Foundation Studies: Stained Glass Project

Display of work accomplished by Section 4 and 9 of the 2005 Foundation students. Index to student work filed with the poster.

A cold blizzard was raging, but the light shone brightly' : social networks presented in stained glass within an industrial community

Historical stained glass in Calumet and Laurium revealed the complex structures of these industrial communities. Creating an Industrial Archaeology-focused approach, I examined stained glass as material culture. Sacred glass revealed ethnic and religious values of a congregation through the style, iconography, and quality of the glasswork. Residential glass showed how owners represented themselves within cultural settings by meeting social expectations. Commercial glass indicated community status of owners through discreet and artistic shows of wealth and taste. Corporate glass displayed prosperity and belonging through the superior quality and cost of the glasswork. Viewing stained glass as material culture opened new methods of looking at both stained glass and industrial communities. Findings from my research can teach the public about the importance of preserving and conserving stained glass, and that can lead to greater public appreciation for the material culture found within these industrial communities.

Stained glass in the Denver area

"The purpose of t his thesis is to present a history of stained glass used in the De.nver area in tbe past hundred years. It has been necessary to present a sufficient background on t he history of the art since its heritage in the twelfth century so that t he evolution can be properly understood. Differ.ent movements, first in Europe and later in America and Europe, have influenced the art and brought it to its present state in t he Denver area"

A Stained Glass Tour in Italy

Mode of access: Internet.

Stained glass tours in England.

Mode of access: Internet.

Whisper our futures

Whisper Our Futures was an invited design proposal to produce a major public artwork for the State of Queensland’s 150th Anniversary Celebrations. It involved a network of 100 individual scrolling digital text boxes each with individual audio systems arranged together in a tessellated format. This form (specified by the originating brief) both mimicked the soaring gothic arches typical of Queensland cathedrals and was also suggestive of their stained glass windows. Each text module presented a message in both visual and audible forms for Queenslanders living 150 years hence - spoken both by the general public aw well as prominent figures. In this way the work was designed as a focus of future hope, historical reflection and inspiration to visitors to Queensland cathedrals throughout the entire year of celebrations (2009). The work was planned to premiere at Brisbane’s main Anglican Cathedral and then tour to nine other state cathedrals throughout 2009.---- Two staged proposals and budgets were invited throughout 2007. After the second successful proposal stage the State Premier and cabinet changed, ultimately leading the public art components to be dropped from the program. The proposal currently remains on file at the Queensland Premiers Office.

O vidro como material plástico: transparência, luz, cor e expressão

A presente tese de doutoramento procura focar o vidro como material plástico para a concepção de obras de arte. Os seus alicerces caracterizam-se pelo estudo técnico sobre o uso do vidro e a sua aplicação na realização de obras com pressupostos estéticos e artísticos. Hoje a arte em vidro apresenta-se inovadora e contemporânea, procurando uma componente ligada à pesquisa e à experimentação. Portugal possui uma ampla história ligada à tradição do vidro, em especial ao vitral. No que concerne à sua aplicação na arte contemporânea, assistimos a um renovado interesse por parte de vários artistas. No entanto, quando se trabalha com o vidro, é necessário o artista conhecer e dominar a técnica que utiliza, para assim compreender as potencialidades que o material oferece e empregá-las de acordo com o seu modus operandi. Cria-se uma relação entre a ciência e a arte, uma descoberta e utilização de novos conhecimentos, em que se pretende manter uma relação estreita entre o cientista e o artista através do desenvolvimento de novos materiais, nomeadamente os vidros e esmaltes luminescentes e a adição de óxidos de metais de transição 3d na sua composição. Neste sentido foram desenvolvidos estudos minuciosos sobre a técnica de kilncasting onde se utilizou o vidro sonoro superior produzido no CRISFORM (Centro de Formação Profissional para o Sector da Cristalaria), na Marinha Grande. Assim, verifica-se que as premissas desta tese podem ser divididas em três vertentes: a) Uma contextualização histórica e teórica do panorama artístico do vidro em Portugal; b) Uma componente teórica/prática do estudo do vidro: a ciência do vidro, a sua composição, com a preocupação de utilizar esses conhecimentos para a elaboração de amostras práticas, onde a componente técnica é fundamental para a produção de futuras obras de arte; c) A idealização de obras de arte e a utilização do vidro como material plástico para a sua realização. Na elaboração destas obras procurou-se focar a dicotomia entre transparência versus opacidade, os efeitos cromáticos produzidos por diferentes espessuras e texturas do vidro, assim como da monocromia versus policromia, esta última através do vidro e esmaltes luminescentes. Em suma, na complementaridade laboratório/ateliê, os segredos da matéria abrem novas fronteiras à criatividade estética.

