A former teacher and contractor has turned his love of building in an artistic direction, as he now enjoys the “tedious” work of making stained glass windows and other projects.
Randy Bangsund spoke about his new passion to Weyburn Rotary Club on Thursday, showing examples of his work with stained glass as he explained what is involved with creating each piece.
He retired from being a contractor and took a class about three and a half years ago along with his wife in how to make stained glass projects.
While his wife hasn’t stayed with the art, Bangsund is continuing to develop and grow in his abilities. “I make things and always have, so this came naturally to me.”
He noted that his interest was piqued initially when as a contractor he did some work at the Anglican Church, including going to Regina to pick up a stained glass window for the church.
“The work can be quite tedious at times, which is why my wife says I enjoy doing it,” he said.
Historically the first reference to stained glass was in England in the seventh century when an artist would set up his kiln at the site of a cathedral under construction and would make the window on-site.
Clear glass was coloured by adding metallic oxides, he said, noting that during the Renaissance, this glass art was called painted glass. “We call it stained, but it’s neither painted or stained,” he commented.
The art declined for a long time, but was revived in the late 19th century and early 20th century, with builders like Frank Lloyd Wright and Tiffany making new artistic creations of stained glass for homes, public and commercial buildings.
There are two main methods for making stained glass projects today, using foil on each piece and soldering them together, or using lead to join the pieces.
“Whatever you do, you have to obey the limits of glass. You have to obey those principles. People can purchase books of patterns or found on-line, and the best people make their own designs,” said Bangsund.
His main method for making a stained glass window is to project a pattern or design on the wall with an overhead projector, marking the design out on paper. He then decides on what colours he will use and how many pieces are required before proceeding to get the coloured glass.
“There are thousands of colours and designs that can be used,” he said, noting he then cuts the pieces with his glass cutter, and uses a grinder to smooth out the rough edges and refine the shape before piecing them together.
Some artists use lead, but with very tiny pieces of glass they almost disappear with the lead lining. “The foil method was invented by Tiffany, because he wanted to work with tiny pieces,” said Bangsund, noting this is the method he also prefers to use.
He estimates he’s made around 50 projects or windows over the past three years, including a number of smaller pieces, such as suncatchers or Christmas decorations.
Asked what his biggest project was, Bangsund said he made a window for his son’s house in Calgary that measured 58 by 25 inches, and was built into the wall.
For many of his windows, he makes his own frames, preferring if he can to use old wood. On average, he estimates he might spend around 25 hours on making a window.
