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Posts Tagged ‘stained glass windows’
a new week and new works available
Posted in Inspiration, tagged architecture, art, church, colors, holiday cards, Inspiration, letter writing, Photography, Postcards, stained glass windows, stationery on October 6, 2014| 3 Comments »
details from the new jerusalem window by john la farge, 1884
Posted in Inspiration, tagged architecture, art, churches, colors, design, George Nixon Black, Ieposolyma, Inspiration, John La Farge, New Jerusalem, Photography, stained glass windows, tours on October 1, 2014| 1 Comment »
You’ll find Ieposolyma-The New Jerusalem in an area known as the north transept of Trinity Church in Copley Square. It is an upper level window that rests beside another John La Farge masterpiece, The Resurrection (1902). The New Jerusalem was completed and installed eight years earlier in 1884.
As described by scholar James L. Yarnall in his biographical study of John La Farge, this window depicts “the vision of the New Jerusalem described in the book of Revelation. The design fused Byzantine architecture and Mannerist figures from Correggio with a dazzling array of jeweled opalescent glasses.”
If you’re in Boston, see firsthand how the sunlight shines through all of this magnificent glass — this window apparently contains every kind of glass La Farge ever used including pressed jewels, confetti glass, and opalescent glass. Tour information available here.
I tend to focus on the pieces that make up the whole, but if you search online you’ll find some photographs of the whole window, like this one.
a glimpse of beauty
Posted in Inspiration, tagged architecture, art, Back Bay, Burlison and Grylls, churches, Clayton & Bell, colors, Copley Square, Inspiration, John La Farge, light, Photography, stained glass windows, storytelling, Trinity Church in the City of Boston on August 13, 2014| 5 Comments »
Detail from Purity by John La Farge
Designed and executed by artists and stained glass manufacturers like John La Farge, Clayton and Bell, Burlison and Grylls, and others, these particular stained glass windows at Trinity Church in the City of Boston are “hidden gems.”
Detail 2 from Purity by John La Farge
They are located in the Parish House. In part, due to renovation activities at different times over the past 100 years, some of the windows are now in stairwells, like Purity as well as John Hardman and Company’s Woods Window …
The Woods Window, executed by John Hardman and Company
others are in restricted areas like Ephphatha by Burlison and Grylls …
Detail from Ephphatha by Burlison and Grylls
and others in areas dedicated to use by parishoners of all ages like The Sunday-School Windows by Clayton & Bell.
They are not windows accessible as part of a traditional art and architecture tour of the sanctuary, but it has been my pleasure this summer to roam the halls a bit with my camera and to share this glimpse of details from some of the windows. Postcards and prints, and information about tours, are available at the Trinity Book Shop.
Interior of Trinity Church in the City of Boston, Copley Square
sunday-school windows at trinity church
Posted in Inspiration, tagged architectural masterpiece, architecture, art, churches, Clayton & Bell, colors, faith, Inspiration, Photography, preservation, religion, stained glass windows, storytelling, sunday-school windows, Trinity Church on July 13, 2014| 3 Comments »
It is another one of those hidden gems in an architectural masterpiece that sits in the heart of the city of Boston. The Sunday School Windows were designed by Clayton & Bell of London, England. The left window depicts the story of the Presentation of Jesus, with Simeon holding the baby in his arms …
while standing nearby are Mary and Joseph.
The right window tells the story of Jesus in the Temple, with the doctors in the room …
as a young Jesus both listens and asks questions …
with two little children beside him.
Most captivating to me are the hands and the eyes, and the mix of colors and patterns within the glass, and how all of these components are pulled together to tell stories without words.
While these windows, a gift of the Children of Trinity Sunday School, are not viewable as a part of a traditional tour of Trinity Church in Copley Square, many other beautiful works can be seen as part of a tour of this historic landmark. Learn more here. Meanwhile, I look forward to sharing more images from this building and other structures in the future.
phillips brooks window at trinity church
Posted in Inspiration, tagged architecture, arts, arts and crafts, beauty, book cover design, colors, design, history, Inspiration, Phillips Brooks, Photography, Sarah Wyman Whitman, stained glass windows, Trinity Church in Copley Square on June 28, 2014| 4 Comments »
Like Lucy R. Woods, mentioned in a prior post, Sarah Wyman Whitman (1842-1904) taught Bible class at Trinity Church in Boston for over thirty years. She was also an accomplished artist working in multiple media, from painting to glasswork to book cover design.
She was friends with Phillips Brooks, the rector of Trinity Church. Upon his passing, she and her Sunday Bible class gifted the church with a window in his memory.
