Gabriel's Hope
1
This article is about St. Gabriel's Church in Washington, DC. Gabriel's Hope Milda B. Richardson "And, after all, it is to them we return. Their triumph is to rise and be our hosts: lords of unquiet or of quiet sojourn…" Geoffrey Hill, "An Apology for the Revival of Christian Architecture in England," New and Collected Poems, 1952-1992 (New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994) In a letter of gratitude to the supporters of the preservation and restoration efforts at St. Gabriel Church designed by Boston architect Charles D. Maginnis, founder of the Maginnis & Walsh firm, Revs. Thomas Gude and Roberto Cortes-Campos wrote: "The vision of Gabriel's Hope is one that will call upon the best that can be given…" 1 The Gothic Revival random ashlar church building of variegated granite brought from Port Deposit, Maryland, appears to rise from the landscape at Grant Circle, in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Petworth. A flèche at the intersection of the nave and transept sports gargoyles, a source of amusement for generations of school children. The grammar school was built first to emphasize the priority given to the education of the children, who have been taught by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary for the last 84 years. With the St. Gabriel complex—school (1923-4), rectory (1925), convent (1925) and, finally, parish church (1929- 30)—Maginnis achieved his goal of the ideal Catholic complex, coordinated both in style and materials. The parish began worship services in a war hut, named St. Gabriel the Archangel, messenger of God, purchased by the Knights of Columbus from the Maryland Edgewood Arsenal in 1920. 2 By 1938, within 18 years, the parish was free of debt with its incomparable site and beautiful buildings, proof of Bishop John M. McNamara's sound administrative ability as founding pastor. The interior of St. Gabriel is an example of the optimal ambiance Maginnis required for true Catholic worship, "only with shadow can art give expression to the mystery of religion…the tempered light, the atmosphere of mystery into which men come from the glare of the street and feel at once there is none of life's fever in it." 3 As with all his commissions, every detail was designed by the architect himself according to the philosophy adopted by the Boston Society of Arts and Crafts, which awarded Charles D. Maginnis their gold medal in 1948. Maginnis promoted the Arts and Crafts design and aesthetic philosophy and was a founding member and first President of the Liturgical Arts Society, which sponsored a national effort to promote the arts as an integral part of Catholic liturgy and culture. Maginnis often railed against "a baneful commercialism, that spirit of traffic in the supply of sacred objects." 4 Further he stated: "Instead of the healthiness of the master-craftsman, we get too often the unethical view-point of the theatrical property man." 5 Consistent with Maginnis' practice, he engaged the finest craftsmen for the St. Gabriel commission: the marble altars were executed in Italy for the McBride Studio, the oak reredos for the main and side altars were carved by Angelo Lualdi, a close friend of Maginnis, the Stations of the Cross were produced by master carvers in Bavaria, and Rambusch designed the lighting fixtures.. The organ was installed in 1931 by Richard Pelicano of Lewis & Hitchcock in Washington, the last project by this Italian master. More recently, when the figure of Christ on the chancel crucifix needed restoration, the parish turned to Giovanni Giannelli, a master restorer of precious monuments throughout Italy. Bishop McNamara had an abiding interest in and rather specific instructions for the treatment of the stained glass windows, as is evident from his voluminous correspondence with Orin E. Skinner of Charles J. Connick Associates. 6 The overall effect was to be one of lightness, because the Bishop had a prejudice against a dark church ambiance. He specified that the glass must not be deeper than the Connick windows in the Trinity College Chapel, nor as dark as the magnificent windows by Wilbur Burnham at Blessed Sacrament Church, both of which Maginnis had recently completed. Connick found the light in Washington to be brilliant and, therefore, may have chosen deeper colors in other commissions, but was encouraged by the Bishop to "not sin against the light." 