Jonathan Pageau

I am a 33 year old historical woodworker and have been for many years. Always wanted to carve but needed something with meaning. I found the Church recently and needed this for personal reasons. You can not find this anywhere else. I have been looking for this. It is quite astonishing really. The course is much more informative for the entire price than I was expecting. Its not just learning to carve ONE icon and you can literally apply this to almost anything. Other youtube carvers dont really attack teaching in this way. Very helpful. As a personal note, if you are going through a dark time and need to keep your mind occupied but still focused on Him while being involved physically I implore you to take a chance and do this. Thank you Jonathan.

Jonathan Pageau is one of only a few people who have decided to commit their lives and livelihood to the restoration of beauty and order to our world which is no easy task. Jonathan has been gracious enough in the past to travel to our location to spend a full week leading in person workshops for our community which have always exceeded every expectation. Jonathan has the innate ability to teach his craft in a way that is clear and entertaining. This online course that Jonathan has produced now brings this invaluable resource into any home, anywhere so that more people can participate in this necessary re-ordering of beauty. You will be blown away at the quality and attention to detail as Jonathan guides you step by step through his established process of carving icons. A huge thanks to Jonathan for being willing to share his passion and experience for beauty through carving with the rest of us.

As a beginner woodcarver who had never held a gauge until now, I thought the course was very well designed and structured! You start off with simply things like removing the background and putting different larger pieces at different levels, and gradually move up to more complex and technical parts. I found the simple start great for building confidence and getting a feel for the tools. Jonathon did a great job at anticipating and addressing questions and concerns that were in my head, and I enjoyed his relaxed and friendly teaching style. I liked doing the body below the head the most, especially creating the blinds effect with the folds of the clothing. I learned a lot, and am looking forward to trying more. A few pieces of advice for fellow beginners: Don't get too comfortable with the drawing! You will be removing it, and will have to draw certain parts back in later. Give yourself a generous depth when you remove the background - that will give you more wood later to make up for mistakes. Don't panic if you cut something off - most mistakes can be repaired. Also, don't rush the locks of hair on either sides of the beard! Make sure you have a thorough understanding of the concept of what it is you're doing before you dive in.:)