Stained Glass Through Time

Stained Glass Through ∞ Time Evan Ford Page 1

Table

1 2 12th - 13th Century 14th - 15th Century

Page 2

Early Expansion

New Beginnings

Pages 5-11

Pages 12-19

of

Contents

3 4 5 16th - 18th Century

19th Century

20th Century

Rise and Fall

Resurrection

Modern Time

Pages 20-27

Pages 28-35

Pages 36-43

Page 3

Chapter 1 -Early ExpansionPage 4

Page 5

Right

Augsburg Cathedral

High windows located in the nave.

12th Century

Throughout the twelfth century the embodiment of light became a major importance in architecture. The Heavenly Names and The Celestial Hierarchies are two books that served as major inspiration as the concept of light developed into an essential aspect of design. Light was described as a material that consistently reflected the light of heaven and the wisdom of god. This caused many upcoming designers throughout this time period to consider ideas on how light can be used in new arising buildings. The qualities of reflection, transparency, and translucency were considered as an indication of a higher and more sophisticated moral order. As the Gothic style of architecture began to develop and thrive in the middle of the twelfth century stained glass followed in its footsteps. Beautiful pieces of glass were placed high up in cathedral churches. The goal was to raise your attention and point of view upward towards the spirits of heaven, a concept that became further developed in the thirteenth century.

Page 6

Above

Canterbury Cathedral

Details from a 13C window.

Page 7

Right

Abbey Church of St. Peter

The head of Christ.

Left

Lorsch Abbey

Fragments of a head found during excavations.

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13th Century

As the world began to grow through Europe’s first industrial revolution, in the mid thirteenth century so did the connection between Gothic architecture and stained glass. Making stained glass panels at this time was tedious and labor intensive.

Starting with the placement of

individual pieces of glass into the kiln for firing, organizing and setting them in their positions,

and detailing the lines of wrapped lead to hold everything together and compose one large

design. It took time, precision, and an enormous amount of work, however, this did not stop almost every church across

Europe from

having large cathedral windows composed of stained glass.

Although it became more and

more common for artists to limit the amount of work by leaving larger spaces of empty glass and painting specific features onto the glass by hand.

These large windows that were placed

into cathedrals finally made it possible to look across one large image that tells a story rather than a few key focal points. It was encouraged that the relationship between the glass and the cathedral itself made visitors feel as if they were on the threshold of heaven themselves.

Below

Le Mans Cathedral

South aisle nave, The Angel frees Saint Peter.

Page 9

Above

Cathedral of Saint-Denis

Axial Chapel, the childhood of Christ.

Page 10

Left

Canterbury Church

Detailed window, early 13C.

Right

Canterbury Cathedral

Early 13C glass window.

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Chapter 2 -New BeginningsPage 12

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14th Century

During the 14th century European civilization grew more and more sophisticated everyday, and as the communities of Europe evolved the country was becoming more powerful and wealthy. It was very obvious that the world was changing rapidly in many ways and this had a direct effect on the art of stained glass.

While the main purpose of stained glass was still to tell a story, artists moved away from heavy coloring on the glass. Past colors that were consistent in the glass were heavy greens, red, blue, yellow, pink, purple, and shades of white. Instead coloring became a lot more simple and artists focused mainly on deep reds, white, blue, and maybe a haze of yellow or brown. With the decrease in colored glass the technique of painting the glass became a necessary part of the design. The creation of the Silver Stain, is another factor that launched the development of stained glass forward in this time period. It was accidentally discovered that if silver oxide or silver nitrate was painted across the glass before being heated it produced an entirely new way of obtaining incredibly vibrant colors in the glass.

As this technique spread across Europe it was evident that Silver Staining was an incredible way of producing beautiful art.

Below

Lower Church of St. Francis

Workshop of Giovanni di Bonino, 14C.

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Above

St. Pierre, Chartres

Early 14C apsidal window.

Page 15

Above

Evreux Cathedral

Apsidal Chapel, 15C.

Left

Gloucester Cathedral

The 14C Crecy Window.

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15th Century

Naturalism majorly influenced the design of stained glass at the start of the Fifteenth century.

Throughout this time many changes were made to the pieces of stained glass that were being developed.

