Iconic stained glass window by artist Harry Clarke commissioned for Notre Dame Chapel unveiled at Kelvingrove Museum

An important stained glass window - The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin - by Irish artist Harry Clarke has gone on display at Kelvingrove!

Article Source: Glasgow Museums
Last Updated: 25 August 2015 18:42

The piece which is over 4 and a half meters in height and is comprised of 20 panels, was commissioned in 1923 by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur for the convent chapel in Dowanhill, Glasgow. It was installed in 1924 and remained in place until 1981. After a period on loan to St Andrew’s College, Bearsden Glasgow Museums purchased the window with assistance from the Art Fund and the Heritage Lottery Fund in 2002.

The window, which depicts the Coronation of the Blessed Virgin as Queen of Heaven by Christ surrounded by angels and saints, was the first of four windows made by the artist for the chapel. It was commissioned to mark the 25th anniversary of the founding of the convent and as a memorial to those who died in World War 1. The commission was possible thanks to the generosity of the post-1918 students, past and present, who wished to have a war memorial window installed to commemorate loved ones they had lost. It is widely recognised as one of his most important works. When the piece was first exhibited in Dublin, before it was dispatched to Glasgow, it made such an impact that an article in the Irish Independent called for a halt on the export of such ‘native treasures’.

The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin is mounted on the wall, backlit by light boxes, in the Study Centre on the first floor of Kelvingrove Museum. The display is accompanied by a detailed digital interpretation that allows visitors to explore the fascinating story contained within the window and the history of Notre Dame Chapel. This has been enhanced by first-person interviews with Sisters and former pupils of the teaching convent. They were amongst the first people to view the window, alongside Glasgow Museums stained glass conservator Marie Stumpff who worked on the conservation.

The display will open to the public on the feast day of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saturday 15 August*. To mark the unveiling the Kelvingrove one o’clock organ recital will feature specially chosen music, at 1.30pm there will be a small musical performance by former pupils of Notre Dame Primary and Secondary Schools and at 2pm a talk on the history and iconography of the window.

Sister Maire Gallagher who was a student and sister of Notre Dame said: “It’s truly wonderful to see the window again, it looks stunning.

“I left school and went on to college and in those days it was residential so you stayed all the time and went to mass with the sisters every morning. The sisters sat in the front so if you were a student you were behind the area where you could actually see the stained glass. I don’t think I actually ever saw it apart from being conscious that it was a fantastic colour of blue until I went back as a Sister of Notre Dame. I went back to that community in 1961 and then of course as a sister I could go right down to the front and I could walk round the side aisles and look at everything. I have a recollection of being struck by a marvellous story. I was also struck by the number of women saints in the picture. That was unusual.

“I think Kelvingrove is a fitting home for such an important piece of art, connecting the city of the past with the people who live here today. The display will also allow those who come to see the window to understand all that Harry Clarke was trying to convey when he created this beautiful stained glass window all those years ago.”

Chair of Glasgow Life, Councillor Archie Graham, said: “This work is one of the objects we are asked most about by the public, so we are delighted it is going on display in Kelvingrove, near to its original home in the west end of the city. It is also timely to open this important display during the centenary commemoration years of World War 1.

“Glasgow Museums logistics team, who constructed and installed the display frames and light boxes, said it was one of the most complex objects they’ve worked on. Looking at the window it is easy to understand why it is regarded as one of the best examples of the artist’s work. I know the people of Glasgow and visitors from much further afield will come to Kelvingrove and delight in viewing this impressive work of art.”

Sister Isabel Smyth who taught at St Andrew’s College, Bearsden added: “When I was in the convent chapel I’d never heard of Harry Clarke, I didn’t know there was a window there... until I was in Bearsden and I taught in Bearsden for over 20 years. The window was displayed in the main college hall and there was a special construct made to make it look like a church window and it was magnificent. Thanks goodness we were able to light them up most days. It was wonderful when you walked into the hall to see that window and it is wonderful to walk in to Kelvingrove and see it lit up once again.

“What always struck me about it and other Harry Clarke windows that I now know about was the colour, the blue; the blue is absolutely magnificent the colours are wonderful but also the faces and those big eyes. In my time at Bearsden I came to appreciate the beauty of the window and develop a real affection for the work of Harry Clarke”.

The Heritage Lottery Fund’s Manager for Scotland, Colin McLean, said: “Now restored, this is a strikingly beautiful window. Thanks to players of the National Lottery, visitors to Kelvingrove can enjoy its glory while learning about the story it describes and its place in Glasgow’s history.”