Kali in the Crypt: Stained Glass Exhibition - Bristol

St John on the Wall, Bristol

A stained glass exhibition and launch of a year-long arts project celebrating the women of Bristol

Join Dr Delia Whitbread and Sarah Davis for a unique and breathtaking exhibition of stained glass.

During the exhibition there will be fascinating talks on:

• The history of stained glass
• Explanations of the imagery in stained glass
• The making and meaning of Rose Windows
• Stained glass conservation
• Stained glass techniques

There will also be a range of workshops, demos and learning activites for all the family.

We do hope to have the exhibition open everyday from 12pm until 4pm. Unfortunately, due to Delia's recent medical issues, there may be days when this is not possible due to the site operated by a volunteer team. If you would like confirmation that the exhibition will definately be open for your visit please call 07843982608. Thank you for your understanding.

Sarah Davis is a stained glass artist, based in Slimbridge, Gloucestershire.

On display will also be some of St John's fragments of surviving medieval and victorian glass, together with images of stained glass from the Trust's collection of churches and conservation reports.

For International Women's Day 2018 #PressforProgress we will be launching 'The Bristol Rose Project' to be designed by and for the women of Bristol. This will be a year long project where artists will gather stories and images from the diverse female population of Bristol to make a rose window that will celebrate their lives. This will be shown in St John on the Wall in March 2019. For more Bristol events see https://www.bristolwomensvoice.org.uk/iwd2018/

Delia Whitbread is a practising stained glass designer and maker in both the public and private field. She has a first degree in English and Sociology from the University of York. After teaching English abroad in the Far East and in London for some years, Delia retrained in etching and painting. In 1987 she completed an HnD course at Chelsea School of Art in Mural Design (specialising in stained glass). From 1987 to 1989 she attended the Royal College of Art as a student in the Visual Islamic and Traditional Art Department studying sacred geometry and iconography.

Delia began practising as a stained glass artist, whilst also teaching architectural glass part time at Roehampton, University of Surrey in 1990. In 2008 Delia was awarded a PhD in the Department of Glass and Ceramics at the University of Sunderland. Her research involved the translation of stained glass design to digital media in order to create a large-scale facsimile of a rose window. She used the world wide web to co-ordinate a collaboratively designed rose window for a contemporary projection. The window celebrated images of female figures and a pilot project was created by 17 artists working together on line and submitting designs for discussion and approval. Delia has lived in Bristol since 2011, with a studio in Stokes Croft, and volunteers at St John on the Wall.

Sarah Davis studied mechanical engineering and business, pursuing a professional career in industry and higher education for many years. She knew there was an artist waiting to emerge, hidden since school art classes many years before, but did not have the time to develop her skills further. Sarah’s fascination with glass began with a love of colour, design and structure, which she was able to develop through studying at Bristol School of Art. This offered her the opportunity to develop skills in traditional and modern stained glass techniques. Sarah now works from her studio at Slimbridge, north of Bristol, creating original glass panels, hangings and windows based on her own designs. Her pieces often follow natural themes in abstract and figurative styles.  Sarah’s work is exhibited and sold throughout the West Country, with unique pieces also being commissioned by individual clients.

One of the delights of glass is that there are so many techniques to choose from, each with its own challenges and possibilities. Most of Sarah’s work uses traditional stained glass techniques to produce unique modern designs. In recent years she’s developed a particular interest in sgraffito painting, where intricate designs are traced into the unfired painted surface of the glass. The materials used are similar to those used by many generations of glass artists, but with the additional possibilities offered by modern fusing and sandblasting techniques