A history of stained glass art at Brisbane Girls Grammar Sch

Warwick Blair was considered a master of colour in his stained-glass creations and in his studio held

a vast collection of glass, much of which he felt was waiting for this project. Warwick sourced a

number of different glasses from across the world, England, Europe and America, to include

different textures and depth, as well as colour, to each detail of the windows. He had thousands of

bolts, sheets of glass from these countries where specific manufacturers all produce a particular type

of glass that has its own texture and use. Different glasses can offer different light and transparency

or translucency. These glasses need to work within the constraints of the building, within the

environment. The selection of glass is therefore a time-consuming task, taking out sheets, holding

them to the light, considering the structural aspects of the surrounds, deciding which parts of the

glass are best suited to the design, such as using the centre or the periphery to achieve the desired

results. This process could take several weeks before a satisfactory choice is made.

The glass that he used for the butterfly had come from America and was “glass developed for the

needs of the US Space Programme”. To begin with, Warwick and Jennifer worked on a small model

of the window to test the response of the glass. From the numerous process drawings that Jennifer

Andrews worked on over long and intensive periods of time, Warwick interpreted the design

through his creative energies to produce his stained-glass art that resembled no other in the region.

This window was the beginning of the story of a series of windows designed and created by Jennifer

Andrews and Warwick Blair that talk about the life of learning of our students.

In 1998, the Old Girls Association wanted to extend the stained glass into adjoining windows in the

same area of the Kathleen Lilley Building. Once again, Jennifer Andrews and Warwick Blair were to

collaborate on the creation of these windows which continued to explore ideas of learning. the

Creativity Window , was Andrews’ and Blair’s first attempt to reflect the theme of striving, growth

and personal transformation.

Metamorphosis was completed and opened in 1999 and was intended as a complement to the

window “Creativity” above the nearby stairwell. Artist and designer Jennifer Andrews was intent on

creating rhythm and movement to move across to the movement of the butterflies and eagle in the

Creativity window. The character of all four panels in the window is at once more abstract and freer

in expression. The window takes symbols from the Creativity Window , particularly the butterfly

wings, but the work is much “cooler” in appearance than its predecessor with a strong emphasis on

deep blues rather than oranges and yellows.

Blair used painted glass to reflect some of the detail in Andrew’s designs, such as the intricate,

translucent wings of the figurative butterflies which Blair represents with considerable finesse. But