The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1923-02-04
Glass Exhibit Is Most
Entertaining

3 OlL paintings SHOWN recently dl Tic
Little Art Gallery, Birmingham folk
have had the opportunity to enjoy
by contrast the array of stained
glass windows there this week.
Today, glass is made of every hue
and style. from that wrinkled in
heavy folds for draperies, to that
twisted into the semblance of feath-
ers, In fact, every known effect can
now be produced.
While art lovers of the city viewed
the stained glass panes, Louis Schil-
,linger gave some instructive talks
explaining the history of this art,
and touching on the methods used in
painting panels.
Not Like OIL Painting
THE medium through which the
stained glass picture is expressed is
1.-THE exact opposite of the one by
which the oil painting finds express
sion," declared Mr.. Schillinger.
with the latter, the light shines on
the Opaque surface of the pigment,
which never varies in itself, while,
with glass, the opposite is the case.
The light always comes from the
outside through the glass to the eye,
and to realize it's complete express
sion there must be no light what
ever shining on the inner surface of
the glass"
Many beautiful ancient windows
have been made, colorless by the in
PRODUCTION of clear glass in windows
facing them, or by bordering them
with semi-clear glass, which intro
duces light more powerful than that
shining through the stained glass,
thus destroying the effect of color
in the stained glass.
The art of the stained glass de-
signer was based on the clear un
Outstanding of this principle at the
very beginning, and has never varied
from, it in the hands of those who
really know the essentials of stained
glass making.
Parent of Loaded Glass
Mr.. Schillinger said the best glass
is in the Cathedral at Chather, al
though the Italian glass has a rich
ness of color that has never been
surpassed. But the field is not very
a. large since the Gothic movement was
not felt as keenly as it was in
France and England. The Gothic
movement may be termed the parent
of loaded glass.
When gazing delightedly at the
windows of stained glass in the
cathedrals of Europe. the American
experiences much difficulty in read
ing the stories told in those win
dows, much more so than the trav-
eler in the age of pilgrimage be-
cause he was quite able to recognize
all the saints by their symbols. If
not by their faces, having been told
:. of the miracles performed by the
saints when but a wee child, over
/ and over again. The glass workers of
yore worked tremendously with the
architect and sculptor, aiming to
present the fundamental truths of
religion, as well as to give we'll
chosen distribution of illumination
to the interior of the church.
Stained Glass Past and Present
1T is important to lay stress on
the fact in the case of old MASTER
pieces of stained glass, a perfect
harmony always existed between the
glass itself and the building in
which it was set said Mr.. Schillin
ger. In the course of years, there
have been marked departures in this
particular. and today we find glass
often treated as vehicle for pic
torial delineation solely, and.not
II harmonized in it's architectural en-
vironment with. the building con-
tanning the glass.
Now a few moments behind the
4 scenes, as it were, concerning the
# process of making glass; 1t is only
4 necessary to state here that the
leading characteristics of glass
making remain today practically the
same as when the monks of earliest
times learned from the Greeks the
art of glass composition. While the
glass made by the Greeks was used
as much for mosaic wall pictures as
for windows, it's transparency was
not deemed the first quality of ex-
cellence. The various foreign sub
stance rema ming in the materials
usedtby the early glass makers often
produced tints sEeaked with color
instead of clear, even ones such as
we see in modern glass, but this very
unevenness gave a quality to the
glass rarely equaled by modern
manufacturers.
Technic
THE most notable features char?
acteristie of the Thirteenth Cen
fury stained glass are: The deep
colors with very. little white glass;
the lack Of perspective in their rep
resentation--that is. they all seem
to be directly in the foreground; the.
almost complete preston of the
outlines in the cutting of the glass
and the very wide borders of pat
terms cut in little painted designs on
them surrounding the Whoie.
Leading Window
"In our day, as in olden times,
when the pattern has been drawn
and placed on large table, the
workman selects glass, and cuts it
to fit each large or small space.
After these have been painted and
fired, they are fastened together by
means of lead in long narrow strips
having grooves on each, and being
soldered, at the joints. Afterwards.
cement is pushed into any crevices
that might let water pass through
the joint of the glass with the lead.
Thus the whole is made perfectly
water-tight."