Chip Smith, Peak to Peak. This week, I begin the first of a monthly series of articles on the hobby of stain glass.
My first installment will introduce you to Kay O’Neil of O’Neill Rocky Mountain Art in Nederland.
These articles will focus on the process of completing start to finish, a stain glass project.
The articles with photos will take you from design/sketch, to development of a template/cartoon, tools and materials necessary for production, choice of glass/colors and textures, cutting and shaping, assembly, including lead came and copper foil, to finishing the project by cleaning, waxing, and polishing.
Let’s begin with some historical context with what the term “stain or stained glass” commonly means to us in the 21st Century.
Glass and its usage in windows can be traced back to the Middle East over a thousand years ago, as a way to bring light into buildings, while at the same time, allowing the building to be completely sealed. Early glass objects were more valuable than precious metals.
All colored glass is stained or “colored by the addition of metallic oxides while it is in a molten state. The creation of glass windows in Rome and Egypt and its subsequent growth, spread this art form throughout the civilized world.
In the middle of the Medieval Period (5th – 15th Centuries), the use of colored glass as well as painted glass, is what is generally known today as stained glass. Commissioned windows by churches as well as expensive “Royalty” windows, i.e., windows that displayed a family’s Coat of Arms appeared throughout Europe.
The Gothic Style (10th – 13th Centuries), utilized red and blue colored glass in the large cathedral windows of the 13th Century. Please Google images of Chartres Cathedral in Chartres France to see the amazing art.
The 19th Century in the United States saw the desire for stained glass windows explode. The famous Tiffany Studios in New York developed windows starting in his studios in 1878. Many of his windows are in major museums throughout the United States. My particular favorites are his landscape windows. The American “Arts and Crafts” movement brought fine art into the home of the middle class. American churches everywhere all incorporated beautiful windows. The 100 year old windows of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Central City are truly beautiful and serve as a wonderful example of 19th Century colored and painted glass.
Kay O’Neill is a master artist, storyteller, conversationalist, teacher, and as you will quickly find, a very friendly and helpful lady.
She hails from Bay City, Michigan and finished a BA Degree in Art from Southeast Missouri State in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. While studying a SMSU, she also studied printing, leather work, and screen printing in the Industrial Arts Program.
Kay firmly believes in art. It shapes her! It is “who I am., where I live, and what I do.”
Her shop can be found on the 2nd floor of Caribou Village in Nederland. Upon entry, you will find various projects in progress, materials, tools, templates/designs, and personal artworks on the wall. There is glass art of all sizes for sale hanging in the windows.
In the background there is music. While in Missouri she was a D.J at HDHX 98.1 the “Moondance.” I asked her about a piece of music once and then the stories came forth about the artists and style. It was like experiencing a music class.
Upon graduation from SMSU, Kay used her background as an artist to start looking for a vocation. Kay has a talent for painting, sketches, and graphics. She then became a student of stained glass. She developed her passion for glass art and set out on her life of creativity.
“It doesn’t matter what you do, it’s what you do with it.”
Kay has never looked back. “My glass works are paintings that hang in windows.
Hey man, I do windows!”
The next segment will begin and feature the process of taking an idea from start to finish of a large window project that I will be building.
Visit her website to view her gallery of work. www.oneilrockymountainart.com
(Originally published in the November 26, 2020, edition of The Mountain-Ear.)