Henry Hope & Sons of Canada Ltd. Letter, 1916

Henry Hope & Sons of Canada Ltd. were located at 45 King Street West, Toronto, Ont. at the writing of this letter in 1916. The company specialized in “weathertight casements in iron steel or gun-metal, unbreakable steel windows, fanlight opening-gear, leaded lights and stained glass, patent glass roofing, locks and door furniture, rainwater goods in cast lead and cast iron”. The letter is addressed to Mr. H.Y. [Harry Young] Grant, c/o Fenwick Farm, Lundy’s Lane, Niagara Falls, Ont. from R.W. Smith. The letter is in reply to a query about casement windows. Harry Young Grant (1860-1934), son of Sir James Alexander Grant and Maria Malloch of Ottawa, Ont. was a medical doctor specializing in the treatment of the eye, ear, nose and throat. After his retirement he became a member of the Niagara Parks Commission. He was married to Grace A. Smith, daughter of James R. Smith of Buffalo.

Inverse Illumination Design with Genetic Programming

Interior illumination is a complex problem involving numerous interacting factors. This research applies genetic programming towards problems in illumination design. The Radiance system is used for performing accurate illumination simulations. Radiance accounts for a number of important environmental factors, which we exploit during fitness evaluation. Illumination requirements include local illumination intensity from natural and artificial sources, colour, and uniformity. Evolved solutions incorporate design elements such as artificial lights, room materials, windows, and glass properties. A number of case studies are examined, including many-objective problems involving up to 7 illumination requirements, the design of a decorative wall of lights, and the creation of a stained-glass window for a large public space. Our results show the technical and creative possibilities of applying genetic programming to illumination design.

Le Musée de l'Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal : un outil d'évangélisation

Dès les débuts du christianisme, l’Église s’est servie de l’art. Au Moyen âge, en particulier, la décoration des cathédrales (sculptures, fresques vitraux) avait une valeur esthétique, mais plus encore, une valeur didactique. Moyens matériels pour faire la catéchèse, voire évangéliser, les crèches du Musée de l’Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal s’inscrivent dans cette perspective. Tenant compte de cette mission d’évangélisation qui incombe à l’Église et de l’importance que prend de plus en plus le visuel dans la culture et la société actuelles, nous voulons partir de l’exposition des crèches de Noël à l’Oratoire Saint-Joseph, de l’année 2009, pour découvrir en quoi elle pourrait contribuer à l’évangélisation et à la croissance du christianisme et des chrétiens. En effet, les crèches de Noël sont essentiellement œuvre de foi, – non pas liée à la foi de l’auteur mais plutôt à l’effet que cette oeuvre peut avoir sur celui qui la regarde, – dont la dévotion à la sainte Famille. Ce moyen d’évangélisation dans ce monde en mutation où l’art visuel s’est avéré d’une extrême importance convient bien au contexte de la déchristianisation et peut offrir une complémentarité aux méthodes traditionnelles d’évangélisation basées surtout sur le discours. Ils sont complémentaires, dans le sens où il ne s’agit pas de « cheminer à travers villes et villages, prêchant et annonçant la Bonne Nouvelle du Royaume de Dieu » (Lc 8,1) aux personnes qui n’ont pas encore entendu parler du Christ, mais d’éveiller la curiosité chez les visiteurs non-chrétiens (Evangelii Nuntiandi 53), de stimuler l’intérêt à l’égard de la religion chez les non-pratiquants (EN 56) et, de soutenir et approfondir la foi des fidèles. Mots-clés : Christianisme – Église – transmission – évangélisation – éducation de la foi – musée – crèches – Oratoire Saint-Joseph.

