Irene Pérez-Omer, originally from Venezuela, lives in Austin, Texas. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from The University of Texas at Austin. She is currently enrolled in the St. Stephen's Course of Applied Orthodox Theology in Iconology--a three-year program of the Antiochian House of studies.
She has worked in a variety of media, including drawing, oil painting, stone and glass sculpture, mixed media pieces, installations, print making, and since 1997, Byzantine iconography. She currently teaches iconography workshops, holds regular weekly classes in her studio in Austin, and organizes a yearly workshop for the Prosopon School of Iconology in Austin.

Irene has exhibited in Texas, New Mexico, California, Colorado, Washington D.C., the U.K., and Mexico. Her works are included in private collections in the U.S. (Texas, New Mexico, California, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi,) England, Spain, Finland, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela.

Irene has studied both icon writing and icon theory under master iconographer Vladislav Andrejev since 1997. Currently, Irene dedicates herself solely to the study and practice of iconography, writing icons for private and church commissions, and teaching iconography workshops in the U.S.  and abroad.

The main focus of Irene's artwork prior to her study of iconography encompassed the use of both Christian and Eastern symbols to express the stages and different aspects of her spiritual journey, her search for spiritual knowledge, truth and God. This interest guided her to the study of iconography which uses a system of symbolic language to reveal the Truth expressed in the Gospels. This was a natural evolution from Irene's earlier work.  Instead of continuing to develop a personal symbolic language, Irene found in iconography a perfectly developed and universal symbolic language that revealed the truth about God and was more accessible than any system of personal symbolic language one single artist could devise. The practice of icon-writing is a form of contemplation, meditation and prayer which extends beyond the studio to every aspect of the iconographer's life.  It is a complete or holistic art form in this respect.  The whole of the iconographer's life becomes icon writing.