Suspended Altar Cross First United Methodist Church Duncanville, Texas Architecture: Booziotis and Associates, Dallas 7.0' x 16.0' x 0.4' (2.1 x 4.9 x 0.12 m) By the time I was commissioned for this project, the lighting possibilities were limited to front lighting from below the cross. This was my primary concern as I considered options and the result is a design that presents stained glass in a "shadow box" cross lined with mirror. The glass palette consists of several textures of clear transparent glass, white opal and opak glasses and dichroic glass accents. Reflections of the white glasses within the cross produces a dramatic and elusive effect while colors from the dichroic glass sparkle and glimmer unexpectedly with the mere tilting of ones head.
I designed the white powder-painted aluminum and steel cross as five separate units that could be disconnected and reassembled at the project site. With the aid of a hydraulic lift, the cross was raised up where stainless steel cable slings and turnbuckles were swaged onto eyebolts on a laminated ceiling beam.