This three-light window is a beautiful example of English style glass painting, and we believe it would have been created either by a studio in the U.K. or by an artist who was the product of one. The window was fabricated correctly with lap leads to divide it into manageable sections, and it was installed with structural support bars fitted into the frame and tied to the window with copper wire ties. However, when we removed it from the frame we found that  it had been “shoe horned” into position causing undue pressure on the window when the building shifted slightly over time, all three windows were displaying signs of bowing and movement and there were a few cracks throughout the centre window due to this, making restoration imperative  before further damage was caused to the painted areas. The glass used for Christ’s gown is a particularly fine example of red “flashed” glass, which is made by dipping a ball of molten clear glass into molten red resulting in a thin “flash” of red over the clear. The subtlety and hue of this particular colour indicates that it likely originated from Hartleywood glass blowers in Sunderland, England, who no longer exist. After the windows were removed, a rubbing was taken to record the position of each piece and then the windows were soaked to loosen dirt and the cement in between the flanges of the lead. A new cutline was created for each window, resizing to correctly fit the opening. Each piece of glass was carefully cleaned and then the windows were re-leaded, soldered, cemented and polished before being re-installed in their proper position. There’s quite a noticeable difference in the amount of light coming through the window now, and how much more subtle the tonal values are without the layer of dirt! More importantly, the window is now structurally sound.

“John and Laura Gilroy recently restored our Good Shepherd window that was originally installed in the late 1930s. They removed decades of grime and revealed a spectacular work of art that until now we have simply taken for granted. Now, its original purpose has been restored – to inspire faith through beauty.”                         ~Rev. Stephen Muir, St. Agnes’ Anglican Church, North Vancouver.