Stained Glass Windows
Mr. Hobbs
Art
What is a Stained Glass
Window?
• Traditionally made in flat
panels and used as
windows.
• Have been around for
about 1000 years!
• The term has been
applied almost
exclusively to the
windows of churches
and other significant
buildings.
So How is it Made?
• Stained glass is coloured by adding
metallic salts when it’s made.
• Glass is cut and arranged to form
patterns or pictures.
• Held together by lead and supported
by rigid frame.
• Can also be made by having colours
painted onto the glass and then
fused to the glass using a kiln.
• Requires the artistic skill to conceive
an appropriate and workable design,
the engineering skills to assemble
the piece.
• A window must fit snugly into the
space for which it is made, must
resist wind and rain, and also,
especially in the larger windows,
must support its own weight.
What’s the Point of a Stained
Glass Window?
• Many large windows have
withstood the test of time and
remained intact since the
Middle Ages.
• In Western Europe they
constitute a major form of
pictorial art that have survived.
• The purpose of a stained
glass window is not to allow
those within a building to see the world outside or even
primarily to admit light but rather to control it. For this
reason stained glass windows have been described as
'illuminated wall decorations'.
Artist: Marc Chagall
• Chagall was one of the most
successful artists of the 20th century.
• He created a unique career in virtually
every artistic medium, including
paintings, book illustrations, stained
glass, stage sets, ceramics, tapestries
and fine art prints.
• Using the medium of stained glass, he
produced windows for the many
cathedrals, windows for the United
Nations and the Jerusalem Windows
in Israel.
• "When Matisse dies", Pablo Picasso
remarked in the 1950s, "Chagall will
be the only painter left who
understands what colour really is.”
Stained Glass Window by Marc Chagall in a
Catholic Church in Germany
Other Uses
Lamps
Sculptures
3D Artwork
Ornaments
Non Traditional Stained
Glass Styles
Now It’s Your Turn!
• Use the information provided to create
your own stained glass window. Here are
some ideas to get you started…