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No pane, no gain

Strong colours, symbolic figures, intricate detail and biblical stories – they are all part of the wonderful world of stained glass that can now be found in a beautifully renovated studio-barn at the foot of the south Shropshire hills.

It is an idyllic life for David Williams and Stephen Byrne - designers, makers and restorers of fine stained glass - and a dream come true after meeting five years ago when they worked at a stained glass studio in Birmingham.

“We started talking about running a studio as soon as we met,” says Stephen.

The reasons were obvious. As well as an abundance of talent, they had complementary skills that would work well together, not to mention the fact that they were both doing long commutes from their homes in rural Shropshire.

David learned his craft from Patrick Reyntiens, a reputed stained glass painter, and worked with him on large and notable projects such as the 60 metres squared windows of Robinson College, Cambridge. Stephen meanwhile brought different strengths, having spent several years as a business analyst in the City.

“I was fast approaching 40 and decided there was no way I wanted to carry on,” Stephen recalls. Having set his sights on stained glass, he trained in London, moved to Shropshire to start a new life, and then met David, where, for his first job, they worked together on a set of eight stained glass windows for Saint Stephen’s Hall in the Palace of Westminster.

Years later the two have a studio of their dreams, on the Earl of Plymouth’s estate at Stanton Lacy, behind the Ludlow racecourse. It’s a light and airy converted barn. Upstairs is their creative world – picture books, piano, and a playpen.

“For Stephen’s one-year old daughter, not our board meetings!” laughs David.

Downstairs is where the ‘real work’ gets done, and where they take me through the intricate process of making a stained glass window.

First of all comes the design. Some clients have a clear idea of what they want, they tell me. Others only have an inkling, which David and Stephen then have to develop. Either way, the result is a small, beautiful watercolour that provides the basis for the later stages.

Once the design has been finalised, it’s developed into a full-sized black and white drawing – what they confusingly called a ‘cartoon’ but looks like impressive artwork to you or me.

This is then broken down into sections, and a piece of glass is selected for each one. They are adamant that only hand-made antique glass will do, each sheet having its own ripples of colour. Stephen tells me: “Sometimes we use a tiny section from the middle of a huge piece of glass, because it has just the right tint.”

After that, red, brown and black paints are applied, using a variety of brushes to create different effects. Demonstrating to me as they talk, they make it look so easy. But as they remind me, getting water to stay where you want on glass, is not easy.

David and Stephen pride themselves on knowing how to build up layer upon layer of paint - sometimes as many as eight - and then firing the glass just once. It’s a risky and time-consuming process. An intricate piece might take several days to paint, and at any moment a heavy –handed brush stroke can lose everything. But it is the only way to create the subtle shades of light and colour that characterise their beautiful work.

When they are happy with how it looks, it goes into the kiln for firing, which adheres the paint for good. Then the finished pieces are assembled like a jigsaw - held together by lead, soldered at the joints, and cemented with putty to give the window strength and make it weather-proof. After cleaning and polishing by hand, the final stage, it’s ready to be installed.

They are traditional techniques that Williams & Byrne, their company name, are proud to be keeping alive. And to share their skills they run a painting course in Shropshire once a quarter and are writing a book to teach others and promote their techniques.

“In places like Japan and the United States there is a flourishing interest in English stained glass painting,” says David. “We want to make it widely known that traditional techniques like ours still work wonderfully.”

Among their recent projects have been commissions from private clients at home and abroad, including one for the Bay of Nice, France; design work that they e-mail to the United States; and several restoration jobs for churches in the English and Welsh Marches, such as the legs of St Oswald in Shrewsbury Cathedral and a set of memorial windows for Saint Ethelbert’s, Leominster.

The success of their partnership, they believe, comes down to many factors, but above all they have an unshakeable conviction about their work.

“Three things make our work excellent and distinctive,” believes Stephen. “Our original designs, exquisite painting, and the high quality of the materials we use. The windows can last for hundreds of years, so we have to use the very best!”

“Any hazards to the job?” I enquire, before leaving. They dismiss the obvious one of cutting their fingers, saying it only happens once a month, and come up with something far more unexpected.

“Ladybirds.” says Stephen. “It’s true!” he insists. “I’ve been attacked by hordes of them. They like to nest in the stonework, high off the ground, where it’s safe and warm. One minute you’re working on a ledge, twenty feet up in the air, without a care in the world, the next, they’re all over you and crawling down your neck.”

But it is not a life he would change: “No more pin-striped suits – it is a craftsman’s life now for me!”

Williams & Byrne Limited, Shropshire

• Showing at ‘Gorgeous Contemporary Crafts’, Coalbrookdale (8-9th October)
• Next course on stained glass painting: 18-20th November
• Private tuition also available
• Church Farm Studios, Stanton Lacy, Ludlow, SY8 2AE
• Telephone 01584 856724 or e-mail studio@williamsandbyrne.co.uk
• www.williamsandbyrne.co.uk

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