Draft:Makarije Zograf

Makarije (second half of the 14th century — first half of the 15th century) known as Makarije Zograf was a Serbian medieval zograf or icon painter in the Eastern Orthodox tradition.He should not be confused with Hieromonk Makarije of the 15th century.

Makarije Zograf's biography is reconstructed primarily on the basis of the aforementioned records of monasteries and churches that he vividly painted. It is known that his father Hajko, who built the narthex of the Zrze monastery near Prilep, became a monk there and died as monk Hariton. His widow with their sons - Pribila and Prijezda, took conscientious care of the church, so that in 1369 according to records the chancel was newly-painted.The young men became monks and took the names Jovan and Makarije, soon they became famous as Zrzan painters, and both left the monastery in 1395 to work on other assignments in other monasteries.

Frescoes in Ljubostinja

Around 1405, Makarije painted the church of the Ljubostinja monastery for Princess Milica. According to art historian Srđan Đurić, its cold and pale colour is reminiscent of Roman palaces. The most famous frescoes are the Fifth Ecumenical Council and the Healing of the Weak.

Makarije Zograf's brother was elevated to Metropolitan in the Serbian Orthodox Church and became known as Metropolitan Jovan Zograf (The Icon-Painter)

The 14th-century Serbian masters who created the frescoes and icons are mostly unknown, and if they sign, they do it in a place that is hard to see, such as Makarije in Ljubostinja, Jovan, his brother, in Ravanica, etc. They worked for glory in another world.

See also

• Metropolitan Jovan Zograf
• Zrze monastery

References

• Adapted from Serbian Wikipedia.