It was begun in 1895 and installed Easter, March 1896. In a letter dated March 12, 1896, Whitman writes:
“The little memorial to Mr Brooks which my Bible Class has long dreamed of, is now finished and waiting to be put up at Easter. Someday I will show you this, and meantime send a little rough sketch. The three windows are in the Parish Room where the Class meets, and as it is also used for many practical purposes, 
the windows (three giving on the cloister to the south) are kept in clear glass with jewelled flowers at the intersecting of the little frames …and then the middle one with a single device.
In the glass of course there is a depth and richness that this paper sketch little conveys.”
The window is located in the parish library, and is another hidden gem of an architectural masterpiece. If you would like to learn more about Sarah Wyman Whitman, there are some great resources available online including her letters. The Boston Public Library has put together a gallery of her book cover designs. Learn more about Trinity Church architectural tours here.
The Woods Window at Trinity Church
Posted in Inspiration, tagged architecture, art, Back Bay, Copley Square, Dunstan John Powell, faith, family, Hardman and Company, hidden gems, history, Inspiration, Lucy R. Woods, Photography, religion, stained glass windows, Trinity Church on June 17, 2014| 7 Comments »
Detail from the Lucy R. Woods Window, Trinity Church, Boston
It is one of the many hidden gems of Trinity Church in the City of Boston. According to archival records, the Woods Window was commissioned in memory of Miss Lucy R. Woods (1847-1904). Miss Woods taught the Young Ladies’ Bible Class in the church Sunday School for thirty-three years, beginning in 1871.
The window was executed by John Hardman and Company, Birmingham, England, and designed by Dunstan John Powell, grandson of noted English architect and artist Augustus Pugin.
The window is located in a stairwell not easily accessible to the public but postcards and prints will soon be coming to the Book Shop.
Until then, you can read more about the original 1906 unveiling of the window here. Hope to share more information about this window, and other hidden gems, in the near future.
david’s charge to solomon
Posted in Inspiration, tagged angels, art, beauty, bible stories, Copley Square, David, Edward Burne-Jones, Inspiration, licensing, muses, Photography, Pre-Raphaelite, retail, Solomon, stained glass windows, Trinity Church, William Morris on April 2, 2014| 1 Comment »
Detail from David’s Charge to Solomon Stained Glass Window, Trinity Church in Copley Square, by Burne-Jones and William Morris
Returning to the Trinity Church Book Shop are items with a detail I photographed from David’s Charge to Solomon, a stained glass window located in the church’s baptistry. The magnificent window was designed by Pre-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones and executed by William Morris Studios in 1882. These “four angels” are located in the upper left corner of the window. There they look down upon David, near the end of his days, as he instructs his son Solomon in how to move forward in life as a man and as a leader of his people.
Items currently available are magnets, mugs and postcards. Coming soon are totes and t-shirts. Visit the Shop to view these and many more lovely and thought provoking spiritual items at 206 Clarendon Street, Boston, in the heart of Copley Square. Shipping is possible. For more Book Shop information, click here. And to see additional details from the window David’s Charge to Solomon, please check out images 25-32 here. Better yet, if you’re in the area, take one of the excellent guided tours so that you can see the window firsthand. 😉
the spectacular ice may be gone but then …
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Photography, Publication Updates, tagged American architecture, architecture, arts, churches, faith, Inspiration, personal correspondence, Photography, Postcards, religion, stained glass windows, stationery, tourism on January 23, 2014| 3 Comments »
… a lovely surprise appeared at my door. The postcards I mentioned as a work-in-progress in a previous post have arrived. These are images I’ve had the pleasure of taking of the stained glass windows at Trinity Church in Copley Square, Boston, a building considered one of the most significant in American architecture.
These postcards will be available at the Book Shop located in the undercroft (lower level) of the church. Learn more about the parish and current activities here and specifically tours here and about the Book Shop here. In addition to postcards of the stained glass you will also find a few of my other nature-themed postcards like the following. Happy writing! 😉
when the sun does shine …
Posted in Inspiration, On the Road, tagged architecture, arts, churches, colors, Inspiration, Oxford, Photography, stained glass windows on November 11, 2013| 1 Comment »
… I step into stone buildings, like the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin.
I had only a few moments inside the building while racing to another location so I decided to focus (of course) on the stained glass windows.
The story of the windows I will have to research later but for now I am appreciative of viewing their artistry in the autumn light.
glass + books
Posted in Inspiration, On the Road, tagged architecture, art, beauty, dublin, Inspiration, ireland, libraries, National Library of Ireland, Photography, public libraries, stained glass windows, travel on November 8, 2013| 3 Comments »
In my travels I have not forgotten stained glass or public libraries. Here is but a small section of a window found in the National Library of Ireland in Dublin. Via this link you can actually see a 360 degree view of the front hall where this and several other windows can be found along with beautiful mosaics and fine carvings. A lovely place to visit.
Words + Images 