AdammsGallery

The Tower Theater Los Angeles-Historic Stained Glass restoration

The Tower Theater Los Angeles                                                                                                       Tower Theater 1927                                                                  Proposed  Restored                                                Original Interior                                                                Proposed Interior Apple Store The Tower Theater opened in 1927 when it premiered The Jazz Singer with Al Jolson. The grand premier was in New York, but The Tower Theater was the site the sneak preview the night before. The theater is located in the Historic Broadway Theater District in downtown Los Angeles. This area has been getting a rebirth, and many of the old theaters have been restored to their old glory. The Tower Theater is  being remodeled as a new Apple Store. However, since it is in a Historic District the exterior must be preserved. It was over a year ago that we were originally contacted to totally restore the magnificent 20 foot by 16 foot stained glass window in the lobby over the marquee.                         After months of ups, downs, and guarantees we finally started the project although with a new contractor as lead.                                                 removing panels                                                                  View from scaffold                                                                                                                Exterior We began removing the 34 individual panels that are set in a steel frame work the second week of June. We will be working on them for  about three months.                                        Original panel                                                        Soaking panel                                 making rubbing for cartoon                                                     restored panel                                           restored panel We will replace all broken , and previous repairs that were done poorly, including painting replacement pieces. Finally, we will install after the new year when the building is ready for us.       This is going to be  a very different Apple store as all I have seen thus far are very contemporary. The theater is a Renaissance revival design. The interior was modeled after the Paris Opera House with wonderful woodwork, marble, and bronze, with a crystal chandelier in the foyer.     Be sure to check out the Tower Theater Los Angeles website.

Triple Pivot Casement Beveled a & Leaded Glass Windows

Beveled Glass Installation

 

      It has been about one year since one of our long time customers approached us about making a set of triple beveled glass casement windows with a center pivot on each. After much back and forth we finalized a relatively simple rectilinear beveled design.

The difficult part was installing the triple casement. Once again I enlisted the help of the best Handyman, and installer I know, Don Van Cura. Don is in my Networking group Wildfire Networking. I wouldn't do any difficult installation without him. I was able to find a perfect all brass, ball bearing, pivot hinge, from Architectual Resource Center  http://brasswindowhardware.com/and the installation of them appeared to be pretty straight forward.

 

                  window before

 

            We understood how the hinge worked, but it took some time before we agreed how to install them.  The owner of the company that sold the hinges didn't have any help with our particular type of installation. We didn't  have the option of removing the jamb to set the top hinge. We ended up removing the ball bearing on the top hinge, and that gave us the extra room for clearance, and didn't affect the ease of pivot since the weight was on the bottom bearing. We set the hinge into the sash. With the ball bearing hinge the pivot was very smooth.

     We first set the center sash,

                                                                                      cutting detail

  

              routing mortise                                  hinge set

and then trimmed the right sash as we needed. Finally we set the left sash. This was an interior set of windows. It was a divider between the master bath and bedroom.

                                                    mortise in sill

   

         bottom hinge set      mortising top hinge          Don with windows installed

 

     After we finished the installation the owner had the sash stained and finished. A very nice and interesting project.

                

                                 

  

Restoring Stained Glass Windows at Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Santa Monica, CA

           
          J.S.Bach Window before                           J.S. Bach After Restoration  

              

              Door Stained Glass                      Martin Luther Window

Having been located in Santa Monica, CA.  since 1978, and locally since 1972, we have been called upon to restore the stained glass of many local churches, and synagogues. We have worked for Pilgrim Lutheran for over 30 years, mostly doing repairs. Now we have begun a more in depth restoration. We are also updating, and adding to the current protective exterior glazing.

     The current home of Pilgrim Lutheran Church was dedicated in 1953. The more than 50 stained glass windows were hand crafted in Belgium. All the glass is hand blown "antique" glass, whose natural imperfections add to their dazzling beauty. The windows illustrate Biblical scenes, and the life of Christ.

     The church sits on the corner of 18th street and Wilshire Blvd. and gets a considerable amount of foot traffic. For this reason protective acrylic was added to the exterior in the 1970's. Over time the acrylic has hazed and discolored. We are currently replacing the acrylic with 1/4" tempered glass, and adding tempered glass protection to all the windows facing 18th St. We are also repairing, and restoring many of the windows that have suffered damage over the years from vandals, athletics(the church is also hoime to a school), and heat.