Harry Clarke e a literatura: da pintura em vitrais à ilustração de livros

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Os vitrais em forma de rosáceas da Catedral de Notre Dame de Paris

The paper presents a historical explanation of the Notre Dame de Paris, studying the symbols and the elements of each of its major rose windows. Analyzes the stained glass in the form of rose windows from the point of view of their meanings, functions, symbols used in their divisions and plays its geometric construction.

Partenheim versus Boppard : Geschichte und Rekonstruktion zweier spätgotischer Verglasungen am Mittelrhein

Im Mittelpunkt der vorliegenden Arbeit stehen zwei spätgotische Verglasungen aus der Region des Mittelrheins, die bislang zumeist aus stilistischen Gründen mehr oder weniger eng miteinander verknüpft worden sind. Die Partenheimer Scheiben entstanden für die nach 1435 erneuerte Pfarrkirche des gleichnamigen Ortes in Rheinhessen, die Bopparder Fenster waren für das ab 1440 errichtete Seitenschiff der dortigen Karmeliterkirche bestimmt. Beide Zyklen wurden bereits im frühen 19. Jahrhundert ihren ursprünglichen Standorten entfremdet. Der Partenheimer Bestand gelangte vor allem in das Hessische Landesmuseum von Darmstadt. Die Bopparder Glasmalereien haben sich mittlerweile weltweit über Museen und Privatsammlungen verstreut. Im Nachzeichnen der dabei gewählten Wege liegt einer der Schwerpunkte der Arbeit, im Feststellen der zugleich vorgenommenen Strukturveränderungen ein weiterer. Die nicht zuletzt auf dieser Basis erstellten Vorschläge zur Rekonstruktion der einst in situ bestehenden Verhältnisse erlauben dabei vor allem dem Bopparder Komplex eine Präzisierung oder sogar Korrektur von früheren Annahmen: Datieren lassen sich die Karmeliterfenster nunmehr in die Jahre zwischen 1443 und 1446. Zu ihren Stiftern zählten neben dem Trierer Erzbischof Jakob v. Sierck offenbar ausschließlich der lokale Adel sowie diverse Bruderschaften der Stadt inklusive einzelner Vertreter derselben. Das wichtigste Fazit dieser Neubestimmung ist deshalb die regionale Verankerung der Fenster. Nicht zu bestätigen ist die vormals postulierte Werkstattgemeinschaft beider Zyklen: Der um 1440 geschaffene Kernbestand von Partenheim scheint im Rhein-Main-Gebiet verwurzelt und nur das nördlichste Chorfenster wurde nach etwa zehnjähriger Pause von anderen Glasmalern ausgeführt. Den Bopparder Auftrag teilten sich stattdessen von vornherein eine vielleicht in Koblenz ansässige Werkstatt sowie ein in Lothringen tätiges Atelier. Vollkommen eigenständig sind die Zyklen von Partenheim und Boppard damit gleichwohl exemplarische Vertreter für die stilistische Vielfalt am Mittelrhein im 15. Jahrhundert.

Juan Bautista Lázaro y la restauración monumental: su intervención en la Catedral de León (1892-1909)

