SAINT BRIGID CHURCH’S STRANGE GENIUS: beautiful decadent psychedelic stained glass windows by Irish maestro Harry Clarke: Haunting Celtic Renaissance Catholic Symbolism in San Francisco landmark, saved in 2006 by the Committee to Save Saint Brigid Church. JUSTYN ZOLLI’S AURORA PHOTOS: Fiammata Glass Studio, Marin, California.

THE EYE OF GOD IN THE CENTRE OF THE CROSS: Rose window detail, Saint Brigid Church, stained glass by Ireland’s master of Celtic Renaissance Christian Symbolism, Harry Clarke, San Francisco, California, USA.

THE GREAT ROSE WINDOW AT SAINT BRIGID

The Trinity centres the masterful design of the Great Rose window at Saint Brigid, by Harry Clarke.

ROSE WINDOW OF THE SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY GHOST

ROSE WINDOW OF THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS

SACRED HEART OF JESUS: Detail of Christ’s face, showing his merciful nature and his divine compassion, especially in the expression of the hypnotic eyes.  Many of Harry Clarke’s saints had similar features in the strangely mysterious Saint Brigid Church windows in San Francisco.

OUR LORD AND SAINT MARGARET MARY: Detail of stained glass window in Saint Brigid’s, San Francisco, California

The heavy handling of the drapery on Saint Margaret Mary suggests a partial later repair job of inferior quality to the original Harry Clarke studio window.  

The faces of Our Lord and the female saint seem to be in Harry Clarke’s typically ascetic, gaunt style of modeling, however. 

NUESTRA SENORA DE GUADALUPE: Detail of stained glass window, Saint Brigid Church, San Francisco, California.

SAINT BRIGID WINDOW: Here the most important female Irish saint is shown in the ancient garb of a nun. The serene beauty of the saint’s expression, the Celtic interlace and the colour harmonies of the whole, make this a rare masterpiece of the early 20th century Celtic Symbolist renaissance in North America. 

TRADITIONAL PEASANT CROSS OR CROSOG BHRIDE: Detail of woven reed cross, with Celtic interlace decorative surround, Saint Brigid Church, San Francisco, California by Harry Clarke.

CROSOG BHRIDE: St. Bride’s Cross: Celtic Sprite photo.

Below: SAINT COLUMBAN: Full length, vertical rectangular neo-Romanesque arched stained glass window, Saint Brigid Church, San Francisco, California, by Harry Clarke

 

SAINT COLUMBAN (details, above)

SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI: Patron saint of the ecology holding a green cross, in Saint Brigid Church, S. F.

Below: here the stigmatized ascetic saint is thanking the birds for their song of praise to the Creator in this full length view of the same arched vertical rectangular stained glass window by Harry Clarke in Saint Brigid Church, on Van Ness Avenue.

Birds at the feet of Saint Francis of Assisi

OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST WITH SAINT MARY MAGDALEN: The Divine Healer cast out seven demons from the ‘Apostle to the Apostles’. She was the first person to report the Christ had risen from the dead on Easter morning.

OUR LORD WITH SAINT MARY MAGDALENE: Detail of Harry Clarke rectangular vertical window at Saint Brigid, S. F.

HOLY WOMEN MINISTERING TO THE SICK: St. Brigid Church, S. F.

SAINT PATRICK: The Anglo-Roman saint who converted the barbaric Irish is shown holding a shamrock, symbol of the Trinity, in this detail, above, of a Harry Clarke stained glass window in Saint Brigid Church, S. F., seen in its entirety, below.

 ANNUNCIATION AT SAINT BRIGID’S: This, and the following Mysteries of the Rosary windows by the Irish Symbolist master stained glass artist Harry Clarke, are some of the highest quality in terms of colour harmonies, intricacy of detail, and overall beauty of the figures and composition.