7 The Bishop understood that light colors, such as the bubbly white and light greenish and bluish tones within small patterns would increase the worshippers' perception of volume, and their beloved parish church would appear larger than it is. The eight nave windows were to depict singular standing figures, for which church leaders provided illustrations in order to avoid "archaic drawing" in the faces. The richest, deepest blues and reds were reserved for the rose window above the altar, as well as the transept and east window, and the nave windows, tinted with greens and gold, were made plainer than the Connick studio would ordinarily create in order to give prominence to the central figure of God the Son. The overarching iconographic program is revealed by the sequence of the windows from the Annunciation in the East, past the stately figures in the nave, culminating at the Rose window with the Infant Christ in the center. Bishop McNamara requested that the center of the rose open out so that God the Son could appear there. 8 In discussing church interiors, Maginnis wrote: "The lines of the interior must contrive to secure a befitting aspect of solemnity—an atmosphere which shall stimulate religious emotion." 9 Christ the Consoler is depicted in the north transept with the pelican feeding its young below, symbol of Divine Sacrifice and Protection. The south transept window is devoted to Christ the King crowned with the triple crown and flanked by King David with his harp and St. Peter with his bishop's keys of silver and gold. Charles Connick wrote that, "It would…be entirely feasible to make a greater distinction…between the wheel window…and the other windows—if your client should so desire, while retaining the present total cost price." 10 The studio responded to the Bishop's wishes for the windows to admit plenty of illumination by using grisaille in the nave and transepts, at the same time enriching the fields with foliated patterns of silvery tones and interlacing strapwork of brilliant pure color. This technique leads naturally through symbols and medallions to the principal figures in rich pure color. 11 In the end, the Bishop was pleased and wrote to Connick: "When it is a question of architecture or of window glass, I take it for granted that anything that is done by Mr. Maginnis or you is worth while;…I may find myself wishing that the windows would appear to me at all times as they did today at the twilight hour when the rose window especially was more than beautiful. At other times I see mostly gold, but an hour ago every color, to use your expression, was singing and the harmony was complete." 12 Maginnis himself fully appreciated Connick's artistry when he noted: "Almost everyone is sensitive to the emotional stimulus of the colored window as it enters into the ecclesiastical scene, but few know how to penetrate to its artistic rationality." 13 The perception of the colors comes up again in discussing the four newer medallions depicting Mother Seton, Catherine Tegakwitha, St. Catherine Laboure and Mother Marie Rose, discussed with the Connick studio in 1949 and completed in 1959. Instructions regarding the Mother Elizabeth Seton medallion from Orin Skinner to James Mullaney, who set the glass, specify: "Cut in a few pieces of the orange vermilion glass…to replace some of the cool reds to bring the background color a little more in line with the earlier medallions. Do a little judicious touching up of the whites so they will not stand out so prominently. This is especially true of the headdress of Saint Catherine Laboure, and the rays of light around the…little figures with Mother Seton…." 14 The small figures with Mother Seton were criticized for "paleness…perhaps something could be done about making them more colorful." 15 The psychology of color was very much on the mind of the correspondents, since the Bishop had always wanted "an 'active' effect that helps [people] reach the state of calmness." 16 The Great Depression was at its deepest point during the building of St. Gabriel, so the competition between union members and free-lance craftsmen for commissions created vitriolic conflicts of interest. In this context, tensions ran high regarding labor issues at the St. Gabriel site, particularly concerning the employment of Martin F. Beck to install the windows. The correspondence between this trusted specialist in stained glass and the Connick studio is passionate. 17 During the late summer of 1930, Beck, while riding a train, got a cinder in his eye and almost lost his sight, an unfortunate accident which delayed the work at St. Gabriel. However, the larger problem was that Beck did not belong to the local union of the Brotherhood of Painters, Decorators and Paperhangers of America. Although he had worked on a number of union art glass projects before, no objections had arisen. A union representative visited the site, ordered Beck off the job, and reported back that a non-union worker was installing the rose window. After the union representative left, Beck returned to his work, but was discovered again. The union threatened to bring complaints against the Connick studio through Bishop McNamara and the architects, Maginnis & Walsh. At first, Beck countered that, "No need for me to be in the Union. They won't have me because I hire men, and if I do they will try and stop me personally and make me hire their men. Their men are hack glaziers. They cannot do stained glass work.