We have been working at Woodlawn Cemetery and Mausoleum for about 30 years. Until now all the work we have done has been stained glass restoration, repair, or installing exterior protective glazing. The Mausoleum has a separate room with a series of bronze and glass displays that are meant for urns and personal memorabilia. All thew other rooms of the mausoleum have decorative stained glass windows, but this room only had a clear glass window. Unfortunately, the view to the outside was a work area that had sand, co0ncrete, and worktables. It was not a very pretty view. The management thought it would be well served if they co9missioned us to fabricate and install a new stai9ned glass window to liven up the room and block the unsightly view.
We discussed what their needs were and made several suggestions as to type of glass and subject matter for the design. They already had a rug, and painting that they wanted to coordinate the window with. Since the majority of the 8' x 12' window was going to be behind the display boxes we proposed a rectilinear design for that part. The design would work with the rectangular shape of the displays, and help keep the cost down to fit within the budget. We decided to use glass manufactured by The Paul Wissmach Glass Company in Paden City, West Virginia. The green opalescent glass is accented with some deeper greens and a subdued yellow. For the top portion that would be above the boxes we opted for a design of six white doves flying around three palm trees. The sky is also cut in a rectilinear pattern with deeper blue accents. We painted the detail in the doves as well as the palm trees.
The window itself is composed of six panels. The bottom has three panels with the two outside panels 20" wide and 8' high and the center 48" wide and 8' high. The top section has two smaller operational windows and a center window that is 48" x 40". The installation went very easily with the storefront metal molding snapping into place, and the vinyl strips for securing and weather proofing the windows.
The window does exactly what the management intended. It blocks the dismal view, and adds a calming beautiful feeling to the room. The glow put off from the opalescent glass is very comforting. It is always nice to work in the community, and work with the city of Santa Monica. Thanks to the staff at Adamm's Stained Glass Alberto Marquez Stained Glass Glazier, Mary Orrell painter, and Jose Ceja glazier installer, and myself Adamm Gritlefeld.
