CHAPEL OF GRACE Reflection Studios RestorationGrace windows were installed, Connick was at his peak....

The Stained Glass Quarterly128

When Charles J. Connick designedthe Chapel of Grace windows at GraceCathedral, San Francisco, he naturallyturned to Sainte-Chapelle, Paris, forinspiration. That jewel box of Gothicarchitecture is a magnificent palacechapel built in 1246-48 by King LouisIX (St. Louis) to house relics of thePassion of Christ. Indeed, the chapelwas intended as a giant reliquary tohouse the precious relics of medievalChristendom. From the time of its con-struction, Sainte-Chapelle’s stainedglass was emulated in numerous church-es and cathedrals. During a stained glassrevival following the FrenchRevolution, once again glaziers andartists turned to Sainte-Chapelle.

Charles J. Connick wrote, “Todaymost expressions that announce glori-ous color in stained glass are probablyrelated to Sainte-Chapelle and toRenaissance windows.” In 1910, a visitto Sainte-Chapelle influenced hisstained glass career.

By Easter 1930, when the Chapel ofGrace windows were installed, Connickwas at his peak. The Chapel of Gracefaces California Street on the site of theformer entrance stairway and front lawnof William H. Crocker’s mansion, whichwas destroyed in San Francisco’s 1906earthquake and fire. It was the first unitof Grace Cathedral, completed in 1930.The Crockers donated the building site,and Mrs. William Crocker was the donorfor Chapel of Grace’s stained glass.Connick chose themes for the windowsin consultation with Cathedral ArchitectLewis Hobart, Building CommitteeChairman Rev. Dr. Walter Cambridge,Mrs. Crocker, and Dean J. WilmerGresham.

In addition to the Chapel of Gracewindows, the Cathedral has 33 Connickwindows in the apse and nave, as well as

35 others (named windows, whichinclude pairs with rosettes, rose/lancetgroups, etc.) by Willet, Loire, Adamsand others.

Reflection Studios, Emeryville (justacross the Bay Bridge), is midway

through a five-year stained glass restora-tion project at Grace Cathedral, and theChapel of Grace windows are part ofthat project. Allen Dragge, President andDirector of Reflection Studios, has beenin business for 35 years. His connection

CHAPEL OF GRACEReflection Studios Restoration

by Melissa Barclay

Grace Cathedral Chapel Nave. Photograph by G. Harrison Conroy, Grace Cathedral Archives.

The Stained Glass Quarterly 129

with Grace dates back 20 years, when a construction accident damaged oneof their apse windows. A previous repair and restoration phase took placein the late 1990s (The Stained Glass Quarterly, Spring 2002). The currentproject is funded by designated bequests, in particular a major endowmentby the estate of former Grace Cathedral chorister Henry W. Edwards Jr.

“Connick didn’t accept ordinary boundaries for his work,” Draggeobserves. “He pushed the materials to their limit. We’re trying to push ourown boundaries too and learn from Connick’s work. In duplicating the win-dows, we’ve learned more about the craft than any other way. It’s like wehave Connick as a mentor or master in the studio. The people here are real-ly excited. This studio is a fabulous place to work. People like and respectone another.” Reflection Studios attempts to operate on egalitarian methodssimilar to Connick’s own studio, where each staff member is encouraged tolearn as much as possible about all aspects of stained glass conservation.

In addition to Allen Dragge, Reflection Studios has eight staff mem-bers. He offers a creative environment for those who want to learn. Theaverage age at the Studio is 30, and Dragge is eager to teach young people

Above: Charles Connick at work painting a cartoon.Right: Matthew window design.

Photographs courtesy of the Grace Cathedral Archives.


the craft of stained glass conservation.A mix of art-school graduates and thosewith more technical backgrounds bringsa unique perspective to traditionalstained glass craft.