     Since the glass is European hand blown glass we have so far been able to get exact matches using Lambert German antique glass available through Bendheim Glass, in New Jersey. Our expert glass painter Mary Orrell, has been exceptional in her restoration abilities, and has provided a flawless recreation of the original pieces. In addition glaziers Alberto Marquez, and Armando Aleman have been doing an impeccable job with the removing, restoration, and installation of the windows. Indeed the Pastor and members of the congregation couldn't be happier. I must also add that they are a true pleasure to work for.

    Check back throughout the year for updates on this project.

 

Leon Applebaum Glass Artist

    

lava Bowl

I've known Leon Applebaum for about 35 years. I started representing him in my gallery in 1982, and have been ever since. Leon loves to work with transparent primary colors and has developed an extraordinary assortment of work.  One of my favorites were 3" paperweights with  five balloon shaped bubbles. He would create these weights by blowing small bubbles on the end of the blow pipe and move them over one at a time as he would blow the next color. When he had all the bubbles on the blow pipe he then encased them in clear glass. His "balloon" weights were a tremendous hit. So  much in fact that Leon got tired of making them. Leon also worked with clear pieces as in his twist candle sticks, but always liked color and his use of color and clear glass. Unfortunately for myself and my clientele Leon isn't backing away from his decision to not make them anymore.

 

                                                               

                                                                                 Textured Bowl                              Trails Bowl

         However, all is not lost. Leon went on to create many popular pieces from his lava bowls, rainbow ice perfumes,and cold worked carved bowls, and transition sculptures. Leon was born in Toledo, Ohio in 1945. Leon planned in being a high school art teacher, but, as many artists find out, he was captivated by glass after his first hot glass class. Leon received his BFA from the Massachusetts College of Art, and his MA from the Peabody College of Vanderbilt University.He has studied in Sweden at the Orrefor's glass School, and at Boda Glass. In 1974 he returned to the US to pursue his MFA from Rochester Institute of Technology. He later taught at RIT, and Naples Mill Art School, in Naples, N.Y.

                                             

Transition Sculptures

     Leon's work is in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian Museum, the Corning Museum of Glass, and the Ajeto Glass Museum in the Czech Republic.

     Leon explains that"The process of blowing glass has been my teacher for the past 30 years. I have developed glass blowing techniques for my work that captivate the fluid energy of hot glass, using fire, air, centrifugal force, gravity, and tools to push and pull the glass. I enjoy exploring the visual dimensions of massive glass and reflective interiors, using transparent colors so that the light passes through and brings out the pure beauty and essence of glass".

     You can visit and purchase Leon's work in our Santa Monica,CA. Gallery at 1426 4th St.Santa Monica, CA. 90401

adammsgallery.com

 

 

Restoring Concave/ Convex Leaded Glass Windows

  

                        

  A few times a year we are asked to restore concave/convex leaded diamond pattern windows. Many people think that these  windows were originally flat and that they sagged  due to age, and people poking on them. While this may be true in many cases there were a significant number of windows that were made concave/convex intentionally. We don't see too many being made today simply because it is a time consuming process, and most manufacturers either do not know how to build them, or just don't want to put in the time.

     In fact the first time I encountered such a window I though it had sagged from age, but the home owner informe3d me that he was a child when his father had them commissioned and that they were intentionally made that way when the house was built. It was from this experience that I learned how the windows were constructed, and what we had to do to restore, or duplicate them.

     With this particular project there were other leaded diamond pattern windows that had been releaded, but flat rather than concave/convex. This project involved eight casement windows approximately two feet by five feet. Four were in steel sash, and four wooden sash. We removed all the sash and boarded up the window frames with plywood. This was easier, and cleaner than taking the windows out of the sash on site. Of course it was much safer also as we could remove the windows in our studio with no risk to them falling, or coming apart in the process.

     The windows were in such deteriorated condition that we didn't have to soak them to loosen the putty. When we removed them from the sash they for the most part came apart in our hands. Of course we numbered the pieces first before removing them. Then we cleaned them and began the process of rebuilding them. The deflection was about 1" on each side, so we used 1" Styrofoam cut in 1 1/2" square to support each rise. The 3/8" H flat lead easily bends up and down, and the intersecting sections are cut to slip into the opposite channel. Once the window is leaded up, we solder the joints normally and glaze up both sides.

The reinforcing bars have to be placed horizontally rather than on the diagonal as we do with flat diamond windows. Of course this means that the bars are visible as they cut half way through the diamond, but there is no alternative.

                                      

     As you can see the final result is dazzling. The reflection off the glass resembles a diamond, and really stands out, especially from  a flat diamond pattern.

