Church of St Paul, Birmingham
Address
Church of St Paul, St Paul's Square, Birmingham B3 1QZTheme
Overview
The Stevens Competition is the premier competition for stained glass artists in the UK. It was founded in 1972 to provide an opportunity for aspiring architectural glass artists, designers, and craftsman to compete in a format which simulates the typical process to obtain a commercial commission. Entrants are required to develop a design to a specific client brief and provide Artistic and Technical Statements defining the concept behind their design and how the design would be realised.
In 1987 the Competition moved from theoretical locations to site specific locations, which allowed for the possibility, with the agreement of the sponsor, of a winning design to be realised.
Highlight
Millennium Window, north wall of the nave, winner of the 1999 Stevens Competition CommissionArtist, maker and date
Rachel Thomas, 1999-2000Reason for highlighting
The Millennium window was commissioned by the Assay Office for the Church of St Paul, in the heart of the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham, in conjunction with the Stevens Competition. I was then, a fresh student in stained glass. Setting about a design for approximately thirty six square feet of glass, I remember a feeling of awe knowing that this was a real ‘live’ competition, supported by the Worshipful Company of Glaziers.
I wanted the design to capture the unique history of the Jewellery Quarter when in 1773, Matthew Bolton lobbied Parliament for the Hallmarking Act and its consumer protection for the purchase of precious metals. Bolton subsequently went on to found Birmingham’s own Assay Office.
The window design depicts four angels pouring molten silver from a large crucible which is decorated with four hallmarks, the date, and the words ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding’ Job 28:28. Molten silver runs through the streets of the Jewellery Quarter below.
Artist/maker notes
Rachel Thomas trained and worked as an illustrator before working in glass, graduating with a BA in Art and Design from Brighton University in 1994. After achieving her postgraduate teaching certificate in art and design, Rachel taught at Secondary level for a number of years in London whilst undertaking a course in stained glass under Paul San Casciani FMGP. She worked with Steve Clare ACR as a trainee conservator and glass painter at Holy Well Glass in Wells, Somerset, for seven years, before joining the York Glaziers Trust in 2005. In addition to her work as a conservator, Rachel is an acclaimed designer of new stained glass.
Rachel Thomas won the prestigious Stevens Competition Commission in 1999. Her winning design for a window to mark the Millennium for St Paul’s Church, Birmingham was commissioned by Birmingham’s Assay Office. She has gone on to design the first of four windows for New College, Oxford, for which she won the York Guild of Building’s craftsmanship award. Further windows have been designed and made by her for St Mary’s Church, Uggeshall, Suffolk; Queen Margaret’s School, Escrick, nr York; and Radley College near Oxford in 2021.
Rachel Thomas is an ICON accredited conservator with the Chemistry for Conservators qualification. She has previously served for eight years on the ICON Accreditation Committee.
Comments by
Peter Hildebrand and Rachel Thomas