Catching Rays

Stained glass and natural light. These are the raw materials of my art; and at times the extraordinary interaction between these elements seems to transform the air itself.

In the real world, not every building or site offers the kind of light that would fill a hand-blown flashed rose glass with glowing radiance, or set an array of prisms on fire. Occasionally, I am asked to design for settings with little or no natural light - an interior room within a large building, for example. In such settings, glass can still transform, but in a more subtle way.

Glass is increasingly being used in building interiors, as architects and clients come to discover its potential uses. Interior glass panels can add beauty and depth to surfaces and their surrounding environment in a way that no other material can match. Moreover, glass is durable, and easy to maintain.

There are a number of strategies available to the glass artist working in interior settings. One of the simplest is to light the back of a traditionally glazed window, to mimic the effect of outside light. In designing this type of panel, the artist must choose glass that works well with the spectrum of the light being supplied, and configure the glass to mask the lighting "hot spots" and the view of the fixtures themselves. Beyond this, most of the challenge is in arranging the lighting, rather than the glass design itself.

Personally, I find that no matter how cleverly such an installation is illuminated, artificial backlighting tends to give a static feel to a piece, and can "deaden" even the most interesting materials. In a search for alternatives to backlighting, I have developed several successful design approaches for interior glass works, using reverse painting, sandblasting, and leaf-work. These glass treatments, used alone or in combination, provide an exciting palette for the glass artist.

Reverse painting, sandblasting and metal leaf-work on glass have been used in the past for various artistic effects. As an artist working in contemporary styles, I am excited by the possibilities these techniques offer for interior applications. Used in combination, in a design that takes into account the available light and the environment, they can enrich any setting.

Each of these techniques uses reflected light for most or all of its effect. Reflected light, unlike backlighting, will change character according to where the viewer is and what is happening in the room. The variety will not be quite as great as that provided by transmitted natural light, but a careful blending of techniques can make the most of the available artificial and natural light. Also, by eliminating the need for backlighting, I save my clients the expense and inconvenience of enclosures, power requirements, and maintenance schedules for bulb replacement.

Three commissions we have completed illustrate the potential uses of interior glass panels. To some extent, all three had similar purposes - to divide spaces and functions within a building - but there the similarity ends. One commission was for a screen to separate a busy foyer in a school from the school cafeteria; another one, also in a school, was intended not so much to separate spaces, as to provide a transition from the school's foyer to its chapel; the third was to provide privacy and a quiet transition from passageway to chapel in the more subdued setting of a large church.

In designing for each of these settings, I started by visiting the sites to observe the light, the general atmosphere, the human component (how the space is seen and used), the architecture, and the other visual elements in the surroundings. The challenges posed by lighting are just one element of a much larger picture that includes all of these elements; and my initial visits were an essential part of my preparing to design.

An important consideration for each of these designs, and indeed for any interior panel, relates to the way the space will be used. Transitional or active spaces have quite different artistic requirements from more contemplative spaces, and this should be reflected in the artwork and the choice of materials and techniques.

For Sixteenth Avenue Public School, I was asked to design a glass work to fit into both sides of a 40-foot long, free-standing screen that separated the foyer from the cafeteria in a new building being constructed for the school. In considering this busy space and how it would be used, I visualized an artwork filled with a sense of the liveliness and fun that the students would bring to the setting.

The work we created for this space is entitled The Imagined Land. The artwork, which celebrates Nature, was inspired by a small mural, portraying a fanciful rainforest scene that was created by the Sixteenth Avenue students for their last school. This mural was lost when the old building was demolished, but The Imagined Land incorporates some of the visual elements from it.

Energetic painted line work marks this joyful and colourful piece, and the painting is echoed by variegated gold and copper leaf. The leaf-work accentuates and adds a kinetic aspect to the graphic element by capturing and reflecting light from the room. With its reliance on painted lines, bright shapes and colour, the work does not demand contemplation; instead, it brings depth and excitement to this busy transitional space. For passers-by, it provides flashes of colour, light and reflection to catch and delight the eye. And for the students in the cafeteria, the work evokes a faraway and exotic place, and suggests a magical environment for their activities.

