Life of Christ. Eglise Saint-Sulpice de Fougères (detail) 1919

This is a detail of a stained glass piece made by Ludovic Alleaume, called 'Life of Christ', and its colours are something else. Look at that deep, almost bruised purple in the background, contrasted with the softer, muted tones of the figures. It's like Alleaume is inviting us into a dream, a space where the rules of the everyday don't quite apply. The way the light filters through the glass gives everything a kind of glow, but it's not a simple, pretty glow. It's got depth, a bit of melancholy. And then there's the surface, so smooth, but you know it's made of all these little pieces, pieced together. See the way the blue of the man's robe catches the light? It's like a little jewel. When I look at this, I think about other artists who played with light and color, like the Pre-Raphaelites, they were also trying to find a way to make the spiritual feel real, maybe Alleaume was too. Art is all about that conversation.