In iconography an icon is not painted, but written. The process of writing an icon is long and tedious. Many hours, weeks, sometimes months are spent in the creation of an icon, depending of course on the size and complexity of it. A Russian monk remarked once that "...icons are not civil paintings. They are not for museums. They are not decorations. They are a reflection of God that has become man. Icons carry the real feeling and teachings of Orthodoxy."

The iconographer does not have the right to change an icon just to be different and creative. The creation of an icon is not the painter's own work. He is more like a co-author. That who aspires to become an icon painter to pray before the icon of Christ and that of the Mother of God, because the art of painting comes from God, who alone can guide the painter's hand to give form to the mysteries of God. Preparation to work is done with prayers and fasting. Painting an icon is a liturgical work. Preparing to paint an icon is like preparing for Liturgy.

This is the iconographer's prayer: "O Divine Lord of all that exists, You have illumined the Apostle and Evangelist Luke with Your Most Holy Spirit, thereby enabling him to represent the most Holy Mother, the one who held You in her arms and said: `the Grace of Him Who has been born of me is spread throughout the world. Enlighten and direct our souls, our hearts and our spirits. Guide the hands of your unworthy servant, so that we may worthily and perfectly portray your icon, that of Your Holy Mother and of all the saints, for the glory and adornment of Your Holy Church. Forgive our sins and the sins of those who will venerate these icons, and who, standing devoutly before them, give homage those they represent. Protect them from all evil and instruct them with good counsel. This we ask through the prayers of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Apostle Luke, and all the saints, now and ever and unto ages of ages."

The icons can be made on different materials, but usually on wood. The wood has to be hard and non-resinous, such as birch, lime, pine or cypress. In most wood panels two wedges of hard wood are inserted horizontally in the back to prevent warping.

Then the surface of the wood panel is then covered with a sheet of linen that is glued to the wood and on top of it are applied many layers of gesso, sometimes up to 10 layers, each layer being sanded after it has dried.

The gesso is traditionally made with hide glue, white chalk and very little linen seed oil. The proportions differ from painter to painter. Myself have used at least five different proportions until I have created my own recipe that I use now. You will find some of them in books and on the internet, but I have doubts that any master iconographer will divulge his own secrets. The only way to learn a really good recipe is to study with one of them in person. Here is one that I used for a while and is working very well:

In 4 measures of watter ad 1 measure of hide glue. You will need a special pot for melting the glue but you can also do it in a simpler way: put water in one vessel which will be on the fire. In this vessel insert a second one with the glue and watter.
In 10 measures of white chalk put just a little linseed oil, enough to make a small ball by mixing it with some chalk.
Then put the diluted glue over the chalk and mix it until becomes uniform and has no more chunks of unmixed chalk. It will have to look creamy. This is your gesso and you can use it on an icon.

The first layer is put on the icon by hand. This so you can assure the adherence to the surface and to press out every air bubble. If the adherence is not done properly then you may have your gesso fall from the wood in time.
Because the drying process can take a while, it may take a week or more to prepare the surface of one icon before painting can begin. The final sanding is also very important: the surface must remain shiny like a mirror.

The next step is that of tracing on paper the drawing of the prototype that will be used. Once this is done, the drawing is transferred to the icon board with the aid of calque tracing paper. In old times oiled paper was used to create the necessary transparency. This drawing is made with the help of a stylus, the contours of the drawing being etched lightly onto the surface of the board. This is done so that the contours do not disappear under the different layers of paint that will be successively applied.

Then the gold leaf is applied. The area that is to receive the gold leaf is covered with a thin layer of special gilding glue, over which the gold leaf is carefully applied. There are different kinds of gold leaf, being real gold up to 24 k, or a metal leaf imitation of gold made of an alloy of copper.
Applying the gold leaf must be done very carefully and is a process that can only be learned by doing it. You have to "make your hand". The slightest mistake can ruin your work.

After the gold leaf is applied the writing of the icon starts. The painting on the icon is built from bottom up, starting with dark colors and working up to very light colors, in many layers of paint, depending on the result desired. After the base layer has been applied, the outlines are redrawn and the subsequent layers are what are called highlights. When the icon is finished, the inscriptions are added and then it is left to dry. Depending on the medium used, drying time can take up to a couple months.

After the icon is dry, a fine layer of varnish or oil is applied to the surface. The varnish used depends on the type of paints used. Is always as much chemistry involved in painting an icon as artistic skills.It is also good to protect the back of the icon with a layer of varnish or paint, so the wood can withstand the ages.