Stained glass of the middle ages in England & France . eriods there is a veryshort transitional period lasting hardly a decade,and occupying the closing years of each century. It must not be thought, however, that at anytime design in stained glass stood still. Its historyis rather one of periodic impulses, due no doubt tothe work of individual genius, followed in each caseby a long and gradual decline, towards the end ofwhich artists began to grow restless and feel aboutfor new modes of expression, and so prepare the wayfor the next impulse of First The broad characteristics then w
Stained glass of the middle ages in England & France . eriods there is a veryshort transitional period lasting hardly a decade,and occupying the closing years of each century. It must not be thought, however, that at anytime design in stained glass stood still. Its historyis rather one of periodic impulses, due no doubt tothe work of individual genius, followed in each caseby a long and gradual decline, towards the end ofwhich artists began to grow restless and feel aboutfor new modes of expression, and so prepare the wayfor the next impulse of First The broad characteristics then which distinguishPeriod. ^j^g ^ Period are— (1) Its rich colour. (2) Its mosaic character. (3) The importance of the iron-work and itsinfluence on the design. (4) The method of painting. Its rich (1) Its Colour,—The colour of the glass in this colour. First Period is of a barbaric richness, unequalled in the succeeding periods. A very deep and splendid PLATE V THE THE EAST WINDOW. CANTERBURY Twelfth or early Thirteenth Century. THE STYLE OF THE FIRST PERIOD 33 blue is used, in contrast with the greyish-blue oflater glass, and it is of an uneven tint, which greatlyadds to its quality. The ruby,^ too, is often of astreaky character and of great beauty. These twousually form the dominant colours in the window,the greens, yellows, and purples being used ratherto relieve them. So much is the artist in love with his deep redsand blues, which he nearly always uses for thebackgrounds of his figures, that he seldom insultsthem by painting on them except in so far as isnecessary to the drawing, reserving his enamelmainly for the decoration of his whites and palercolours, keeping them in their places by a delicatefret of line and pattern work. It is only towards the latter part of the period,when the quality of the glass began to fail a little,that he ever covered the whole surface of a bluebackground with an enamelled diaper, to give it adepth and richness which w
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookpublisherlondo, bookyear1913