Armelle LeRoux is one of theProject Managers. She has been atReflection Studios for 13 years. Shereceived a BA in Environmental Art

Six details of the St. Luke window before restoration.This window, which is installed at the Chapel of Grace,

Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, was designed by CharlesConnick in 1927. Grace Cathedral will be featured on the

Stained Glass Association of America’s Stained Glass Tour atthe Annual Summer Conference this summer.


from Ecole Superieure des ArtsAppliques Du Perre, Paris. While still inFrance, Armelle worked as a glasspainter and designer for Atelier CharlesRobert (Brittany) and as a painter and

glazier with Atelier Durant (MaisonAlfort) on the restoration of eighteenth-and ninteenth-century church windows.LeRoux learned about stained glass asshe trained with various studios, first in

France and then in the United States inthe years following. More recently, shedirected and also contributed 13 of thesplendid creations of glass art to the“Remembered Light Exhibit” at San

Details from the St. Luke win-dow, after restoration.


Francisco Presidio Chapel. This exhibitwas created from shards of stained glasscollected from bombed-out sanctuariesby Rev. Frederick McDonald during hisexperience as chaplain in Europe in1944-45.

Courtney Dragge is an apprentice,following her father into the stainedglass business. This possible career pathhas been on her mind since she was veryyoung, but, after receiving her B.A. inPhilosophy from UC Santa Cruz andspending a few summers working at theStudio, she decided to seriously try itout. The St. Matthew window came intothe studio the second week ofCourtney’s apprenticeship, and she hasworked on all aspects of the Chapel ofGrace restoration. “The experience wasvery exciting and very challenging,”Courtney says. “After the windows werere-installed, I felt very satisfied. It’sbeen a lot of fun. I like the craft and theexperience of learning something new.”

The Chapel of Grace: InspirationChapel of Grace stained glass con-

sists of four double lancet windows inthe nave and four single lancets in theapse. The medallion style, color scheme,designs, and some narrative themes(mostly Old Testament) are inspired bySainte-Chapelle.

Sainte-Chapelle medallions come inan array of shapes: diamonds, cut angled

and regular rectangles, ovals, trefoil andquarter ovals, circles, half and quarter cir-cles, trefoils and quatrefoils, and trilobes.These medallions were alternately inter-spersed for symmetry and variety indesign. Chapel of Grace adopted only thealternating larger vesica/quatrefoil andsmaller quatrefoil medallions found inSainte-Chapelle’s Passion relics and Bookof Joshua windows.

Sainte-Chapelle’s dominant colorscheme is red and blue. Chapel of Graceemploys predominant cobalt blues, alsoknown as “Connick blue,” with red rubybackgrounds. Connick also modeled themosaic style from Sainte-Chapelle.Quatrefoils alternating with smaller qua-trefoils on square or oblique latticebackgrounds are inspired by Sainte-Chapelle windows depicting St. Johnthe Baptist and the Book of Isaiah.

Connick’s theories about colorderive from medieval symbolism, andhe brought this to bear in his designschemes.

Blue is the most active, the mostmagical, the most mysterious of all colorsin light; Dante had a fresh way of sayingthat blue is the color of divine wisdom, asred is the color of divine love. Dante alsoknew red as the badge of courage, as thecolor of passionate devotion, of self-sacri-fice, and of martyrdom.

Sainte-Chapelle heraldry includesthe towers of Castille and the fleur-de-

lis. Charles Connick employed exten-sive use of medieval motifs, includingthe fleur-de-lis and roses.

The Chapel of Grace (including awindow of the Blessed Virgin just out-side the chapel) contains 833 square feetof glass. By contrast, Sainte-Chapellehas 6,458 square feet of glass. Also,Sainte-Chapelle has four lancets perwindow, topped by rose windows withsix foils and two quatrefoils. Sainte-Chapelle has a total of 1,113 figurativepanels in 15 windows, while Gracescenes are depicted in 36 large and 48smaller medallions. The glass used inconstructing the leaded glass for theChapel of Grace came from Sunderlandand St. Helens, England, and also fromGermany, France, and Belgium.

The Gospel WindowsA literal Bible in stained glass,

Chapel of Grace’s four nave windowsdepict scenes from Gospel writersMatthew, Mark, Luke and John. Eachlancet pair is topped by a quatrefoil rosewindow containing an Archangel with ashield featuring the evangelist’s symbol.Background lattices are aqua, and bor-ders of vines, grapes, and leaves appearon all Gospel windows.