La catedral de León, debido al estado de ruina que presentaba a mediados del siglo XIX, se vio sometida a partir de entonces a una serie de intervenciones de conservación, restauración y reconstrucción que la transforma-ron significativamente. A pesar de encontrarnos con gran cantidad de documentación escrita sobre este monumento y de existir varios estudios sobre los arquitectos restauradores que intervinieron en este a finales del siglo XIX, resulta sorprendente que todavía existan períodos de este lapso de tiempo en el que su análisis y profundización haya sido menor. Este es el caso del período de Juan Bautista Lázaro como arquitecto director de las obras de la catedral leonesa, existiendo únicamente sobre toda su obra un estudio general que fue realizado por el director de este trabajo de investigación, por lo que nos llevó a considerar que era oportuno profundizar sobre la figura y obra de uno de los arquitectos más importante de la restauración en España de este período, no solo por su obra en sí, sino también por sus pos-turas significativas respecto a la intervención en el patrimonio arquitectónico: su respeto por los añadidos históricos, su preferencia por no aislar los monumentos, sus interés por los sistemas constructivos y su deseo de recuperar los oficios tradicionales que estaban completamente perdidos en la España decimonónica. El objetivo principal de la tesis es, por tanto, el análisis descriptivo y arquitectónico de los proyectos e intervenciones que Lázaro desarrolló y ejecutó para la catedral de Santa María de Regla de León, para deducir los principios e ideas que guiaron su quehacer en este templo, y poder, tras estudiar sus diversas publicaciones escritas y los proyectos e intervenciones de restauración acometidas en otros edificios de carácter monumental, llegar a establecer sus criterios de intervención en el patrimonio histórico y artístico. De acuerdo con esto, la tesis se estructura en tres partes: una primera parte en la que se contempla el pensamiento arquitectónico de Lázaro en su intervención en el patrimonio histórico; una segunda, en la que se abordan directamente los proyectos e intervenciones de Lázaro en la pulchra leonina, previa aproximación del citado arquitecto al proceso de restauración que se acometía en dicho templo; y una tercera, en la que se realiza el estudio de las principales intervenciones de restauración que ejecutó en otros edificios del patrimonio arquitectónico español. El presente trabajo de investigación se ha servido de la documentación escrita, gráfica, planimétrica y fotográfica que sobre los temas tratados existe desperdigada en diversos archivos dependientes de distintos organismos oficiales civiles y eclesiásticos. Además, el hecho de haber podido acceder a los trabajos de conservación y restauración que en estos momentos se están llevando a cabo en las zonas en las que intervino Lázaro (vidrieras, rejas, puertas, fábricas, cubiertas, etc.), y el poder intercambiar opiniones y criterios con la persona que actualmente es responsable de las obras de la catedral de León, ha facilitado y complementado el desarrollo de la presente tesis al haber podido contrastar y tomar datos directamente en el monumento objeto de estudio. También se ha llevado a cabo la consulta de las distintas revistas de arquitectura publicadas en aquellos años y de los múltiples libros que versaban sobre los edificios objeto de este trabajo o que guardaban relación con ellos. Asimismo hemos logrado conocer el testimonio de algunos de los herederos de Lázaro y de varios de los descendientes de los operarios que trabajaron bajo sus órdenes. Como conclusiones generales, la tesis define por primera vez los criterios generales que guiaron su quehacer profesional en el patrimonio. Además, en este trabajo se analizan pormenorizadamente los proyectos y actuaciones de Lázaro en la catedral de León, abordándose también en profundidad el trabajo del mencionado arquitecto en el ámbito de la restauración arquitectónica. Para lograr este objetivo, esta tesis no se ha limitado únicamente a analizar la información existente en los proyectos y en los in-formes de supervisión de los mismos, como tradicionalmente se había hecho, sino que también se ha tratado de verificar si los datos contenidos en los diferentes documentos de un mismo proyecto y en los borradores de los mismos tenían relación y coherencia entre sí. Además, se ha procurado realizar el análisis comparativo de la realidad construida con el contenido de los proyectos, liquidaciones y documentos de la fase de ejecución de las obras. Este análisis comparativo no había sido realizado hasta la fecha, siendo este, por tanto, una de las aportaciones del trabajo. Por último, la tesis abre tres vías de investigación futuras (que ya se han tratado y avanzado en parte, pero que escapan a los límites de este trabajo). Estas se refieren al estudio de la evolución de la representación gráfica de los planos de la catedral leonesa catalogados en este trabajo, de la actividad pública de Lázaro y su preocupación por la defensa del patrimonio como diputado en las Cortes, arquitecto municipal de Ávila y arquitecto diocesano de Ávila y Toledo, y de cómo sus