Pixellated Stained Glass

By Gerhard Richter, 2006, for the Cologne Cathedral

Inspiration in Glass

Most of the posts are intended to be more inspirational than literal...to provide churches with new ideas and thinking about exteriors, interiors, landscapes, furnishings, and building usage.

For example, here are some of this year's shortlisted winners from the Bombay Sapphire prize (also shown on dezeen), which gives awards for the innovative use of glass. Each of these concepts are profoundly meditative, and could be stunning additions to a church setting.

From top to bottom, "No 091138-05" by Yoav Reches, Zik Group- imagine this sort of stacked sculpture in a window frame as an alternative to stained glass; it looks as though it is assembled from commercial glass of different formulations (thus the different shades of blue-green), and I especially like the quilt-like nature of the block pattern, which would fit my midwestern setting especially well. "Attracted to light" by Geoffrey Mann would be a stunning ecclesiastical light fixture, and picture something like "Singing Water" by Eva Mendez over the altar...wow.