…They have a man here that cannot draw a straight line or cut a piece of glass…. If they stop me you better send your own men." 18 The Connick studio continued to negotiate with the union and sent their own setter to Washington to finish installing the rose window. Finally, the union agreed to accept Beck's application to join at a reduced initiation fee of $25, which Charles Connick offered to pay. Beck graciously accepted, and by February, 1931, Beck had become a member of the Glaziers' Local Union, and the work on the transept and nave windows proceeded. Consistently critical of the poor quality of union work, which he had often repaired for clients, Beck insisted that, "Stained glass men should have their own Union. I do not believe in mixing the Sheep with the Goats." 19 Maginnis felt that Connick's work elevated stained glass from "a vivid but none the less perfunctory element of the ecclesiastical scene." 20 When the details of representing additional saints in the transept windows is discussed among Skinner, Maginnis, McNamara and Walsh 21 —whether to place figures on grisaille without a background of pure color or in separate medallions—the higher price for medallions with figures disappointed the Bishop. A letter from Maginnis & Walsh to Connick is an example of the gentlemanly style of business practice in that era. "My dear Mr. Connick:…When the designs were perfected and the price quoted larger than this, the client had already received the offer of the windows and is now so embarrassed that he cannot either suffer the elimination of the little figures or to request an enhancement of the gift. In this emergency, of course, he was naturally tempered to consider the placing of these two windows to some other studio, which he naturally regretted, in view of his great enthusiasm for the windows you have already done. It seems to me that if you can possibly manage to do it, I wish you would arrange to carry out the original design." 22 Connick accommodated by changing the design from figures to symbols of the saints, thereby admitting more light. The confluence of superior craftsmanship is evident in the excellent result which enhanced the liturgy of the Mass then and now and inspires all those participating in Gabriel's Hope. "Send forth thy Spirit, and they shall be created. And thou shalt renew the face of the earth." Psalm 103:3 NOTES 1 Letter to Milda Richardson from Fr. Thomas Gude and Fr. Roberto Cortes-Campos, May 1, 2008 2 "Ceremony to Mark Placing of Stone," The Evening Star, Washington, March 15, 1930 3 Charles D. Maginnis, "Catholic Architecture in the United States," The Catholic World, Vol. LXXIV, No. 440 (November 1901): 255. 4 Ibid., p. 248. 5 Ibid., p. 252. 6 Correspondence between Bishop McNamara and Orin E. Skinner, Connick Archives, Boston Public Library. Charles Connick Associates provided St. Gabriel with eight nave, north and south transept, rose, great east, side chancel and four medallion windows between 1930-31 for $26,300. 7 On March 10, 1930, Maginnis wrote to Connick that Bishop McNamara "has become aware by actual visit to the Church of the Bon Secour Hospital in Baltimore that anything like so dark an effect as you have contrived there would be unacceptable in St. Gabriel's." 8 Report of Connick's visit to St. Gabriel, Feb. 25, 1930. 9 Charles D. Maginnis, "Catholic Church Architecture," The Architectural Forum, Vol. XXVII, No. 2 (August 1917): 35. 10 Letter Dec. 26, 1929, Charles J. Connick to Charles D. Maginnis. 11 Undated report by the Connick studio. 12 Letter July 18, 1932, Bishop McNamara to Charles Connick. 13 Charles D. Maginnis, Foreword to Adventures in Light and Color: An Introduction to the Stained Glass Craft by Charles J. Connick, Master Craftsman (New York: Random House, 1937), p. vii. 14 Letter Dec. 17, 1949, Bishop McNamara to Orin Skinner, and Dec. 20, 1949, Rev. Roeder to Orin Skinner, Connick Archives, Boston Public Library. Bishop McNamara was personally involved in every detail of the Connick commission. At one point he felt the middle section of Mother Seton is "over-emphasized in anatomy, giving a bathing suit effect." Some paint had been applied to disguise it for the moment, but Mr. Skinner made a trip to Washington and confirmed that some of the pieces of glass should be replaced. 15 Ibid. 16 Frank H. Mahnke, Color, Environment, and Human Response (New York: Van Nostrand Rheinhold, 1996), 77. 