actuaciones de restauración en el patrimonio arquitectónico influyeron en los proyectos de obra nueva que construyó. ABSTRACT Due to the state of ruin in mid-nineteenth century, the Cathedral of Santa Maria de Regla of León was subjected to a series of interventions on conservation, restoration and reconstruction that transformed it significantly. There have been several studies on the architects who took part in the restoration during the mentioned century and despite abundant documentation and research on this monument, it is surprising to note the lack of deep analysis in some of the periods. In particular, the interventions accomplished by Juan Bautista Lázaro, as chief architect of the works of the Cathedral of León, have not been documented and analysed in adequate depth, despite the outstanding recognition of his work nationally and internationally. Furthermore, up to date, only the director of this research had conducted a general research of all his architectural work. For these reasons, we felt it was appropriate to elaborate on the life and work of one of the most important architects of the restoration in Spain during that period, not only for his work itself, but also for his significant contribution to the debate on architectural interventions on heritage. He is notable for his respect to historical additions, his preference for not isolating the monuments, his interest in building systems and his continuous desire to re-cover the traditional crafts that were completely lost in the nineteenth century in Spain. The main aim of this thesis is therefore the descriptive and architectural analysis of Lázaro’s projects and interventions developed and executed for the Cathedral of León. The thesis identifies the principles and ideas that guided his work in this temple and establish the criteria for intervention in the historical and artistic heritage architecture he applied after studying its various print publications, projects and restoration works undertaken in other buildings. Accordingly, the thesis is structured in three parts: the first part where it deals Lázaro’s architectural thinking in his interventions on heritage constructions; the second one, in which analyses the projects and interventions carried out by Lazaro in the “pulchra leonina”, but this analysis is preceded by the description of Lázaro’s relationship with the Cathedral of León before taking charge of its restoration in 1892; and the third and final section, in which the study of major restoration interventions implemented by Lázaro in other buildings of Spanish architectural heritage is made. This research has used available documentation (in written or graphic form, plans or photographs) scattered in a diverse range of archives de-pendent on various civil and ecclesiastical institutions. Moreover, we could access the conservation and restoration works, currently being carried out in areas where Lázaro intervened (stained glass windows, forged iron en-closures, gates, doors, masonry, covers, etc.). It has been possible to ex-change views and opinions with the person currently in charge of the referred restoration works which has facilitated and complemented the development of this thesis. It further, it has allowed contrasting and obtaining data directly from the monument under study. Consultation of various architectural journals published in those years has also been taken into account, as well as a diversity of books and articles which concerned the buildings assessed in this work, or related to them. Also, although not with the results expected, it has been obtained the testimony of some of Lázaro’s descendants as well as descendants of the workers who operated under him. As a general conclusion, the thesis defines the general criteria that guided his professional work in the heritage for the first time. Furthermore, Juan Bautista Lázaro’s projects and interventions in the Cathedral of León are analysed in detail. Also, it has been studying in detail the Lazaro’s work in the architectural heritage. To achieve this goal, the thesis has studied not only the information from the official projects and technical reports of them, but also it has been tried to verify if the information contained in the different documents of the same project and in the drafts were related and consistent with each other. In addition, it has been attempted to per-form a comparative analysis of the execution of Lázaro’s projects and the entire projected content. This comparative study had not been done to date and this will be, therefore, one of the main contributions of this re-search. Finally, this thesis opens up three lines of investigation (that have already been discussed and partially advanced, but which fall beyond the scope of this research). These refer to the study of the evolution of the graphical representation of the plans of Leon Cathedral catalogued in this thesis, public activity of Lazaro and his concern for the defence of heritage as deputy in Parliament, municipal architect of Avila, and as diocesan architect Ávila and Toledo, and even more how its restoration actions in architectural heritage influenced his projects of new construction.