In the St. Matthew window, largermedallions depict scenes from St.Matthew’s Gospel, such as Christ callingthe disciples, the visit of the Magi, and the

Connick signature plate


Sermon on the Mount. Smaller medallionscontain the Beatitudes such as Peace,Mercy, or Meekness. “Beati,” Latin for“Blessed,” is etched into the paint design.The Archangel Michael bears a shieldwith Matthew’s symbol of the wingedman. Stars and crowns flanking the medal-lions, side tracery of kneeling angels withcensers, and background of diagonal lat-tices with tiny budded crosses appearagain in the St. Luke window.

In St. Mark, larger medallions con-tain scenes from his narrative such asChrist walking on water and variousincidents of healing. Lancets are toppedby Archangel Raphael holding a shieldwith St. Mark’s symbol of the wingedlion. Recurring roses and fleur-de-lismotifs, and side tracery of seated angelswith censers appear again in the St. Johnwindow.

In St. Luke, larger medallions depictscenes from the youth of Christ such asthe Nativity, Annunciation to theShepherds, and Christ in the Temple.Smaller medallions depict Parables: TheProdigal Son, The Lost Sheep, Dives(the rich man) and Lazarus, and TheGood Samaritan. Lancets are topped bya rose of Archangel Gabriel holding ashield with Luke’s symbol of the ox.

St. John focuses on themes of theGood Shepherd and the Spirit. Largermedallions depict events from Christ’slife: Wedding at Cana and theResurrection of Lazarus. Smaller medal-lions portray the Good Shepherd, theSamaritan woman, and the Adulteress.The lancet rose is topped withArchangel Uriel carrying a shield withSt. John’s symbol of the eagle.

Passion WindowsThe Chapel of Grace’s four single

lancets in the apse depict themes anddesigns from Sainte-Chapelle’s centralapse Passion window. Red medallionswith orange and gold lattice appear on ablue background. Gold and white pome-granates fill the borders, along with

green foliage on a redbackground.

The first lancet,Preparation, depictsPassion events suchas the Last Supperfound in Sainte-Chapelle windows.The lancet top con-tains medievalPassion symbols ofhammer and nails.The second, Trial,window depictsChrist before Pilateand Garden ofGethsemane events.The lancet is toppedby sword and sheath.The Crucifixion win-dow contains Passionsymbols of cross andspear, and crown ofthorns. Medallionsdepict the Crucifixion,Descent from theCross, and theEntombment. The fourth windowdepicts events from the Resurrection tothe Ascension. Symbols of lantern andstars appear, along with a Phoenix risingfrom the ashes, a symbol of resurrectionwhich also recalls San Francisco’s 1906fire.

According to Michael Lampen, theGrace Cathedral archivist, “Some of thecomplexity of the Chapel work is surelydue to the rich detail and smaller scaleof the Chapel of Grace windows (rela-tive to those of Sainte-Chapelle), whichcan be seen close up and which closelyemulate the rich design and colorscheme of several windows of theSainte-Chapelle, Paris.”

The RestorationThe initial restoration work began

in June 2006, when the ReflectionStudios team removed the first lancetpair: St. Matthew. Window restoration is

labor intensive. St. Matthew containedmore than 100 pieces of glass per squarefoot. The entire process of St. Matthew’srestoration took six months, this whileworking on other projects.

The windows were taken to the stu-dio, and the opening in the Chapel wastemporarily filled with sheets ofKokomo glass known as “Streaky RootBeer.” According to Grace Cathedraldocents, this caramel-colored swirlglass, which has been filling in the gapthroughout the restoration, turned out tobe very popular with visitors to theCathedral.

The goal of Reflection Studios is toretain the original Connick stained glassas much as possible including design,painting, glass thickness,

Courtney Dragge releading a St. Luke window panel.