Artists wanted to break away from the common traditions of stained glass, specifically the concept of direction and the use of straight lines.

Many artists decided to remove the

common border around the edge of the glass that served as a divide from the glass and the architecture it is placed in.

People also started

asking themselves how they can incorporate landscape into the stained glass designs and how to accurately represent perspective on the glass.

Seeing heavy blues in the foreground of

the glass and lighter blues in the background started becoming more and more common to show depth in the art and suggest the effect of a receding landscape.

While naturalism heavily impacted stained glass in the 15th century heraldic art also served as a major influence.

This introduced the use of highly attractive bold colors with sharp divisions between red, blue, white, yellow, purple, and green. Towards the end of the century some artists began to move towards designs that focused on a smallness of scale and intimacy.

Private panels of glass

for wealthy households became increasingly more popular and with this new techniques were

Above

were placed behind the piece and left open to be

Lady Chapel, 15C.

already being developed.

Thinner sheets of glass

Evreux Cathedral

painted, stained, or left alone to provide a free unimpeded surface.

A technique of grinding

colored glass into a powder and mixing it with a fluxing agent became a popular tool to add new colors to the surface of the glass. It is clear

that throughout these two centuries stained glass underwent some major changes and there are several new aspects on how to make every piece of glass unique for the buyer.

Right

Church of St. Lawrence

Testament, presented by the Rieter family, 15C.

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Above

La Sainte Chapelle Early 15C rose window, Paris.

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Above

Rouen Cathedral

Lady Chapel windows, 14C.

Left

Milan Cathedral

Christ’s entry to Jerusalem, 15C.

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Chapter 3 -Rise and FallPage 20

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16th Century

Because of the massive success of both the 15th century and 19th century the three that I describe as a fall of stained glass seem to be forgotten, however they are still relative. At the beginning of the 16th century stained glass was becoming a mixture of old Gothic styles and new renaissance ideas. Balance was found in pieces between vertical and horizontal lines and instead of your eye being guided to looking from bottom to top it was suggested to look from left to right.

Artists also decided to start

placing the glass in ovular shapes rather than a square or rectangle.

Besides this not much more

was developed during this time in terms of stained glass.

However beautiful pieces of art were still being created across the flourishing Western Europe.

Above

Tours Cathedral

The 16C flamboyant rose above the west end.

Left

Le Mans Cathedral

Early 16C north transparent rose window.

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Right and Above

Lichfield Cathedral Lady Chapel

16C Classical glass windows from Herckenrode Abbey.

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17th Century

As the sixteenth century can be viewed as an ending to great advancement of stained glass

the seventeenth century is an entirely new book.

Artists of this time were completely devoted

to making pieces of stained glass based on the new idea of

Renaissance Classicism. Colored

light came into play with this new form of stained glass which added a desirable theatrical effect to the art.

Stained glass was being

mass produced during this time because of the desire for these beautiful pieces of work to be incorporated into specific architecture.

Besides

the newly developing techniques and forms of stained glass the seventeenth century was also short lived, however it does showcase, in my

opinion, some of the most admiring pieces of stained glass out of every time period from its past.

Left

Conches Church

Nativity, 16C.

Page 24

Above

La Trinite´

16C renaissance window, Vendome.

Page 25

Right and Above Auch Cathedral

Part of an extensive range of 17C windows in chapels round the apse.

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18th Century

Throughout this period of time stained glass became dominated by painted glass. Artists put great detail into the painted designs on sheets of solid colored glass rather than making the desired image out of individual pieces of.

The idea of imagery though the windows also seemed to fade away during this point in time and people became more focused on images on the wall instead. While there was still some nostalgia for stained glass, for the time being it was pushed aside and replaced with work that was not nearly as complex. By the end of the century stained glass began to emerge again and people were starting to reevaluate the possibilities. They started to look back at the revolutionary ideas of the Gothic era in stained glass and wondered how it could be evolved and explored in modern time. This led directly into the nineteenth century and the idea of Gothic Revival.

Below

New College Chapel

Sir Joshua Reynolds window in the antechapel, mid 18C, Oxford.

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Chapter 4 -ResurrectionPage 28

Page 29

Above

Gloucester Cathedral

Part of a window in the Lady Chapel, 19C.

