Church of St Andrew , Scole, Norfolk
Address
Church of St Andrew , Norwich Road, Scole, Norfolk IP21 4DYRecommended by
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Three-light east windowArtist, maker and date
Patrick Reyntiens, 1964Reason for highlighting
A dramatic window that was commissioned following a devastating fire in January 1963. While the first impression is of a swirl of colour, designed to react powerfully to the sun’s rays, there is a wealth of detail that draws the viewer into the window’s story and to another level of understanding.
The title is ‘The Past, The Present and The Future’ and the window moves from Old Testament representations at the bottom (see the detail opposite of Elijah being swept up to heaven in a chariot), to the present in the middle with the central figure rising into the light, and the future with the Lamb of God in the sexfoil.
Artist/maker notes
Patrick Reyntiens OBE (1925-2021) studied fine art at Edinburgh College of Art. He began his career in stained glass with an apprenticeship with Eddie Nuttgens, and flourished when he met and collaborated with John Piper.
Together they redefined the medium in the post war era, working on the Baptistery Window, Coventry Cathedral and Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral as well as numerous ecclesiastical and secular commissions in Britain and USA.
He has also been an influential teacher both through the arts centre he ran at Burleighfield House, with his wife, Anne Bruce, from 1963 to 1976, and through the 10 years he spent as Head of Fine Art at the Central School of Art and Design.
Sources:
Patrick Reyntiens website
From Coventry to Cochem: The Art of Patrick Reyntiens, DVD, Reyntiens Glass Studio
Patrick Reyntiens Catalogue of Stained Glass by Libby Horner (Sansom &Co, 2013)