Dazzling Old Believer icons spring to life in new exhibition at the Icon Museum
Opening February 27, 2026
CLINTON, MA—January 16, 2026—The Icon Museum and Study Center is pleased to announce Icons: Old Believers and Their World. This unprecedented exhibition features Old Believer icons from the private collection of Oleg Kushnirskiy and the Icon Museum. The exhibition is co-curated by Dr. Justin Willson, Assistant Professor of Medieval Art at Yale University, and Elliot Mackin, Curator at the Icon Museum and Study Center.
In an exclusive U.S. presentation from February 27, 2026, to August 30, 2026, the exhibition brings seventy masterpieces from the Oleg Kushnirskiy Russian Icon Collection together with rarely seen treasures from the Icon Museum, offering a unique opportunity to experience the artistic ingenuity and spiritual depths of icons painted during the golden age of Old Believer painting in Imperial Russia.
“The icons in this exhibition offer a glimpse into the world of Old Believer iconography, which is steeped in symbolism, reverence, and centuries-old traditions,” says Simon Morsink, Executive Director of the Icon Museum and Study Center. “Each piece speaks not only to the theological convictions of its creators but also to their remarkable skill and resilience in the face of religious and political adversity.”
The Old Believers are a broad group of Russian Orthodox Christians who separated themselves from the official Russian Church over issues of reform in the late 17th century. Fleeing into rural areas on the margins of the Russian Empire, the Old Believers cultivated a distinct style of icon painting that was celebrated throughout Russia and the Orthodox world. The icons in this exhibition are packed with numerous finely painted scenes adorned with intricate details that reveal each artist’s technical ability and imaginative energy. For the Old Believers, icons were crucial markers of identity. They created images that were simultaneously fashionable and timeless.
This exhibition highlights the rich religious and artistic traditions of the Old Believers. Visitors will encounter a powerful narrative of spiritual resilience, social perseverance, and artistic flourishing born out of religious upheaval, social persecution, and political discord.
“The icons in this exhibition are really remarkable,” says Elliot Mackin, Curator at the Icon Museum and Study Center. “They simultaneously preserve the traditions of Medieval Russian art while also satisfying a modern longing for the simplicity and sincerity of an idealized religious past. They are both beautiful and complex.”
“I have been promoting late Russian icon painting from my father’s collection since 2015,” says Ilya Kushnirskiy, Director of the Oleg Kushnirskiy Russian Icon Collection. “We’ve published two catalogs in Russian and English and held numerous public events dedicated to the icons in this collection. The exhibition at the Icon Museum and Study Center is proof that our work has not been in vain. This project will be not only an important milestone in the study of late icon painting and Old Believer icon painting but also a significant event in the global world of icon painting.”
ABOUT THE OLEG KUSHNIRSKIY COLLECTION
Oleg Kushnirskiy started collecting Russian icons in the United States in the 1990s. The collection features rare examples of Orthodox religious art from the second half of the 17th century to the end of the 19th century. Most of the items are from icon-painting villages in the Vladimir region, including Palekh, Mstyora, and Kholuy. Others come from Old Believer communities in Guslitsy and Vetka, as well as from workshops in central Russia. The collection features scenes of the Resurrection and Descent into Hell, as well as small icons adorned with miniature stamps. Reflecting the interests of its founder, the collection offers a new perspective on Russian icon painting, thereby enriching our understanding of its history and artistic value. It is part of a new chapter in icon painting research focusing on art from the late 17th, 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries. Learn more at russianicon.com.
ABOUT THE ICON MUSEUM AND STUDY CENTER
The Icon Museum and Study Center holds the most comprehensive collection of icons and Eastern Christian art in the U.S. with special galleries and collections dedicated to Russian, Greek, Veneto-Cretan and Ethiopian icons, spanning nearly two thousand years of art. The Museum’s exhibitions and programs offer a compelling blend of history, spirituality, and culture, all within a serene, contemplative space.
Housed in a beautifully restored historic building in a picturesque New England mill town, the Icon Museum features five galleries, a research library, and an auditorium. The Study Center connects scholars, academic institutions, and museums around the globe through its lecture series, conferences, workshops, and internships.
VISIT THE MUSEUM:
Thursday – Sunday, 10 AM – 4 PM. The Museum is closed Monday – Wednesday.
Admission: Adults $15, seniors (65+) $12, Students (with ID) FREE, Children and Youth (0-17) FREE.
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