"Iconography is considered the poor man's Bible,"... "Apparently not:". Church leaders won't disclose the cost, but "it is well into the six figures.."
He should have said "WAS the poor man's Bible".
Prior to Gutenberg's invention of the printing press in 1439, a hand-copied edition of the Bible was very expensive. And most people couldn't read anyway. So iconography told them the stories of the Bible to the individual on the church walls "for free".
Back then, iconographers were often monks who weren't as highly paid as they are now, nor were the paints and supplies as expensive.
Today, great iconographers are highly sought-after and there aren't many of them. Travel half-way round the world and years of people's lives to complete a project, costs much more. And in this case, I can tell you that Miloje ISN'T "a monk" -- but nor is he rich.
It is true that work like this is expensive for a parish. But the Jackson church is lucky -- because it is the first Serbian Orthodox church in the USA, donations have come from far and wide to complete the project.
This is from another church, in Fair Oaks CA, that Miloje did. It is inside a dome. And I can't tell you how many children (and adults) one can see slack-jawed staring upward at it, on any given Sunday.
By the way, Miloje doesn't sign any of this work. It's only the fact that we live in such a digital age that contributes to Miloje's name even being known to more than just the handful of those who hired him
The famous painter "El Greco" who inspired so many other Western artists, began originally as an iconographer.