Stained Glass 1878 - 1882

Editor: Here we have John La Farge's "Stained Glass," created sometime between 1878 and 1882. Looking at the piece, I’m struck by the contrast between the dense ornamentation and the clean geometric structure. It has a definite medieval feel. What strikes you when you look at this piece? Curator: It’s interesting you picked up on that tension. La Farge was indeed deeply interested in medieval art, particularly stained glass. But his approach was quite radical for his time. Think about the broader art world of the late 19th century; this was an era of increasing industrialization. How might a piece like this, referencing earlier, pre-industrial techniques and styles, be seen within that context? Editor: I guess it would seem a bit… anachronistic? Like a rejection of modern progress, maybe? Curator: Precisely. La Farge saw something valuable in those older traditions. The emphasis on craft, the luminosity of the glass itself, the symbolic power of geometric form - all were seen as alternatives to the increasingly mass-produced aesthetic. It challenges the emerging values of his own time. Editor: So it's less a revival and more of a commentary on the direction society was heading? Curator: Exactly. And consider where this was displayed - the Metropolitan Museum of Art. What does it mean for an institution dedicated to displaying cultural heritage to exhibit a piece so pointedly referencing the past? Editor: That's a really interesting point, how museums reinforce those values! I hadn't thought of that. Curator: It tells us that institutions help legitimize such gestures of historical reflection. These patterns help reframe and even re-contextualize those moments in the present, and they still hold space for those works even today. Editor: Wow, I'll never look at stained glass the same way again! Thanks!