17 Beck's conscientiousness is repeatedly evident in the letters which are exchanged weekly at times. With regard to the sizes of some of the windows, on Oct. 31, 1930, Beck writes, "You will notice that the lancet or shape is longer for front window. I went back twice to check on it and will go again tomorrow…I will write you again Saturday or Sun. Glad you call my attention to it because a man has to keep his wits. I try hard to make things clear to you and want every thing so you can get it exact. I would feel very bad if you made too much glass or not enough." On Nov. 22, 1930, Beck points out that some of the exterior stone carving may obstruct slightly the view of the Annunciation window, to which Skinner replies, Nov. 25, 1930, that they will put the medallion above the ventilator bar. Beck also worked on several other Washington projects with Maginnis and Connick, including the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. 18 Letter Dec. 17, 1930, Martin F. Beck to Charles J. Connick. 19 Letter Jan. 2, 1931, Martin F. Beck to Charles J. Connick. 20 Charles D. Maginnis, Liturgical Arts, Vol. XIV, No. 2 (February 1946): 29. 21 Correspondence between July 9, 1931, and August 19, 1931. 22 Letter Aug. 24, 1931, Maginnis & Walsh to Charles J. Connick. The symbol for St. Therese is the rose, accompanied, on the left, by the arms of Joan of Arc—the sword, crown and fleur-de-lys. St. Genevieve's symbol appears on the right—the bellows marked with the Satan's face and dual flames. St. Monica's symbol, the handkerchief and book, is accompanied by the dove for St. Bridget of Sweden, symbolizing her Divine Inspiration in composing the rules of her order. The sheaf of wheat stands for St. Bridget of Ireland. The Rose window over the altar is deep in color, while the light tones of angels' garments, cloud patterns, rays and stars harmonize with the other windows. At the center is represented the Christ Child—God and Son—with Cruciform Nimbus and Alpha and Omega in the ruby field. Christ is surrounded by rays of light, twelve stars, symbols of the Fruits of the Holy Ghost, and flames of Divine Inspiration. In the twelve principal tracery members are attendant angels of Prayer and Praise, with censers and trumpets. In the outer trefoils are twelve stars symbolizing the Apostles. Milda B. Richardson teaches in the School of Architecture at Northeastern University and in the Fine Arts Department at Emmanuel College, and is currently President of the New England Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians. She is preparing a monograph on Maginnis & Walsh. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all the members of Gabriel's Hope Committee for their warm hospitality and energetic support of my research: in particular, Father Pat McCaffrey, Julie Rodriguez, Sister Regina Peltz, Doris Brown, Kathleen Thomas, Thomas Carr, G. Raymond Pelkey, Padre Roberto Cortés-Campos, and, last but not least, Krimhilde Morales. It was my great pleasure to participate in the initiation of the Commitment Program for "Gabriel's Hope". Janice Chadbourne and her staff at the Fine Arts Department of the Boston Public Library were, as always, helpful, cheerful and efficient in providing access to the Connick archives. A special thank you to Marilyn Justice and Judith Edington for their help and encouragement. All three windows are in St. Gabriel's Church, Washington, DC Designed and crafted by C. J. Connick 1930-1931 Photographs by Thomas Carr
Transcript of Gabriel's Hope
This article is about St. Gabriel's Church in Washington, DC.
Gabriel's HopeMilda B. Richardson
"And, after all, it is to them we return.Their triumph is to rise and be our hosts:lords of unquiet or of quiet sojourn…"
Geoffrey Hill, "An Apology for the Revival of Christian Architecture in England," New and Collected Poems, 1952-1992 (New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994)
In a letter of gratitude to the supporters of the preservation and restoration efforts at St. Gabriel Church designed by Boston architect Charles D. Maginnis, founder of the Maginnis & Walsh firm, Revs. Thomas Gude and Roberto Cortes-Campos wrote: "The vision of Gabriel's Hope is one that will call upon the best that can be given…"1 The Gothic Revival random ashlar church building of variegated granite brought from Port Deposit, Maryland, appears to rise from the landscape at Grant Circle, in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Petworth. A flèche at the intersection of the nave and transept sports gargoyles, a source of amusement for generations of school children. The grammar school was built first to emphasize the priority given to the education of the children, who have been taught by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary for the last 84 years.
With the St. Gabriel complex—school (1923-4), rectory (1925), convent (1925) and, finally, parish church (1929-30)—Maginnis achieved his goal of the ideal Catholic complex, coordinated both in style and materials. The parish began worship services in a war hut, named St. Gabriel the Archangel, messenger of God, purchased by the Knights of Columbus from the Maryland Edgewood Arsenal in 1920.2 By 1938, within 18 years, the parish was free of debt with its incomparable site and beautiful buildings, proof of Bishop John M. McNamara's sound administrative ability as founding pastor.
