The two windows are experienced in very different ways. To allude to the Baptismal Chapel below a white dove, symbol of the Holy Spirit, appears to be hovering in the round window. The treatment of the image is subtle and its effect, serene. At night, the window is a focal point at a busy intersection, thus emphasizing that this building is a House of God
The Baptismal window located in the chapel proper has a strong and edifying impact on the people who use the space. The window design is respectful of the expertly detailed space and responds with a design relating to the geometries present. There is an almost overwhelming simplicity to the design. This is to empower the ultimate creative source, namely light, to transform the material, to de-materialize glass. The result is not an opaque window nor a transparent one, but rather a magically suspended veil of light alluding to different passages of light- prismatic, colored, restrained- that corresponds metaphorically to the soul’s journey towards God.
Truly illuminating light created by the new window not only enhances and completes this sacred space, but it also embraces the viewer. Sitting quietly in the chapel and letting the light pour through the window upon oneself is to undergo a spiritual education as well as an aesthetic one.
Location: Holy Spirit Chapel, St. Ignatius Church, San Francisco, CA, USA
Artist: Lutz Haufschild
Medium: Three layers of float- and beveled glass, laminated
Scope: Shaped panel with 5 foot diameter round window above