Adammsgallery.com                          Adamm's Stained Glass  1426 4th St.  Santa Monica, CA 90401

 

Palau De La Musica Catalana

  
 

 

The Palace of Music in Barcelona, Spain was started in 1905 and completed in 1908 as the home for Orfeo Catala(the Catalan Choral Society) which still occupies, and owns the building. It is architect Domènech i Montaner’s most significant building. Astonishingly it took only 2 years and 8 months to build. With the quantity of detailed art work involved and the number of artisans working on it a truly unimaginable feat.

                    


The stained glass skylight is a focal point in the concert hall,

                                

 but there are so many other artistic elements to take in. Banisters with blown glass balusters,

mosaic tile decorations on pillars, and the ceiling, sculptures of Beethoven,

                
                                 

other prominent people, figures, and animals, and of course St. George the Patron Saint of Barcelona, amazing woodwork, and wrought iron, and  needless to say other stained glass windows.Performers  have included Lenard Bernstein, Herbie Hancock, Ravel, Zubin Mehta, and Pau Casals to name a few.

The Palace of Music is the only concert hall is the world to be declared a UNESCO world heritage site. It is in what we call the Art Nouveau style. In Barcelona it is referred to a Modernisme( modernismo for the rest of Spain), in Italy Stile Floreale, or Stile Liberty. If you are in Barcelona it is a must see. Tours are given regularly,. and worth every penny. If you have time take in a concert or a flamenco show. You won't be alone. The Palau seats over 2,000.

La Casa De Maria- Montecito, California

    

                                                                  
          

Toward the end of February 2018 I was contacted by a representative from La Casa De Maria in Montecito, CA. You may recall that the exclusive enclave of Montecito, just South of Santa Barbara, was hit by ravaging mudslides. La Casa De Maria was originally built in the mid 1950's. The 26 acre estate , in addition to its magnificent home, has a Spanish style Catholic Church that was built in 1955.  The church eventually became a retreat center for the Catholic Archdiocese, and years later changed to be a multi denominational retreat. The mud slides brought disaster to La Casa De Maria. What was once a beautifully landscaped wooded retreat was not chocked with tones, and tons of mud and rock. The San Yisedro Creek had been forced to overflow from the washed down boulders. The resultant flood washed not only mud, but giant boulders for miles. Many smashing into cars. trees, homes, and other buildings. The slides caused at least 22 deaths.

                                                               

      I was asked to come up to Montecito to give a proposal to remove a stained glass window from the La Casa De Maria Church, restore, crate, and store it until restoration of the church was completed. When I arrived I as astonished at the size of the catastrophe. The lush vegetation that had been there was gone, mud and boulders were everywhere you looked. In areas there were huge mounds of dirt, concrete, boulders, and building materials that were the aftermath of the floods, and slides. In some cases entire buildings were gone.

     I was accompanied to the church where I noticed an eight foot and 5 foot boulder that had slammed into the side of the church. The resultant collision had fractured a 12" x 8" beam that was supporting the windows from below. There was a hole in the building that was about eight feet across, and, I was told, led to 24 large boulders and three feet of mud being deposited in the church. The mud and boulders had been cleaned out, but the shock of the collision from the giant boulder had caused the ceiling timbers to shift. We had to remove the stained glass window( approximately 3' x 11') directly above the hole so that the walls could be rebuilt, and the ceiling timbers restored.

   

     The nine stained glass windows are magnificent. Originally fabricated in Ireland they have very vibrant colors and have a modern feel to their design. I completed my inspection, returned to the studio, and drafted my proposal( which included all necessary work on all windows), and emailed it. It will be at least a year before the restoration work on the church structure is complete. The administrator shortly there after informed me that they would like me to proceed. Since they were in as hurry to start, and couldn't do anything until we removed the window we went up the following week. We removed, crated, and transported the four sections of the window back to Santa Monica.

     I'll follow up in a later blog with the progression of our work, and also that of La Casa De Maria.

 
                                                            
                                                                

Historic Rubel Castle Art Glass Restoration

                                                                                   

 

Broken Painted Glass Pane

                                                                                  

  Last May 2017, during the Annual Glendale California Historical Society Restoration Expo I was contacted by a member of the Glendora Historical Society about restoring one of their art glass windows. Shortly after that I was sent images of the windows, and of the broken pane. I responded, then about 6 months later I was again contacted and updated the proposed work. Soon after we were contracted to reproduce the broken painted glass pane.

     First, something about the historic Rubel Castle.