19th Century

At the beginning of the nineteenth century Gothic Revival was the main form of stained glass. Artists took closer looks at old Gothic architecture from the sixteenth century and considered things that the artists from the past had not. They measured the exact moldings for the glass and began to account for the way the light would fall on the pieces of glass they were making. After some time had passed in this century Victorian stained glass came to life and caused controversy, some artists enjoyed the new ‘pop’ stained glass while others did not. Colors became more vibrant as time went on and it became more common than ever to see stained glass in houses rather than cathedrals. The demand and production of stained glass increased dramatically throughout this time, everyone wanted a piece of stained glass in their home. Artists began to branch into more decorative art that stepped away from telling a story or relating to religion. The Aesthetic Movement began and colors like red, gold, pinks, and shades of gray started being used in glass designs. Stained glass firms began to open all across Europe where people could have custom windows made or get old ones restored and preserved.

Overall throughout this time stained glass developed into a much more personal art. A wide range of design and colors were beginning to be used and stained glass became much more common in buildings that were not based on religion. It was an entirely new start for the art of stained glass.

Page 30

Above

Ely Cathedral

19C nave window placed in a 12C opening.

Page 31

Above

Above

Pompeian style house, New York, 19C.

Casino at Terme diSan Pellegrino, Bergamo

Louis Comfort Tiffany

Page 32

Tiffany Window

Above

Paris Belle Epoque

Left

Caisse d’epargnes

Nancy commercial art, 19C.

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Above

Waterford Hertfordshire

Two angels with the ascended Christ, 19C.

Page 34

Left

Water Plants and Birds

Decorative window for private homes, 19C

Right

Hollyhocks, John LaFarge

Located in Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.

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Chapter 5 -Modern TimePage 36

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20th Century

By the twentieth century stained glass was extremely popular not only in Europe but in America as well.

Techniques of this time focused on natural colors with a wide range of rich contrast to create a beautiful image composed of both color and light equally.

One specific architect that incorporated stained glass into his work was Frank Lloyd Wright.

He designed beautiful pieces of architecture across the nation and the stained glass he fused into his work is equally as beautiful.

Another major name of this generation is Louis Comfort Tiffany, he developed several revolutionary techniques for stained glass that changed things like the colors

used, the shapes of the windows, and the size of the pieces of glass being cut.

He is most well known for the development of his lead work, instead of only using lead to hold the glass together he made it an aspect of his design by using different sizes and line shapes.

Tiffany also developed a new form of lead

Above

that is stronger and last longer allowing there to

Vargengeville-sur-Mer, Normandy

be variety in the glass and the places that windows

Rose window design by Georges Braque, 20C.

are installed.

There are now countless techniques to

create stained glass and it can be found in common houses, office buildings, museums, and of course churches.

The colors being used and the size of the

pieces are constantly unpredictable because there is no right or wrong way to compose a panel.

What makes stained glass so beautiful is that every piece, whether it is from the sixteenth century or the twenty first, will be completely unique and personal.

There

are no limitations to what the future may hold for the art of stained glass and what may be developed through time.

Right

Birkesdorf Church

Window by Ludwig Schaffrath, 20C.

Page 38

Above

Robie House

Dinning room windows by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Left

Winchelsea Parish Church

Details of the east side window.

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Above

Spectral Screen

Exhibition window by Brain Clarke, 20C.

Page 40

Above

Above

All Saints window designed by Ceri Richards, 20C.

Baptistry window by Brian Young.

Derby Cathedral

St. Johns Church

Page 41

Above

St. Cuthbert’s Edinburgh

Created by Louis Comfort Tiffany, 20C.

Above

St. Mary, Sturminster Newton

Detailed Window by Harry Clarke, 20C.

Page 42

Above

St. Maximim, Metz.

Designed by Jean Cocteau in the 20C.

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Work Cited Page 44

Brisac, C., & Watabe YĹŤkichi. (1984). A thousand years of stained glass. Edison, NJ: Chartwell Books.

Brown, S. (1995). Stained glass: an illustrated history. London: Bracken Books.

Cormack, P. (2015). Arts et crafts stained glass. New Haven: Yale Univ. Press.

Reyntiens, P. (1990). The beauty of stained glass. Boston: Bulfinch Press/Little Brown.

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