Make a Donation to the Connick Foundation

By Mail

Online

Dear Friends,

If one had to find a single word with which to describe the spirit of Charles J. Connick, it might well be Enthusiasm. When planning a lecture tour in the 1930s, he was advised by a journalist friend not to talk ‘like a learned expert’ but, instead, to ‘give us the inside and the low-down – tell us why you’re so crazy about stained glass.’ One only has to read Connick’s semi-autobiographical Adventures in Light and Color (one of the finest books ever written about an artistic craft) to absorb his infectious enthusiasm for windows old and new, for the many skills that create them, and for the mysterious relationship with the ever-changing natural force of light that brings them to life.

The year 2011 has brought us many fruitful opportunities to pursue the Foundation’s goals in the fields of conservation and education. In preparation for the tour of Princeton that took place in November, a number of important Connick designs for windows at the University were specially conserved, and before and after photographic images can be seen on our web site www.cjconnick.org. Jim Griebsch filmed the Princeton tour, and in early 2012, a DVD will be available on our web site. A few months ago, through the generosity of the Weide Estate, the Foundation acquired an important collection of Charles Connick’s works of art, photographs and correspondence. This collection provides a fascinating insight into Connick’s relationship with close friends of many years. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Libraries, working closely with the Foundation, is preparing an exhibition that will showcase the Connick Studio in the context of other creative glass work and will run from early February through July 2012. (Exact dates, once known, will appear on www.cjconnick.org.) This exhibit will be an important landmark in the recognition of Connick’s achievements in the Boston area.

Throughout this year, as in the past, the Foundation’s educational and other activities have relied upon the unfailing support of the Fine Arts department of the Boston Public Library, custodian of a large portion of the Connick archives. It is with great sadness that we record the passing of Janice Chadbourne, Head of Fine Arts at the BPL, who did so much to sustain and encourage the Foundation’s work. All those who have consulted the archives over the years know how invaluable Janice’s knowledge and helpfulness were. She will be greatly missed.

Two of the Foundation’s major events took place in November, beginning with the Orin E. Skinner Annual Lecture, given this year by Brother Curtis Almquist SSJE in the Monastery Chapel of St Mary and St John (Cambridge MA), the building designed by Ralph Adams Cram and completely glazed by the Connick Studio. Brother Curtis’s moving and thoughtful lecture was a meditation both on the Chapel’s windows and on their creators. Just a few days later we held the Princeton Tour of 20th-century stained glass by Connick and his contemporaries, led by Peter Cormack. A group of enthusiasts from far and wide assembled first in Trinity Church, with its 1915 ‘grisaille’ patterned glazing by Connick, along with windows by the Willet and Burnham studios and by the Scottish artist-craftsman William Wilson. Our next location, the University’s Graduate College (one of R. A. Cram’s masterpieces) provided a feast of superlative stained glass. Connick’s early heraldic windows in the Common Room and his poignant war memorial of 1922 were the prelude to William and Annie Willet’s impressive ‘Liberal Arts’ window (1913) and Connick’s outstanding ‘Holy Grail’ window (1919) in Procter Hall. The tour concluded in another Cram masterpiece, Princeton University’s 1920s Chapel with its glorious ensemble of windows by many of the leading stained glass artists of the inter-war period. Mr Cormack focussed in particular on Connick’s four ‘Christian Epics’ windows in the choir, which demonstrate the artist’s consummate skill in combining narrative and symbolic elements with powerful colour and light effects.

For 2012, a tour of stained glass locations in Boston and the surrounding area, featuring windows by Connick and others, is being planned. We hope that many of you will join us. The Foundation’s tours are not only full of information, but also an especially enjoyable way of learning about ‘the inside and low-down’ of Connick and his stained glass.

Another way to enjoy Connick’s unique talent throughout the year is through the Foundation’s ‘Connick Medallions’ Calendar. Each month has an illustration of one of these small-scale masterpieces, many of them incorporating ‘re-cycled’ Sandwich glass fragments. These colourful glazed jewels are among the most charming artefacts created by Connick and his craftsmen. Calendars can be purchased from the Connick Foundation or on the Connick Foundation’s web site for $15.00 each, plus shipping.

In reviewing past activities and looking forward to future developments, the Foundation is deeply appreciative of the contribution made by our supporters from all over the country. With your help, the Board has employed a part-time professional administrator for our various activities. This post will greatly facilitate our ability to respond to enquiries and provide a valuable support to our partners at BPL and MIT.

Our mission is to communicate the vitality that is so richly embodied and articulated in the best stained glass. It is an art that people can, like Connick himself, be ‘crazy about’ in the most rewarding sense and which, at its best, communicates at the most profound spiritual, emotional and intellectual levels.

We wish you a Holiday Season of light-filled Connick stained glass splendour.

Cordial regards,

Marilyn B. Justice
President