Holy Trinity Church, Rothwell, Northamptonshire
Address
Holy Trinity Church, High Street, Rothwell, NN14 6BQRecommended by
Highlight
South aisle east window – Jesus and the ChildrenArtist, maker and date
Designed by Helen Whittaker and made at Barley Studio, 2007Reason for highlighting
This is a full-size window of 5-lights filling the east end of the south aisle. The lower lights show Jesus accepting and blessing the children when the disciples had rebuked them: “for to such belongs the Kingdom of God.” The scene is set within the context of the Holy Trinity [the church’s dedication] so in the top lights God the Father is, in the artist’s words, ‘represented by a circle symbolising the centre and focus of creation, and the Holy Spirit by a cosmos of dynamic lines and starry points of light originating from both the Father and the Son [the source of wisdom]. The over-arching quality of love is essentially connective. It bonds and integrates the three aspects of God fusing the Trinity both with Humanity and the God-created cosmos. Beside the circle are figures of Angels, also illuminated by the Holy Spirit. The starts within the vortex of light symbolise wisdom and the all-creating aspect of God that illuminates and provides humanity with hope in the struggle for spiritual salvation.’
Artist/maker notes
Helen Whittaker MBE FMGP is a renowned artist and designer, highly regarded for her new stained glass windows and architectural sculpture in glass and copper.
Helen studied art and design at both the University of Sunderland and the Prince of Wales’s Institute of Architecture, London, in both cases specialising in stained glass. For over 25 years since then Helen has been creating new stained glass to commission and overseeing restoration painting for a wide variety of stained glass conservation projects, latterly as the creative director of the highly acclaimed Barley Studio in York, heading the multi-skilled team alongside founder Keith Barley MBE.
Helen’s aim is to engage the viewer through good design and craftsmanship, creating energy and movement intertwining contemporary and traditional elements. Her designs are inspired by the client, the brief and the building, whether housed in historic or modern buildings, in ecclesiastical or secular contexts.
Helen Whittaker was awarded an MBE for “services to the creation and conservation of stained and architectural glass art” in the King’s Birthday Honours in 2024.
Source: Barley Studio website
Barley Studio was established by Keith Barley MBE in 1973, and has an international reputation for excellence in stained glass creation and conservation for cathedrals, stately homes, parish churches and prestigious secular buildings across the UK and beyond.
Source: Barley Studio website
Other comments
Holy Trinity, Rothwell is one of only two churches in the country with a bone crypt, the other being at the Church of St Leonard, Hythe, Kent. Both allow visitors at certain times.