For last-minute reservations, contact the SGAA Headquarters at 800.438-9581

Featuring:

Pre-Conference Classes • Golf Outing • S.A. Bendheim West Open House •

Rick Hoover: Yesterday: Stained Glass Meets the Hippies • Panel Discussion with Dan

Fenton, Peter Mollica, Arthur Stern, and Dick Weiss • Welcome Reception • David

Ruth: “A Journey Through Glass into Light” • Stained Glass Tour • Architects’

Reception • AIA CES Program • Barbara Derix: “What Is Contemporary Art Glass?” •

Cappy Thompson: “Changing Scales in Painted Glass from Vessel Walls to Curtain

Walls” • Paul Marioni: “A New Beginning” • Dorothy Lenehan and Daniel Winterich:

“Who Wants to Work with an Artist?” • Silent Auction • Awards Banquet • Father Tom

Lucas: “Bringing Shanghai Cathedral Back to Light: An Experiment in Cross-Cultural

Iconography” • Gordon Huether and the Napa Valley

Paul Wissmach Glass Company, Inc.PO Box 228Paden City, WV 26159304.337-2253 • 304.337-8800 [email protected]

S.A. Bendheim61 Willett St.Passaic, NJ 07055 800.221.7379 973.471.1733 973.471.1640 [email protected]

Kokomo Opalescent GlassPO Box 2265 Kokomo, IN 46904-2265765.457-8136765.459-5177 [email protected]

DHD Metals, Inc.PO Box 165Conyers, GA 30012800.428.6693770.760.9032 fax

Modern Litho-Print Co.6009 Stertzer RoadJefferson City, MO 65101(800) 456-5867www.modernlitho.com

TheSG

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SGAA Stained Glass School10009 East 62nd StreetRaytown, MO 64133800.438-9581816.3737-2801 [email protected]

Evenheat Kiln, Inc.6949 Legion RoadCaseville, MI [email protected]

Denver Glass Machinery, Inc.2800 South Shoshone StreetEnglewood, CO [email protected]

STAINED GLASSQUARTERLY OF THE STAINED GLASS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

The Stained Glass Quarterly10009 East 62nd StreetRaytown, MO 64133800.438-9581 • 816.737-2801 [email protected] • www.stainedglass.org

MAYCO IndustriesA Subsidiary of Metalico Inc.18 West Oxmoor Road • PO Box 19397Birmingham, AL [email protected] www.maycoindustries.com

Glastar Corporation20721 Marilla StreetChatsworth, CA [email protected]

The Annual Summer Conference of the Stained Glass Association of America would not be possible without the support of these businesses.

Blenko Architectural GlassPO Box 67 • Milton, WV 25541304.743-9081 www.blenkoglass.com

Reusche & Co. of TWS, Inc.1299 H StreetGreeley, CO 80631970.346.8577970.346.8575 [email protected]

Reusché & Co. of T.W.S. Inc.

J. Sussman, Inc.109-10 180th StreetJamaica, NY 11433(718) 297-0228(718) 297-3090 [email protected]

Gemini Saw Company3300 Kashiwa StreetTorrance, CA [email protected]

Northwest Art Glass9003 151st Avenue NERedmond, WA 98052800.888-9544425.861-9300 faxwww.nwartglass.com

Key Resin Company4050 Clough Woods DriveBatavia, OH 45103888-943-4532 • 513-943-4255 (fax)www.keyresin.com

329 Lewis StreetOakland, CA [email protected]

DiStefano Ruiz Studio

[email protected]

DERIX ART GLASS CONSULTANTS


and especially lead widths. To thiseffect, photos are taken of the windowsbefore any kind of restoration begins.Each panel is numbered and pho-tographed. For each photo, informationis recorded that may become importantto the restoration, such as panel dimen-sions or already missing fillets.

Following the photo shoot, originalrubbings are done. Grace Cathedral haskept excellent extensive archives of his-toric rubbings and photography, and thishas been useful for the Studio’s purposes.

Once the panels have been pho-tographed, each craftsperson works onan individual panel from beginningtoend (including putty and final polish),and is ultimately responsible for “sign-ing out” on it. Only the final detailing,putty inspection, and soldering of thecopper ties for the rebars is done enmasse.