VISITATION: The Virgin Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth. Both were pregnant, Mary with Jesus, Elizabeth with John the Baptist. Harry Clarke’s mastery of colour harmonies is very evident in this masterpiece in Saint Brigid’s, San Francisco.

VISITATION: Detail of Harry Clarke’s stained glass mastery, showing the lovely colour harmonies in the drapery of the holy women. Mary kneels in honour of her older cousin Elizabeth.

NATIVITY OF OUR LORD: Note the Star of the Sea symbology in the circle at the bottom of the window, surrounded, as usual, with intricate Celtic interlace. 

NATIVITY: Our Lady prays with complete contentment to her new-born son, the Saviour of the world, in this detail from the Harry Clarke masterpiece at Saint Brigid.

SAINT JOSEPH: Detail of vertical rectangular stained glass window, showing the step-father of Jesus, and husband of the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph the Worker. In this Harry Clarke window at Saint Brigid’s, the Jewish carpenter is shown holding a small model church building, as often is the convention in such images.

PRESENTATION OF OUR LORD IN THE TEMPLE: The Christ child, long awaited Messiah of the Jews, is presented to the high priest in the Temple of Jerusalem.  Note the Star of David and harp of Ireland on either side of the Tower of Ivory.  

Cardinal Newman, beatified yesterday in Birmingham by the pope, wrote that Mary ‘is called the Tower of Ivory, to suggest to us, by the brightness, purity and exquisiteness of that material, how transcendent is the loveliness and the gentleness of the Mother of God.’ 

FINDING OF THE CHILD JESUS IN THE TEMPLE: Here Harry Clarke shows the precocious Messiah holding the rabbis and sages of the Temple in awe with his extraordinary wisdom.

DESCENT OF THE HOLY GHOST: Pentecost comes to Mary and the Apostles in these details, above, and full view, below, from Harry Clarke’s suite of stained glass masterpieces at Saint Brigid Church, S. F., CA

THE ASSUMPTION: The Virgin Mother is shown rising to her reward in Heaven, surrounded by winged putti in this detail from another of the Mysteries of the Rosary by Harry Clarke at Saint Brigid Church in San Francisco.

Below: Half-length detail of the same rectangular vertical – arched window, showing Our Lord tenderly receiving his Mother. Third photo on bottom : full length view.

CORONATION OF OUR LADY: In this detail from a vertical rectangular stained glass window by Harry Clarke at Saint Brigid’s Church in San Francisco, our Lord is shown crowning the Blessed Virgin Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth and Mother of God

SANCTUARY DOME OVAL WINDOWS (below)

SANCTUARY DOME WINDOWS, Saint Brigid Church, S. F.

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION: Our Lady standing on the head of the Serpent, and crescent moon.

IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY

Detail of the tempting Satanic serpent’s head being crushed by the Holy Virgin Mother. Note the red roses around her most holy heart, and on her shoes.

ROSES FROM HEAVEN: SAINTE THERESE DE LISIEUX:

The humble Norman Carmelite nun promised to shower the flowers on souls below from heaven above, for forgiveness of sins and for holy prayers to Our Lord. The heavy handling of the drapery on this St. Brigid Church window suggests it is not by the Harry Clarke studio.

Harry Clarke’s name plate, Saint Brigid Church window,

San Francisco, California, USA

 A thin strange angel from the Saint Vincent de Paul Church in Bayonne, New Jersey, by Harry Clarke, from the new book ‘Strange Genius’.

[For links to the Fiammata Glass website where more colour photos of these Harry Clarke windows can be found, to the website of the Committee to Save Saint Brigid Church ( the group directly responsible for saving the Celtic Renaissance landmark in San Francisco), and to websites promoting the new Strange Genius book of complete Harry Clarke stained glass window work, please refer to the Comments section below.]

Saint Brigid Church exterior, Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, California. Justyn Zolli Photo from AURORA.

LA ROSA TRANSCULTURAL SYMBOLIST ARTS PROPAGANDA 2010