    

Rubel Castle (also known as Rubelia), officially Rubel Pharms and Castle, was established in Glendora, California, by Michael Clarke Rubel (April 16, 1940 – October 15, 2007), and is currently owned and operated by the Glendora Historical Society.^[2] It has been called "a San Gabriel Valley version of Watts Towers.”^[3]

Rubel purchased a 2½ acre citrus orchard on which the structure resides in 1959. He and his friends completed construction in 1986. Rubelia is considered the first major recycling project in the United States.^{[4][page needed][clarification needed]}

Rubel Castle was constructed partly out of concrete but also out of scrap steel, rocks, bedsprings, coat hangers, bottles, and other re-purposed materials that Rubel found.

 

Michael Rubel on his porch, 2000.

In 1959, Rubel bargained for the defunct Albourne Rancho property and took up residence in the huge citrus packing house, which he renamed “Rubel Pharm.” Rubel's father, Henry "Heinz" Scott Rubel, had been an Episcopalian minister and gag writer for radio comedians.^[3] In the 1960s, Rubel’s mother, one-time Greenwich Village Follies dancer^[5] Dorothy Deuel Rubel, moved into the packing house with her son. At 200 feet (61 m) long it was the perfect venue for her favorite hobby: parties. Well-dressed guests arrived weekly by the hundreds, strolling past old tractors, horses, poultry, buggies, and the gritty accouterments of the bucolic rancho period, to arrive inside a tin fruit packing house transformed into a giant dance hall. Inside, surrounded by art and antique furniture remaining from Rubel ancestors, they mingled in the smudge oil and orange blossom atmosphere and danced to a small orchestra.

Sally Rand, the silent screen actress and fan dancer, famous since the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, never missed Dorothy Rubel’s parties, which were so extravagant that the packing house became known as “The Tin Palace.” Other people of note who came to the Tin Palace in those days include Dwight Eisenhower, the Duncan Sisters, Woody Strode, Beatrice Kay, Harry Townes, Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Kid Chissell, Angie Dickinson, and Alfred Hitchcock. Fellow castle builder "Colonel" Jirayr Zorthian was a supporter and friend.

Construction of the castle

Though Rubel slept in one of the giant citrus refrigerators, the walls of thick cork were not sufficient sound insulation to allow him peace from his mother’s parties. Beginning in 1968, Rubel began building a small get-away house in the empty old 1,000,000 gallon concrete reservoir, using cement and discarded champagne bottles.^[6] The walls of the reservoir provided privacy and a noise barrier while he built the bottle house. The project lasted twenty years, culminating in what is now called the Rubel Castle.

He began adding material to an existing metal water tower.^[7] With the encouragement of old timers like Odo Stade, and with the help of many friends and relations, the castle grew to be thousands of square feet with towers five stories high. Rubel and his associates built the structure without architectural plans, utilizing salvaged river rock, cement, steel, aluminum, telephone poles and wine bottles.^[3] Old motorcycles, tires, sand-filled rubber gloves, a camera, a golf club and a toaster are some of the items that protrude from the castle.^[3]

A restored 1911 Seth Thomas clock works runs the brass bells and clock that crown one of the high towers, which is 74 feet (23 m) high. In the middle of the property sit a 1940s-era Santa Fe caboose, as well as old trucks and tractors. There is also a cemetery with rejected marble tombstones (but no graves).^[3]

In addition, “chickens are abundant and love this property as well as frequent animal visitors.”^[7]

Legacy

Over the decades, Rubel Castle has instilled a work ethic in hundreds of young people and stands as a celebration of the independent spirit. Huell Howser interviewed Rubel for Videolog in 1990.^[8]

Like a true castle, it has hosted royalty including Prince Philip. Some other notable guests have been Henry Kissinger, the Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie, and Governor George Deukmejian.

     Our work was to duplicate the broken painted panel. In this case the windows were painted about 1965. As they were painted in place on the existing glass they couldn't use traditional stained glass paint. I removed the broken pieces from the old packing plant, and had my exceptionally gifted painter Mary Orrell  investigate to determine exactly what type of paint was used. Mary discovered that it was a combination of flat enamel and acrylic paints.

                                                           

Broken Painted Glass Pane

Recreated Pained Glass Pane

                                                            

                                                                          

Complete Window note center bottom pane

                                                             

     Using the broken pieces which we taped together, and a black and white photo of the original artwork Mary was able to recreate the pane. The pain was about 12" x 18". We installed the replacement glass and returned the broken taped pieces to the Society.Given that much of the bottom portion of the glass was missing it was a bit of a chore, but Mary did a fantastic job. Some of the challenge was trying to match the wear on the paint after over 50 years of cleaning and who knows what. You can see from the images that the end result was a success. Thanks Mary.

