Pierre Fourmaintraux

Last updated

Pierre Fourmaintraux
Born1896
Desvres
Died1974 (aged 78)
Known forStained glass and dalle de verre
SpouseRachel Winslow

Francois Pierre Fourmaintraux (known as Pierre) (1896-1974) was a renowned glass artist who is credited with having introduced the dalle de verre technique to the UK and having taught other influential glass artists such as Dom Charles Norris.

Contents

Personal life

Pierre Fourmaintraux was born Francois Pierre Fourmaintraux in Metz, France in 1896. Pierre moved to the UK and married an English wife Rachel Winslow (1880-1974), who was an impressionist painter, settling in Harrow. He retired in 1969 and died in 1974 at the age of 78. [1]

Career

While in France Fourmaintraux produced conventional leaded stained glass, but after World War II changed to the dalle de verre technique, joining James Powell and Sons (later Whitefriars Glass) in the UK. He is credited with introducing the dalle de verre technique to the UK,[ citation needed ] a technique that was already popular in France. From 1956, Fourmaintraux was Powell's chief designer of slab glass and abstract windows. His first dalle de verre for the UK was said to be two small windows for St Peter's Reigate. He is said to have taught the dalle de verre technique to Dom Charles Norris who became one of the most celebrated and prolific users of the technique. [2] Whitefriars identified their glass with a small image of a hooded friar, usually in a bottom corner of the window. Fourmaintraux identified his own glass by adding his initials PF near the friar.

Works

Notable buildings

St Raphael the Archangel, Millbrook, Stalybridge

A Grade II listed church designed by Edward J Massey of architects' practice Massey and Massey of Warrington (1961-3). The church's listing by Historic England notes: "the mosaic-like appearance of the prominent dalle de verre screen, in a bold modern design of geometric blockiness and stepped massing culminating in the dominant circular dome." It goes on to say: "the church is a showcase for contemporary arts and crafts, being embellished with Pierre Fourmaintraux's extensive figurative dalle de verre screen of Tobias and the Archangel whose brilliant colours and organic forms epitomise good 1960s ecclesiastical glass design and dramatically enrich the interior space". [3]

English Heritage commented in a report on St Raphael's: "The screen is a good example of 1960s ecclesiastical glass design...It is a relatively early example, preceding the glass at Liverpool Cathedral, and is of interest in being figurative, rather than the more usual abstract schemes employing dalle de verre glass...Both Fourmaintraux and Boyson have listed work elsewhere and their work here undoubtedly adds to the artistic interest of the building." [4]

The church was threatened with demolition in 2011 but was saved and listed (Grade II). [5]

Christ Church, Frankpledge Road, Coventry

Designed by Alfred H Gardner, this Grade II listed church features dalle de verre by Fourmaintraux.

"22 square panels of thick glass set in concrete illustrating the life of Christ, by Pierre Fourmaintraux. The wealth of purple and gold contrasted with the natural timber in a variety of chequerboard designs gives a variety and vibrancy to the building rare in this period".

— Christ Church List Entry Summary, Historic England [6]

Other works

According to Robert Proctor, Senior Lecturer in Architecture at Bath University, [7] Fourmaintraux works include windows for:

Fourmaintraux also produced works for:

Museums and preservation

In 2008 the Museum of London gifted the Rakow Library (the Research Library of the Corning Museum of Glass) the Whitefriars Collection, consisting of 1,800 cartoons (or working drawings). The Rakow Library received a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to develop an innovative methodology for preserving, digitizing, and making accessible this collection. Preservation work undertaken includes cartoons from Fourmaintraux's windows in St. Peter’s Church, Lawrence Weston, Bristol, and for the War Memorial in Auckland, New Zealand. [15] [16]

A pen and ink and watercolour drawing for Fourmaintraux's design of an abstract dalle de verre window for the 'Golden Ball', public house, Campo Lane, Sheffield is now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. [17] The museum also holds a pen and ink and watercolour drawing for 15 small stained-glass windows of abstract design for Narberth Crematorium, near Porthcawl. [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stained glass</span> Coloured glass and the works that are made from it

Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensional structures and sculpture. Modern vernacular usage has often extended the term "stained glass" to include domestic lead light and objets d'art created from foil glasswork exemplified in the famous lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conrad Schmitt Studios</span> Architectural arts studio located in New Berlin, Wisconsin

Conrad Schmitt Studios is an architectural arts studio located in New Berlin, Wisconsin. It provides ecclesiastical art, stained glass artistry, art glass, decorative painting, mosaics, murals and sculptural arts. The studio specializes in restoration services for buildings of architectural, historical and religious significance. Founded in 1889 by German-American artist Conrad Schmitt, the company is one of the oldest and largest glass studios in the United States.

The firm of James Powell and Sons, also known as Whitefriars Glass, were London-based English glassmakers, leadlighters and stained-glass window manufacturers. As Whitefriars Glass, the company existed from the 17th century, but became well known as a result of the 19th-century Gothic Revival and the demand for stained glass windows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gabriel Loire</span> French painter

Gabriel Loire was a French stained glass artist of the twentieth century whose extensive works, portraying various persons or historical scenes, appear in many venues around the world. He founded the Loire Studio in Chartres, France which continues to produce stained glass windows. Loire was a leader in the modern use of "slab glass", which is much thicker and stronger than the stained glass technique of the Middle Ages. The figures in his windows are mostly Impressionistic in style.

Johannes Stephanus Theron known professionally as Leo Théron was a South African stained-glass window artist who specialises in the dalles de verre technique.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lawrence Lee</span> British stained glass artist (1909–2011)

Lawrence Stanley Lee was a British stained glass artist whose work spanned the latter half of the 20th century. He was best known for leading the project to create ten windows for the nave of the new Coventry Cathedral. His other work includes windows at Guildford and Southwark Cathedrals as well as a great number of works elsewhere in the UK, and some in Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hugh Arnold</span> English stained glass artist

Hugh Arnold was an English stained glass artist. Arnold was educated at the Slade School of Fine Art before attending the London County Council (LCC) Central School of Arts and Crafts where he studied under Christopher Whall from 1989 to 1903. He designed stained glass windows for James Powell & Sons and also did some independent work. While an officer in the Northumberland Fusiliers, Arnold died on active service at Gallipoli in 1915.

Edward Liddall Armitage or E. Liddall Armitage (1887–1967) was an English stained-glass designer. He studied and worked with Karl Parsons and Henry Holiday before going into partnership with Victor Drury. In the 1940s to the early 1960s, Armitage was the chief stained glass designer for James Powell and Sons. During his career he designed and made stained glass works for churches and cathedrals. He also published a book on making stained glass.

Dalle de verre, from French: "glass slab", is a glass art technique that uses pieces of coloured glass set in a matrix of concrete and epoxy resin or other supporting material.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katharine Lamb Tait</span>

Katharine Lamb Tait was an American stained glass and mosaics designer, painter, muralist, and illustrator. She was the head designer at J&R Lamb Studios for more than four decades, and created notable commissions for the Tuskegee Institute Chapel and for chapels at the United States Marine Corps’ Camp Lejeune, among others.

Jean-Jacques Duval was a French-born American artist who pioneered abstract art and the use of faceted glass in stained glass design in the 1960s. In 2005 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Stained Glass Association of America. Best known for his window designs in Germany, Israel, Japan, the West Indies, and the United States, his paintings and sculptures have also been exhibited throughout North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stained glass in Liverpool Cathedral</span>

The stained glass in Liverpool Cathedral all dates from the 20th century. The designs were planned by a committee working in conjunction with the architect of the cathedral, Giles Gilbert Scott, with the intention of forming an integrated scheme throughout the cathedral. A number of stained glass designers were involved in the scheme, but the major contributors came from James Powell and Sons, in particular J. W. Brown, James Hogan, and Carl Edwards.