At Michael Power Catholic Secondary School, the requirements of the commission were very different. Although we were again working on a transition between a foyer and an adjoining room, this time the room was the school chapel. The clients were originally looking only for a glass treatment for the doors - to mark the chapel as a special place, and to provide a welcome to visitors and worshippers.

This was essentially a work for a transitional space, and I proposed a set of sandblasted panels based on simple, flowing designs. The sliding glass panels would catch and glow with the available light. At the same time, I also advised the use of additional panels inside the chapel. These would relate to the visual themes of the doorway panels, but would have a very different purpose - to add depth to the interior of the chapel, and to provide a focus for meditation and worship.

This suggestion was accepted, and the resulting work, Gifts of Grace, uses two sets of panels to span the transitional space of the foyer and the contemplative setting within the chapel.

Above and beside the chapel entranceway, the sandblasted glass panels give a sense of privacy to the interior, and emphasize the spiritual presence of the chapel. The sandblasting on these pieces is light and textural; they deliver a visual message without implying any deeper meaning. When the chapel doors are open, these panels frame the set of meditative interior pieces over the altar, which are based on the theme, "The sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit".

The altar pieces are made of sandblasted, reverse painted glass with copper and gold leaf. With their flowing sandblasted dove shapes, sparing use of paint, and leaf-work backing, these panels seem to float in a timeless space. By catching and reflecting the small amount of natural light that spills in from the foyer, as well as the halogen lighting in the chapel, the panels present a changing landscape of light and reflection. They invite contemplation, and provide a level of depth and detail that rewards repeated viewing.

The materials and techniques in these two pieces were chosen to provide specific effects for specific settings. The line work and painted backgrounds that give The Imagined Land such life and immediacy would not be appropriate for Gifts of Grace, in which gold leaf and sandblasting help to create a more contemplative atmosphere. The balance of light, shadow and color that underlies both of these pieces works best in other than direct sunlight.

Each time I design for interior, "light locked" environments, I learn more about the versatility of glass, and the beauty that it can bring to these settings. These lessons have been valuable - making the most of available light; working in harmony with the architecture; and designing for the human uses of the space.

I will never tire of the possibilities provided by natural light and antique glass; nevertheless, we can create another type of "treasure" in these interior works of glass, paint and gold.

Technique

The murals at Sixteenth Avenue Public School and the Gifts of Grace Chapel both utilize different combinations of sandblasting, leaf-work and reverse painting.

The Imagined Land

Sixteenth Avenue Public School, Glass Mural

The 4mm clear glass was sandblasted and tempered. The graphic line work was painted

on the sandblasted side with black oil paint (acrylics will work fine as well). Some of the brushwork was done freehand; the rest was accomplished by placing the reversed drawing under the glass as a reference.

When the paint was dry I applied oil-based gold size to areas I wanted to leaf. I used a combination of variegated, gold composition and copper leaf. The colour work was added using a variety of transparent and opaque sprays. This was applied freestyle - allowing the colours to mix and overlap, and resulting in some lovely new shades. It is essential to work in a well ventilated studio, and to wear a mask especially designed for fumes when you are working with spray paints.

The reverse painted panels at Sixteenth Avenue School were created as doubles - so that the two panels were back to back with a thin layer of white card between them to opacify the panels. The panels were then sealed with copper foil and mounted into the existing steel screen provided by the architect. The interior screen was comprised of 78 panels in total. Approximately one half are reverse painted and the other half are sandblasted iridescent panels that extend the rainforest imagery and allow transparency and light into the adjoining cafeteria. The technique allows for easy maintenance, durability and safety within the context of public space.

Several clean, bright halogen lights at a sharp angle provide effective lighting for the mural.

Gifts of Grace

Michael Power Catholic Secondary School, Chapel

The 12-foot high sliding glass screen that separates the chapel from the foyer was created through sandblasting and a few touches of screen etch. In preparing the resist, we used combs and wire brushes dragged through caulking to achieve the wavy organic lines. All of the glass used in the project was 6mm.

The wall mounted murals over the altar are sandblasted both front and back. The back surface was rubbed with pastels and oil paints to achieve a softly coloured ground on which to apply the gold and copper leaf-work. The dove shapes were sandblasted on the front to provide a textured relief and strong image. The murals were wall mounted with bishop clips. The halogen lighting that angles onto the wall pieces is an essential part of the work.