Ontwerp voor raam in het Noordertransept in de Dom te Utrecht c. 1934

Richard Nicolaüs Roland Holst made this design for a window in Utrecht Cathedral with pencil, gouache, and chalk. Imagine Holst in his studio, puzzling how to filter light through panes of colored glass, and how the arrangement might invoke sacred themes. What a beautiful problem to have, and how to solve it? See how the composition is segmented into geometric fields of warm browns and reds. They’re divided by dark lines – maybe they represent the lead that holds a stained-glass window together? I like to think the irregular shapes are a plan to transform light into a feeling. He might be thinking of Giotto, the early Renaissance master, but it is also possible to imagine him looking at some cubist paintings, or even the sets for German Expressionist film! Artists steal and borrow from each other across time, inspiring new ways to see and feel. Roland Holst gives us a chance to pause and reflect upon the quiet hum of inspiration that runs through us all.