Female Russian Artist Finds a Career as Papal Portraitist

RELIGIOUS NEWS SERVICE

Tsarkova poses in front of the official portrait of Pope Benedict XVI she painted in 2007

VATICAN CITY---As the popes’ official painter, Natalia Tsarkova says she tries to capture both the physical reality and the spiritual essence of her subjects. But the Russian-born artist confessed she was “shocked” just like everyone else when Pope Benedict XVI, who posed twice for her, announced his resignation on Feb. 11. Since the late 1990s, this Orthodox Christian artist has been the official portraitist of the popes, with her paintings now hanging in Vatican palaces, Roman churches and museums around the world. [link]