In March 2005, Rubel donated the Castle to the Glendora Historical Society.

Many television programs, music videos, and movies have been filmed on castle grounds, including NBC's Heroes and T-mobile's Frankenstein commercial.

Rubel Castle was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2013.^[9]

Merle Norman Estate Roundel Stained Glass

     About one year ago I was given a lead on a job to repair or restore a roundel stained glass window. As sometimes happens time dragged on until about six month later when I was contacted by the client and asked to begin work. The window was a roundel window made from 3" roundels in red, amber, blue, and green. The home was the original Santa Monica home of cosmetics entrepreneur Merle Norman. The window had fallen out of its' window sash on a third level staircase. The window was only 12" x 24" but it was a gem. The red roundels were actually clear roundels with an overlay of clear red antique(hand blown) glass. The rest of the roundels were their true color. The field glass was a pale amber cathedral. The window needed to be totally restored.

    After we brought the window back to our studio we soaked it in water to loosen the putty and make disassembly easier, and safer for the glass. We happened to have enough colored roundels to replace the broken pieces, and we used 5/16" round lead to match the original leading. For such a small window it was a time consuming job. The end result was stunning. the vibrancy of the glass was magnificent, as was the combination of colors. With the help of a fabulous carpenter and handy man Don Van Cura,(the entire window frame and sill had to be replaced as it was rotted out) we installed in a new sash and made the window operable as a drop down transom.

 

     The owners loved it so much they decided to go ahead with another project they had been contemplating. The downstairs guest bedroom at one point had had an artificial skylight. The 8" x 72" opening had been covered over and a chandelier hung in its place. We were commissioned to make a roundel skylight duplicating the smaller one we had restored for the staircase. We were able to get the 3" colored roundels from Bendheim in New Jersey, a company we often go to for German art glass, and other supplies. Once again it was a lot of work for a small panel, but as before, it was worth it. After cleaning up the ceiling space for the electrical work we had Nick Mendoza of R and N Electric set up the LED lighting. We installed the roundel panel with 2 1/4" casing stained to match the wood ceiling. We were all very happy with the end result.

Historic "California Springtime" Memorial window Woodlawn Cemetery, Santa Monica, CA

    

 

Our latest restoration work at Santa Monica's Woodlawn Cemetery is the beautiful "California Springtime" window. This window was installed in the mausoleum in 1927. It is comprised of 9 separate panels installed in steel T bar 3 panels wide and 3 high, and is 6' wide and 11 feet tall. Some time ago the window was dual glazed with 1/4" plexiglass on the exterior. The exterior glazing had become very hazed over the years, and after we finished the restoration we installed 1/4" tempered glass as a protective layer.

                                                                                 

     Our restoration process began with removing the individual panel, boarding up the opening with plywood, and transporting them to our studio in Santa Monica. Once in the studio we soaked the panels in water to soften up the putty. The next step was to disassemble the panels and clean them.

                                                        
            
                                                                   cracked  glass                                    Glass showing half cleaned with Kaboom

     In all there were about 65 broken pieces that had to be replaced. These were color, and texture  matched, painted and fired. The painting work done by our glass painting artist(Mary Orrell) was unbelievable, but standard work for Mary. Even to a trained eye you couldn't tell the difference between the original and painted pieces. One difficulty we had was in cleaning the glass. At first, as recommended by the Department of Interior Guideline, we used clear water. When that had no affect we went to ionized detergent which also had no affect. Next we went to paint thinner, and  alcohol, Nada. So after serious thought, we tested a small spot with "Kaboom" the bathroom shower cleaner. Kaboom removes scaling and water stained. After 90 years, and decomposing bodies, there was a very heavy oxidation build up on the interior of the windows. Originally, before there was air conditioning in the mausoleum, ventilation was provided by open decorative concrete screens, which opened to the outside. Of course being near the ocean didn't help the situation very much. Well, "Kaboom" really did the job. It removed the oxidation fairly easily, and left us with a very translucent painted glossy glass. We originally thought that the glass was more opaque and flat rather than glossy. It is amazing how beautiful the window is.

    After we cleaned the old glass, and had the replacement pieces we leaded up the panels and installed. Then, of course, we installed the 1/4" protective tempered glass. I'm sure you will agree that this is a very special window.

     We are anxious to continue on with the remained of these beautiful historic windows.