Gerard Thomas Goalen was a British architect who specialised in church architecture and was influenced by continental models and the Liturgical Movement. He was one of the most important architects of the Catholic Modernist movement in the United Kingdom during the 20th century.

Dom Charles Norris OSB (1909–2004) was an influential artist who created works in stained glass and dalle de verre for Roman Catholic churches in the UK. He is thought to be the most prolific artist working in dalle de verre in the UK in the 20th century. His contributions to listed Modernist buildings are an integral part of their value and are mentioned in their listings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Art Nouveau glass</span>

Art Nouveau glass is fine glass in the Art Nouveau style. Typically the forms are undulating, sinuous and colorful art, usually inspired by natural forms. Pieces are generally larger than drinking glasses, and decorative rather than practical, other than for use as vases and lighting fittings; there is little tableware. Prominently makers, from the 1890s onwards, are in France René Lalique, Emile Gallé and the Daum brothers, the American Louis Comfort Tiffany, Christopher Dresser in Scotland and England, and Friedrich Zitzman, Karl Koepping and Max Ritter von Spaun in Germany. Art Nouveau glass included decorative objects, vases, lamps, and stained glass windows. It was usually made by hand, and was usually colored with metal oxides while in a molten state in a furnace.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Huneke</span> German-American stained glass artist

Carl Huneke was a German-American stained glass artist and master craftsman.

Keith New was a stained glass artist and craftsman during his early career and a well-regarded teacher and landscape painter in later life. After studying at the Royal College of Art (RCA) New returned there, heading the RCA Stained Glass Department from 1955-1958. He served as Head of Art & Design at the Central School of Art from 1957-1964. He was Head of Foundation Studies at Kingston School of Art from 1968-1991. In 1965 New became a Brother of the Art Workers Guild.

John 'Jack' Baker (1916-2007) was a British stained-glass artist, teacher, conservator and author.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stained glass in Chile</span>

Stained glass was first imported to Latin America during the 17th-18th century by Portuguese and Spanish settlers. For some countries, however, stained glass was imported much later. 

References

  1. ↑ "'Light, More Light'". The Modernist. 21 April 2018.
  2. ↑ Walls of Glass. 1964.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  3. ↑ Historic England (13 December 2011). "Church of St Raphael The Archangel (1406451)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  4. ↑ "Advice Report on Church of St Raphael The Archangel" (PDF). English Heritage. 20 December 2011.
  5. ↑ "Constructive Criticism: The Week in Architecture". The Guardian. 23 December 2011.
  6. ↑ Historic England (10 August 1998). "Christ Church (1376051)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  7. ↑ Proctor, R. Building the Modern Church: Roman Catholic Church Architecture in Britain, 1955 to 1975 (Ashgate Studies in Architecture) (2014 ed.).
  8. ↑ "Top Ten Modernist Building in Manchester". Manchester Evening News. 24 April 2017.
  9. ↑ "Pukeahu National War Memorial Park: Hall of Memories". NZ Minister for Culture and Heritage.
  10. ↑ "England: Lumen Reformed Church, London by Jonathan Evens". Artway.
  11. ↑ "A photograph of the stained glass window installation at St. Peter's Church, Lawrence Weston, Bristol". Corning Museum of Glass.
  12. ↑ "St Chad's Leasowe: Glass".
  13. ↑ "The Beatitudes". St Clements Ewell.
  14. ↑ "Friends of St. Helens Cemetery: History".
  15. ↑ "Discovering the Whitefriars project 2016". The Corning Museum of Glass. 22 June 2016.
  16. ↑ "Whitefriars: Art Conservation, Examining Fourmaintraux, and Dalle de Verre". The Corning Museum of Glass. 5 August 2016.
  17. ↑ "Design for Stained Glass, Fourmaintraux, Sheffield". V&A Museum, London.
  18. ↑ "Design for Stained Glass, Fourmaintraux, Narbeth". V&A Museum, London.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.