The interior of St. Gabriel is an example of the optimal ambiance Maginnis required for true Catholic worship, "only with shadow can art give expression to the mystery of religion…the tempered light, the atmosphere of mystery into which men come from the glare of the street and feel at once there is none of life's fever in it."3 As with all his commissions, every detail was designed by the architect himself according to the philosophy adopted by the Boston Society of Arts and Crafts, which awarded Charles D. Maginnis their gold medal in 1948. Maginnis promoted the Arts and Crafts design and aesthetic philosophy and was a founding member and first President of the Liturgical Arts Society, which sponsored a national effort to promote the arts as an integral part of Catholic liturgy and culture. Maginnis often railed against "a baneful commercialism, that spirit of traffic in the supply of sacred objects."4 Further he stated: "Instead of the healthiness of the master-craftsman, we get too often the unethical view-point of the theatrical property man."5
Consistent with Maginnis' practice, he engaged the finest craftsmen for the St. Gabriel commission: the marble altars were executed in Italy for the McBride Studio, the oak reredos for the main and side altars were carved by Angelo Lualdi, a close friend of Maginnis, the Stations of the Cross were produced by master carvers in Bavaria, and Rambusch designed the lighting fixtures.. The organ was installed in 1931 by Richard Pelicano of Lewis & Hitchcock in Washington, the last project by this Italian master. More recently, when the figure of Christ on the chancel crucifix needed restoration, the parish turned to Giovanni Giannelli, a master restorer of precious monuments throughout Italy.
Bishop McNamara had an abiding interest in and rather specific instructions for the treatment of the stained glass windows, as is evident from his voluminous correspondence with Orin E. Skinner of Charles J. Connick Associates.6 The overall effect was to be one of lightness, because the Bishop had a prejudice against a dark church ambiance. He specified that the glass must not be deeper than the Connick windows in the Trinity College Chapel, nor as dark as the magnificent windows by Wilbur Burnham at Blessed Sacrament Church, both of which Maginnis had recently completed. Connick found the light in Washington to be brilliant and, therefore, may have chosen deeper colors in other commissions, but was encouraged by the Bishop to "not sin against the light." 7
The Bishop understood that light colors, such as the bubbly white and light greenish and bluish tones within small patterns would increase the worshippers' perception of volume, and their beloved parish church would appear larger than it is. The eight nave windows were to depict singular standing figures, for which church leaders provided illustrations in order to avoid "archaic drawing" in the faces. The richest, deepest blues and reds were reserved for the rose window above the altar, as well as the transept and east window, and the nave windows, tinted with greens and gold, were made plainer than the Connick studio would ordinarily create in order to give prominence to the central figure of God the Son. The overarching iconographic program is revealed by the sequence of the windows from the Annunciation in the East, past the stately figures in the nave, culminating at the Rose window with the Infant Christ in the center. Bishop McNamara requested that the center of the rose open out so that God the Son could appear there.8 In discussing church interiors, Maginnis wrote: "The lines of the interior must contrive to secure a befitting aspect of solemnity—an atmosphere which shall stimulate religious emotion."9 Christ the Consoler is depicted in the north transept with the pelican feeding its young below, symbol of Divine Sacrifice and Protection. The south transept window is devoted to Christ the King crowned with the triple crown and flanked by King David with his harp and St. Peter with his bishop's keys of silver and gold. Charles Connick wrote that, "It would…be entirely feasible to make a greater distinction…between the wheel window…and the other windows—if your client should so desire, while retaining the present total cost price."10 The studio responded to the Bishop's wishes for the windows to admit plenty of illumination by using grisaille in the nave and transepts, at the same time enriching the fields with foliated patterns of silvery tones and interlacing strapwork of brilliant pure color. This technique leads naturally through symbols and medallions to the principal figures in rich pure color.11 In the end, the Bishop was pleased and wrote to Connick: "When it is a question of architecture or of window glass, I take it for granted that anything that is done by Mr. Maginnis or you is worth while;…I may find myself wishing that the windows would appear to me at all times as they did today at the twilight hour when the rose window especially was more than beautiful. At other times I see mostly gold, but an hour ago every color, to use your expression, was singing and the harmony was complete."12 Maginnis himself fully appreciated Connick's artistry when he noted: "Almost everyone is sensitive to the emotional stimulus of the colored window as it enters into the ecclesiastical scene, but few know how to penetrate to its artistic rationality."13
