Church of St Peter & St Paul, Lavenham, Suffolk
Address
Church of St Peter & St Paul, Church Street, Lavenham, Suffolk CO10 9SARecommended by
Highlight
East windowArtist, maker and date
Designed by John Milner Allen and made by Lavers & Barraud, 1861Reason for highlighting
Amongst some of the best stained glass produced during the nineteenth century, the east window here is executed in strong blues and reds with a freshness of design that characterised the new firms that started during this time.
Until the arrival of Westlake, the third partner in this firm, Lavers and Barraud employed freelance designers for their important commissions such as the east window here, which was probably designed by John Milner Allen. The smaller chancel south window, made about the same time as the east window is also very colourful, but its pictorial design perhaps more conventional. These two windows can be compared with those designed by Westlake in the south east, Spring Chapel (c.1880-89). The Gothic Revival movement of the mid-nineteenth century had now finished and the style of these latter windows show the greater emphasis on pictorial representations.
Artist/maker notes
Lavers & Barraud (1858-1868) & Lavers, Barraud and Westlake (1868-1921)
Nathaniel Wood Lavers (1828–1911) established the firm in 1855 and was joined by Francis Philip Barraud (1824–1900) in 1858. The firm employed a number of freelance artists, one of whom Nathaniel Westlake (1833–1921) became a partner in 1868. Westlake eventually became the sole partner following the deaths of Lavers and Barraud.
John Milner Allen (1827-1902) variously described himself as an artist decorator or artist water colour. His employment, along with Westlake, by Lavers demonstrated the latter’s desire to improve the company’s stained glass.
Sources:
Angels & Icons: Pre-Raphaelite Stained Glass 1850-1870 by William Waters (Seraphim Press Ltd 2012)
Stained Glass Marks & Monograms, complied by Joyce Little, and edited by Angela Goedicke & Margaret Washbourn (NADFAS, 2002)
Other comments
A further example of John Milner Allen’s work for Lavers and Barraud can be seen in the west window. Although less dramatic in style than the east window, it won a prize at the 1862 International Exhibition. Unfortunately it cannot be seen in its full glory due to damage suffered in World War Two, which was repaired with the addition of simple tinted quarries.