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Posts Tagged ‘stained glass’

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I stepped into another church again. This one also sat in the middle of Dublin’s city centre, this time on Clarendon Street. The website describes St. Teresa’s as a quiet oasis of prayer and that was certainly true. On the streets, people were rushing about but once inside, there was utter quiet.

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People entered and wandered into particular chapels to light candles, pray. Perhaps to simply sit and be.

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I wandered …

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… just enough to “discover” the stained glass.

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I didn’t wander long but I didn’t need to in order to see the beauty of the place.

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I could find no literature on the tables about the building’s art and architecture.

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An eclectic mix of styles accrued over time as tastes vary.

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Whatever one’s desire, for prayer, for quiet, to view beautiful art, it is a lovely place for a respite.  More about St. Teresa’s on Clarendon Street, Dublin can be found via this link:  http://clarendonstreet.com/

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The poem, Song of the Mad Prince, was part of Walter de la Mare’s collection Peacock Pie (1913). Clarke dresses his prince in an Elizabethan style as he stands before his mother and father. A variety of colors and tones are achieved by plating and etching of two planes of glass. It is a small piece actually with a custom case of walnut produced for a friend and patron of Clarke, Thomas Bodkin, who at one point was Director of the National Gallery of Ireland.

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Sources and Additional Reading

http://onlinecollection.nationalgallery.ie/objects/2389/the-song-of-the-mad-prince

https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/song-of-the-mad-prince/

 

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I’ve long known of Harry Clarke and his illustrations and during previous trips to Dublin I learned of his work in stained glass, like at Bewley Cafe, but for this trip I was a bit by the seat of my pants and so I did not know there was some of his glass on exhibit at the National Gallery. And as we chanced upon his work, a docent for the museum led in a group and began to talk about why Clarke was so special in his use of layered glass for jeweled effect and his use of dark colors to direct the eyes of the viewer to the lighter glass to see what he wanted you to see. One window on view was the Mother of Sorrows, depicting the story of Mary holding the lifeless body of her son.

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According to an accompanying curatorial note, the window had been designed as a WWI memorial but instead became a memorial to Sister Superior Mary of Saint Winifred who had commissioned it.

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In addition to Mary holding Jesus, St. Francis stands to one side and St. Catherine on the other.

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And always angels looking on.

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The window is currently on view at the National Gallery. Entrance is free (though not all exhibits are free).

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Clarke

https://www.nationalgallery.ie/

 

 

 

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M4

… and so we walked into the Church of the Assumption Howth. Howth is a fishing village east of Dublin and easily accessible via DART, the public rail transportation system. We were walking, quite frankly trying to find another destination, when we noticed a church and though there did not immediately appear to be stained glass inside we took a chance and entered. Built in 1899, the church was designed by William H. Byrne. Not every church needs stained glass windows but it was a pleasant surprise to venture far enough inside to see the three apse windows dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

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The sequence begins with the angel Gabriel announcing to Mary that she is bear a son.

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The next features the Assumption of Mary into heaven, based on text from Revelation 12, her body and soul raised up to heaven.

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And finally Jesus placing the crown of Queen of Heaven on Mary’s head. She gazes down on humanity while angels keep watch from a sky full of stars.

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A quick, lovely, unexpected visit. You can read more about the village of Howth here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howth

You can learn more about the church here: http://www.howthparish.ie/heritage

 

 

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Painter and stained glass designer John LaFarge (1835 – 1910) talked about construction by color in one of his lectures to architecture students. The phrase resonated with me I guess in part because when I am staring at a stained glass window or other architectural feature I am drawn to the colors and see them as building blocks. Now, not everything should be deconstructed and reconstructed, but it has been great fun and an honor to play with the sunlit glass and bold interior paintings at Trinity Church to produce these items that are now available in the church gift shop.

Shop hours are traditionally Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 am – 4:30 pm, and Sunday 1:00 – 4:30 pm. http://trinitychurchboston.org/visit/tours

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eyeofgod

Last year I had the pleasure of seeing firsthand the interior of Temple Sinai, home to a reform Jewish congregation in Sumter, South Carolina. Construction was completed in 1913 with the installation of a unique series of stained glass windows depicting scenes from the Tanakh. Along the walls, in beautiful drapery glass, you will find the stories of David, Moses, Elijah and more. At the time, the future of the temple was unclear. The congregation had dwindled over time.

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But one year later I am happy to share that through the hard work of members of the congregation, and of others, the temple will be preserved as an active place of worship. In addition, in partnership with the Sumter County Museum, a permanent exhibit is being developed onsite to share the Jewish history of Sumter and South Carolina. The past is being preserved even as a new path is being charted for a congregation that may indeed grow. All are welcome! Learn more about the temple, its activities and plans for the exhibit in this FAQ page by Elizabeth Moses, Museum Outreach and Education Coordinator.

http://www.sumtercountymuseum.org/templesinai/

You can support the development of the museum exhibit by donation in two ways:

  • Make checks payable to the Sumter County Museum, 122 N. Washington St., P.O. Box 1456, Sumter, SC, 29151, making note that the donation is for the temple museum exhibit, or give online at: www.sumtercountymuseum.org.
  • Make checks payable directly to Temple Sinai, P.O. Box 1763, Sumter, SC, 29151, making note that the donation is for the temple museum exhibit.

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Details from The Baptism, 1877, by Clayton & Bell, the first stained glass window in Trinity Church when it was consecrated in February 1877.

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See for yourself- trinitychurchboston.org/visit/tours

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parishgreenscarf

A new silk scarf with the design derived from a single pane of stained glass. A delightful process of staring at an image and trying to imagine what could be and then … seeing what actually comes into being! This scarf, the second in series of limited edition silk scarves, is available exclusively at the Trinity Church gift shop in Copley Square.

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Detail from Purity by John La Farge

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Details from two of the eleven stained glass windows in Temple Sinai in Sumter, SC. Stay tuned for more photos and the history of this beautiful historic structure in the near future.

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