The perception of the colors comes up again in discussing the four newer medallions depicting Mother Seton, Catherine Tegakwitha, St. Catherine Laboure and Mother Marie Rose, discussed with the Connick studio in 1949 and completed in 1959. Instructions regarding the Mother Elizabeth Seton medallion from Orin Skinner to James Mullaney, who set the glass, specify: "Cut in a few pieces of the orange vermilion glass…to replace some of the cool reds to bring the background color a little more in line with the earlier medallions. Do a little judicious touching up of the whites so they will not stand out so prominently. This is especially true of the headdress of Saint Catherine Laboure, and the rays of light around the…little figures with Mother Seton…."14 The small figures with Mother Seton were criticized for "paleness…perhaps something could be done about making them more colorful."15 The psychology of color was very much on the mind of the correspondents, since the Bishop had always wanted "an 'active' effect that helps [people] reach the state of calmness."16
The Great Depression was at its deepest point during the building of St. Gabriel, so the competition between union members and free-lance craftsmen for commissions created vitriolic conflicts of interest. In this context, tensions ran high regarding labor issues at the St. Gabriel site, particularly concerning the employment of Martin F. Beck to install the windows. The correspondence between this trusted specialist in stained glass and the Connick studio is passionate.17 During the late summer of 1930, Beck, while riding a train, got a cinder in his eye and almost lost his sight, an unfortunate accident which delayed the work at St. Gabriel. However, the larger problem was that Beck did not belong to the local union of the Brotherhood of Painters, Decorators and Paperhangers of America. Although he had worked on a number of union art glass projects before, no objections had arisen. A union representative visited the site, ordered Beck off the job, and reported back that a non-union worker was installing the rose window. After the union representative left, Beck returned to his work, but was discovered again. The union threatened to bring complaints against the Connick studio through Bishop McNamara and the architects, Maginnis & Walsh. At first, Beck countered that, "No need for me to be in the Union. They won't have me because I hire men, and if I do they will try and stop me personally and make me hire their men. Their men are hack glaziers. They cannot do stained glass work.…They have a man here that cannot draw a straight line or cut a piece of glass…. If they stop me you better send your own men."18 The Connick studio continued to negotiate with the union and sent their own setter to Washington to finish installing the rose window. Finally, the union agreed to accept Beck's application to join at a reduced initiation fee of $25, which Charles Connick offered to pay. Beck graciously accepted, and by February, 1931, Beck had become a member of the Glaziers' Local Union, and the work on the transept and nave windows proceeded. Consistently critical of the poor quality of union work, which he had often repaired for clients, Beck insisted that, "Stained glass men should have their own Union. I do not believe in mixing the Sheep with the Goats."19
Maginnis felt that Connick's work elevated stained glass from "a vivid but none the less perfunctory element of the ecclesiastical scene."20 When the details of representing additional saints in the transept windows is discussed among Skinner, Maginnis, McNamara and Walsh21—whether to place figures on grisaille without a background of pure color or in separate medallions—the higher price for medallions with figures disappointed the Bishop. A letter from Maginnis & Walsh to Connick is an example of the gentlemanly style of business practice in that era. "My dear Mr. Connick:…When the designs were perfected and the price quoted larger than this, the client had already received the offer of the windows and is now so embarrassed that he cannot either suffer the elimination of the little figures or to request an enhancement of the gift. In this emergency, of course, he was naturally tempered to consider the placing of these two windows to some other studio, which he naturally regretted, in view of his great enthusiasm for the windows you have already done. It seems to me that if you can possibly manage to do it, I wish you would arrange to carry out the original design."22 Connick accommodated by changing the design from figures to symbols of the saints, thereby admitting more light. The confluence of superior craftsmanship is evident in the excellent result which enhanced the liturgy of the Mass then and now and inspires all those participating in Gabriel's Hope.