A numbered wall chart documentsthe step-by-step conservation processfor each window: Photos Before /Rubbing / Soaking / Dismantling /Gluing / Glass Cutting / Painting /Releading / Grouting & Polishing /Plating / Copper ties / Photos After / Incrate. Staff members mark the chart asthey go along.

Because these windows are nearly80 years old, they suffered from stress,metal fatigue, corrosion, and other prob-lems. Lead fractures were pervasivethroughout all windows with crumblingand fissures. Old leaded panels werekept for future reference.

A particular concern in all windowssurrounds lead and lead putty. Connickused what was available during theDepression era; unfortunately, these areinferior products, especially by modernstandards. The old leads are soft andbrittle, so they could easily become air-borne. Connick also made his ownputty: 3 parts red lead, 1 part white lead;1/2 part turpentine, 2 parts linseed oil,10 parts calcium carbonate. (Don’t trythis.) This recipe is highly toxic anddangerous if ingested or inhaled.

Due to the safety hazard andReflection Studios’ commitment togreen, hygienic practices, the panelswere first placed in special trays andbathed underwater to ease the disman-tling process and soften up the putty. Infact, the entire dismantling process iscarried out under water. During thistreatment, the crew wear protectivegloves, HEPA filters and respirators, anduse a vacuum. After handling the leadand putty, special soap was used forwashing. The sludge was recycledaccording to local safety regulations.

For the restoration, Reflection usedcommercial putty by Dap, a recipe spe-cific to the Bay Area. This putty is partthinner, part linseed oil and calcium car-bonate.

Another major challenge is dupli-cating Connick’s unique use of lead. Hiswindows contain up to 17 different leadwidths, ranging from 1.25" down to 1⁄16thof an inch. He might use up to 13 typesof lead in any given window. In addi-tion, the leads possess differing heartheights corresponding to radically dif-fering thicknesses in the glass, rangingfrom 3⁄8th inch to 1⁄16th of an inch. This isa technique also found in many Tiffany

windows: plating and leaf leads.Connick used the glass and leads as partof a painterly technique. The leadsbecome part of the window design inaddition to providing support for thewindows.

Tom Lehnartz, one of the ProjectManagers, made lead leaf to bridge thevarious thicknesses in the leads. Thistechnique of double and triple leading,cutting the lead to shape to the formsand figures and glass thicknesses, meansthat the lead needs to be individuallyformed over the glass. Because of thejuxtaposition of thick glass directly nextto sometimes paper-thin glass, the teamhad to create a channel by making leaflead and then holding it to the desiredlead and bending it out. Lifted lead wasmade in cases where the glass didn’t fitto standardized leads, so lead was cut tofit the glass. This was followed by con-tinuous lead soldering, instead of justsoldering at the intersection.

Reflection Studios built the windowfrom bottom to top. Windows were com-pletely releaded according to previoussizes, lengths, and widths using modernleads from DHD Metals.

Many years of exposure also affect-ed the glass. Conditions of debilityincluded bowing, cracks, holes, failedpaint, and a few instances of vandalismcaused by B.B. holes. Overall, the paint-ed decoration, which includes consider-able silver stain on the exterior surface,was well fired and is holding up well.

Reflection Studios attempts to con-serve the original glass whenever possi-ble. The crew even retained originalgrease pencil markings found on theglass. All cracks were glued with Hxtalepoxy or GE silicone RTV 118.

When they had to replace glass,mainly in the fillets, Reflection usedBlenko glass, which is the most similarto Connick’s original glass design.Connick used a mixture of Europeanmouth blown glass and Blenko glass. Insome cases, such as a wine flask of

Daniel Maloney soldering copper ties to a panel.


about two inches in the St. Matthew win-dow, the piece of glass had to be com-pletely replaced and painted.

Connick designed his windowswith the local weather in mind. SanFrancisco experiences the brilliantCalifornia sun as well as legendary thickfog, which drifts in from the PacificCoast, about two miles from GraceCathedral. He installed his windows inperson so he could make needed adjust-ments. He wrote, “The stained glasswindow belongs to Brother Sun, and isin itself a mighty symbol of his naturalbeauty and power that may be transmit-ted into a new symbol of spiritual beau-ty and power.”

