First Presbyterian Church Lancaster, 140 E. Orange St., Lancaster, will display artworks by Dorothy Thayne through Tuesday, Jan. 3, as part of the installation "Art of the Icon: Process as Prayer."

First Presbyterian Church Lancaster is committed to creating beautiful and original expressions of worship centered in Christ throughout the year and in a variety of ways. Over the years, art has become one of the many focuses of the church to help convey its members' faith and connect with the greater Lancaster city community. That tradition continues with the current art installation.

Thayne, a Lancaster County artist and iconographer, is displaying more than a dozen icons showcasing her 30 years of focusing on the art of iconography. An icon is a work of art painted in a prayerful manner using a symbolic visual language and images that originate in early church tradition. According to Thayne, an icon is not simply a holy picture; it illustrates a spiritual reality, not a photographic reality. The word "iconography" comes from "graphia," referring to the acts of writing and painting - both word and image, and "icon," which comes from the Greek word "eikon" and means "image."

Subtle artistic nuances create styles that differentiate the icons of one culture or time period from another. Thayne's icons, which are painted in the Byzantine style, are a source of sacred art for both the Western and Eastern Catholic churches.

Materials of the highest quality are used to create an icon: pure gold leaf; natural pigments from the Earth, bound with the yolk of an egg; and a base of wood covered with a gesso of chalk and marble dust. The paint is then applied in many layers resulting in a translucency that gives the icon the quality of inner light. The process of creating an icon has many steps, and it may take Thayne months, if not years, to create a piece.

The community is invited to visit First Presbyterian Church Lancaster during open hours to view the installation. For more information, visit http://www.fpclancasterpa.org or call 717-394-6854.