"Send forth thy Spirit, and they shall be created. And thou shalt renew the face of the earth." Psalm 103:3
NOTES1Letter to Milda Richardson from Fr. Thomas Gude and Fr. Roberto Cortes-Campos, May 1, 2008 2"Ceremony to Mark Placing of Stone," The Evening Star, Washington, March 15, 19303Charles D. Maginnis, "Catholic Architecture in the United States," The Catholic World, Vol. LXXIV, No. 440 (November 1901): 255.4Ibid., p. 248.5Ibid., p. 252.6Correspondence between Bishop McNamara and Orin E. Skinner, Connick Archives, Boston Public Library. Charles Connick Associates provided St. Gabriel with eight nave, north and south transept, rose, great east, side chancel and four medallion windows between 1930-31 for $26,300. 7On March 10, 1930, Maginnis wrote to Connick that Bishop McNamara "has become aware by actual visit to the Church of the Bon Secour Hospital in Baltimore that anything like so dark an effect as you have contrived there would be unacceptable in St. Gabriel's."8Report of Connick's visit to St. Gabriel, Feb. 25, 1930.9Charles D. Maginnis, "Catholic Church Architecture," The Architectural Forum, Vol. XXVII, No. 2 (August 1917): 35.10Letter Dec. 26, 1929, Charles J. Connick to Charles D. Maginnis.11Undated report by the Connick studio.12Letter July 18, 1932, Bishop McNamara to Charles Connick.13Charles D. Maginnis, Foreword to Adventures in Light and Color: An Introduction to the Stained Glass Craft by Charles J. Connick, Master Craftsman (New York: Random House, 1937), p. vii.14Letter Dec. 17, 1949, Bishop McNamara to Orin Skinner, and Dec. 20, 1949, Rev. Roeder to Orin Skinner, Connick Archives, Boston Public Library. Bishop McNamara was personally involved in every detail of the Connick commission. At one point he felt the middle section of Mother Seton is "over-emphasized in anatomy, giving a bathing suit effect." Some paint had been applied to disguise it for the moment, but Mr. Skinner made a trip to Washington and confirmed that some of the pieces of glass should be replaced.15Ibid.16Frank H. Mahnke, Color, Environment, and Human Response (New York: Van Nostrand Rheinhold, 1996), 77.17Beck's conscientiousness is repeatedly evident in the letters which are exchanged weekly at times. With regard to the sizes of some of the windows, on Oct. 31, 1930, Beck writes, "You will notice that the lancet or shape is longer for front window. I went back twice to check on it and will go again tomorrow…I will write you again Saturday or Sun. Glad you call my attention to it because a man has to keep his wits. I try hard to make things clear to you and want every thing so you can get it exact. I would feel very bad if you made too much glass or not enough." On Nov. 22, 1930, Beck points out that some of the exterior stone carving may obstruct slightly the view of the Annunciation window, to which Skinner replies, Nov. 25, 1930, that they will put the medallion above the ventilator bar. Beck also worked on several other Washington projects with Maginnis and Connick, including the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.18Letter Dec. 17, 1930, Martin F. Beck to Charles J. Connick.19Letter Jan. 2, 1931, Martin F. Beck to Charles J. Connick.20Charles D. Maginnis, Liturgical Arts, Vol. XIV, No. 2 (February 1946): 29.21Correspondence between July 9, 1931, and August 19, 1931.22Letter Aug. 24, 1931, Maginnis & Walsh to Charles J. Connick.
The symbol for St. Therese is the rose, accompanied, on the left, by the arms of Joan of Arc—the sword,
crown and fleur-de-lys. St. Genevieve's symbol appears on the right—the bellows marked with the
Satan's face and dual flames.
St. Monica's symbol, the handkerchief and book, is accompanied by the dove for St. Bridget of Sweden, symbolizing her Divine Inspiration in composing the rules of her order. The sheaf of wheat
stands for St. Bridget of Ireland.
The Rose window over the altar is deep in color, while the light tones of angels' garments, cloud patterns, rays and stars harmonize with the other windows. At the center is represented the Christ Child—God and Son—with Cruciform Nimbus and Alpha and Omega in the ruby field. Christ is surrounded by rays of light, twelve stars, symbols of the Fruits of the Holy Ghost, and flames of Divine Inspiration. In the twelve principal tracery members are attendant angels of Prayer and Praise, with censers and trumpets. In the outer trefoils are twelve stars symbolizing the Apostles.
Milda B. Richardson teaches in the School of Architecture at Northeastern University and in the Fine Arts Department at Emmanuel College, and is currently President of the New England Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians. She is preparing a monograph on Maginnis & Walsh.
I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all the members of Gabriel's Hope Committee for their warm hospitality and energetic support of my research: in particular, Father Pat McCaffrey, Julie Rodriguez, Sister Regina Peltz, Doris Brown, Kathleen Thomas, Thomas Carr, G. Raymond Pelkey, Padre Roberto Cortés-Campos, and, last but not least, Krimhilde Morales. It was my great pleasure to participate in the initiation of the Commitment Program for "Gabriel's Hope". Janice Chadbourne and her staff at the Fine Arts Department of the Boston Public Library were, as always, helpful, cheerful and efficient in providing access to the Connick archives. A special thank you to Marilyn Justice and Judith Edington for their help and encouragement.
All three windows are in St. Gabriel's Church, Washington, DCDesigned and crafted by C. J. Connick 1930-1931
Photographs by Thomas Carr
