have met God … in painting … as we can in  everything else breathing on this earth. And I have painted many churches with much passion. Time does not matter. I?ll be quite honest with you : I believe that I have some special kind of faith. God?s power has always kept me safe. Kept me safe from falling… Only once did I stumble and fall from a scaffolding board. What saved me was a nail. God stuck it on the wall at about 8 or 10 metres above the ground. There was a cement floor. A young man came fast with a ladder when he saw me. Everybody said ?Flesaru, old man, you?re so lucky! The nail saved you.? It was definitely a miracle.

– What do you feel when you think of  people worshipping in front of icons painted by you?

– I never tell anybody to kiss my icons. People should kiss God in their thoughts only. Icons recall God. Icons don?t help you in life!

– Did anybody contradict you about this?

– I always used to say to whoever contradicted me: ?Listen, old man, do you have a photograph of your father at home?? ?I do.? ?Then, why don?t you tear it up and throw it away?? ?Well, I need it to remind me of him.? The same with faith: if you don?t see icons in the church, you may forget religion.

– What does church mean to a christian?

–         It keeps man from doing wrong.

I love the fact that the church is so close to my house. I can go to church whenever I want… We live very near, and this is such a joy.

When I built the house, I  made this workshop as well. I wanted it separate from the house. I painted portraits, and landscapes, and everything there is to paint. Painted a lot of nudes as well. But one needs to have a model for nudes and that proved to be difficult. I couldn?t do that at home. I?m a married man, and my wife is a little jealous, you see. So, I went away. Painting nudes is a good exercise for anatomical drawing. I also like beautiful women. And what is beautiful must be pleasant to God too.

I have a passion for bee-keeping. When I finish work, the first thing I do is to visit my hives.

I was also born with a passion for hunting like my father. I?ve always loved nature, and when you are out hunting, you can see beautiful things, things which others may not easily believe.

I?ve made these pots collecting fragments from rubbish bins and elsewhere: broken plates, china pots, all kinds of beautiful little fragments. I then stuck them on an old pot. I also used to collect broken glass when I had fights with my wife, as I was away hunting far too often. Went out hunting and didn?t come home in time … when we had those fights, I sometimes broke plates, pots … she thought I was out after other women.

–         (The Painter?s wife:) We married for love… we were so in love when we were young. We still are! We don?t quarrel … Well … occasionally we do… but that?s people, they get angry sometimes with each other.

–     Did your husband ever paint you?

–         Oh, yes! There, in the painting on the wall. I am with Gabi, as a baby, and some roses…

I have thought of building a single grave for us, separating it by a wall with a window, so that when we are down there I can talk to my wife .

– When were you happiest in life?

– When I was young.

– What was you most unhappy period of your life?

– When I was arrested. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I  painted churches. In those days, they were pulling down churches.

– What were you accused of?

– Sheltering terrorists. You see, whoever was against the regime was considered a terrorist.

– What did they mean by sheltering terrorists?

– Providing them with food, arms…They put me to prison in 1962 in Pitesti. There were moments when I would say to myself that there?s no way we could live much longer; they will shoot us all. I could hear people crying in their cells… They used to call them and take them to be questioned. Some didn?t come back. The most unbearable torture was when they took me to a cellar, tied my legs in chains and beat me up. Unspeakable pain! They were against faith. They had no belief, no religion, those people from the Securitate. Even if they had something in their hearts, they kept it all hidden. I think the devil is man. This is what I believe in my heart. An evil man is capable of anything. Hell? Hell means evil! Hell can be right next to us, on earth: when you are in prison it?s like being in hell.

I never thought that communism would disappear. Never crossed my mind! When we were in prison we kept saying to ourselves: we?re going to die, all of us… We also truly believed that the Americans were going to come and save us… How foolish of us! No Americans ever arrived! It was a miracle how all this recent fury against communism started, a gift from God!

When I was young, and even now, as an old man, I dream of myself flying. I beat the air with my hands and lift myself up… Usually on to the roof of a church. There are many people down below. From up there, I then let myself down flying… like an angel… beating the air with my hands, descending slowly. 

?From the depth I call you, God:

Lord, hear my cry and listen to the sound of my praying.?

A film produced by

ASPERA Fundation (USA)  &  VIDEODIALOG (Romania)

Directed by  SORIN ILIESIU

Assistant Director  ANDREI GORGAN

Directors of Photography   MALIN MUSATESCU &  SORIN ILIESIU

Editing and sound track   ANDREI GORGAN  & DOINA ZAVADSCHI

Interview   SORIN ILIESIU & OLITIA TEPOSU

Fragments from the chants of the Evensong and Matins

sung by father Marian Fartat and the Psaltic group from STAVROPOLEOS church, Bucharest.

Special thanks to  DAN DIMANCESCU

English version   CRISTINA NEAGU