Church Stained Glass Windows

Mark Angus

The church stained glass windows by Mark Angus deserve lots of fans. I love his church stain glass windows, and not just because he was my teacher back in the 1990’s. Influenced by the German architectural glass artist Johannes Schreiter, his use of lead in his religious stained glass windows is innovative and expressive. Rather than the perfunctory use of lead we often see in church windows, Mark Angus’s leads are woven into the fabric of his design like a lively drawn pencil line.
His 1984 nave window at Durham Cathedral shows this perfectly. It depicts the Last Supper as seen from above.
 

 

Nothing befits religious stained glass windows more than the dramatic interplay of light and dark – it seems to embody the very forces of good and evil that underpins the Christian faith. Mark Angus’s 1990’s work exploits this tension, creating a dark mass at the bottom of his stain glass window that disperses and changes to light - and by implication, hope - at the top. His 1992 Battle of Malden millennium window and 1996 nave window at St John’s church, Cheddon Fitzpaine are very good examples of this. Note too how his use of colour complements the journey from dark to light.
 
Moving into the 21stC we see the theme of the spiritual journey more clearly in Angus’s windows. There’s no angels here, but instead a repeated motif of a ribbon of colour ascending to a higher plane.

Mark Angus’s characteristic leading is still evident, along with his ability to choose handmade glass that captures the essence of his message. Spinkhill Catholic Church stain glass window designs near Sheffield are definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area. More recently Angus has made use of his considerable glass painting skills in his work – but more of that later!

 
Resources

If you’re interested in Mark Angus and would like to see more of his work, he has his own website with a section on his church windows.
 
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