Charles Connick’s creativity shinesin his use of glass as medium. He uti-lized glass plating to make his colorsdenser. Sometimes he double or tripleplated the glass, and Reflection Studioshas replicated his work. Instead of usinga paintbrush to mark out a design fea-ture, he often graded the glass thicknessfrom dark to light, thick to thin.

Mouth-blown glass has bubbles,some pieces are curved, and in manyinstances, Reflection Studios discoveredthat Connick used a piece of glass thatwas shaded and molded to the form inthe panel. Armelle LeRoux pointed outone example on the St. Matthew win-dow, where a piece of textured glass wasused in the donkey’s flank. The piecewas slightly rounded to follow the shapeof the donkey, a feature which addssymmetry and dimension.

“Some of the glass colors are nolonger manufactured,” Armelle stated.“Especially after the 1960s, when man-ufacture became more industrialized anduniform. One can get those colors cus-tom made, but it is very expensive.Some of the windows have at least 10shades of blue. That depth of color canchange the entire look of the window.For example, a piece of glass was shad-ed for the drapery, and the overall effect

is amazing. People are not bored withthe project.”

While Connick experimented withglass and leads, he brought this sameplayfulness and artistry to the painting.He usually painted on the glass withblack or sepia trace or matte paint. Inaddition, he occasionally used enamels.He painted underneath in the grisaillestyle with a template or stencil butsometimes adopted a more free style.Some of the painting was three-dimen-sional. Some impressionist qualities canbe seen in the painting. Members of theReflection team had the most fun withthe fingerprinting found in the windows.They were able to differentiate a numberof identifiable thumb and fingerprints onmany panels. Repainting was necessaryon the broken or missing glass pieceswhich could not be re-glued.

Connick used acid etching as well.His repetitive etched designs of fleur-de-lis or crowns are taken directly frommedieval glass symbolism.

In January 2007, St. Matthew wascompleted and re-installed and St. Markwas removed. St. Mark was somewhatsimpler in construction than previouswindows. The team’s learning curvecontributed partially to the ease ofrestoration, but the window also con-tained fewer pieces of glass. A full crewworked on the window, and there werefewer interruptions. In one panel, apiece of Connick’s glass had warped inthe kiln, which Reflection Studiosretained in the restoration. TheReflection team also noted that St. Markhas some art deco motifs in the paintingdesign.

St. Mark was reinstalled in June2007. The St. Luke restoration tookplace from June 2007 to mid September2007, and St. John from mid-Septemberto January 2008. Reflection Studios fol-lowed the same careful conservationoutlined, and, despite the difference inpainting or construction style, Connick’s

windows evidenced the same high-qual-ity craftsmanship.

The Passion windows will berestored 2008-2010. In the past, one ofthe Passion windows was entirely cov-ered with silicone to prevent leakage.Silicone is a viscous material, but thepanels will be soaked in hot water foreasier removal before scraping. Onemain concern is that the glass couldbreak during this process so the teamwill be cautious. Reflection will water-proof the window, relying on putty.

“Each panel has a story of its own,”says Armelle LeRoux. “I think that’swhat Connick tried to do. He knew theEuropean technique very well, and hewanted to challenge the Gothic style. Ibelieve he succeeded in that chapel.”

ReferencesAllen Dragge Interviews, Reflection

Studios, Emeryville, California,June 2006-December 2007.Additional interviews at ReflectionStudios with Armelle LeRoux andCourtney Dragge.

Michael Lampen, Archivist. Web sitefeature: Gospel in Glass, FromMatthew to John: Iconography ofthe Charles Connick Stained Glasswindows in the Chapel of Grace,Grace Cathedral. www.gracecath-dral.org/enrichment/features/glass/index.html. c. 2004 by GraceCathedral and Michael Lampen.

Connick, Charles J. ADVENTURES INLIGHT AND COLOR, (New York:Random House, 1937).

Charles J. Connick Foundation,Newtonville, MA. www.cjcon-nick.org.

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