St. Stephen Catholic Church
El Paso, TX

Architect:
Alvidrez Architecture, Inc.

Liturgical Consultant:
Kenneth J. Griesemer & Associates

PHASE 1: ALTAR CROSS WINDOW
11'-0" w by 22'-0" h
(Click to view Phase 2)

German and French mouthblown glass, domestic rolled glasses, dichroic glass, lead and solder.

The glass Cross formed within this Altar Window, together with a suspended, life-size Italian Corpus, provide the three-dimensional Crucifix at the focal point of worship at St. Stephen Catholic Church. The window wall also separates Altar and Sanctuary from Tabernacle and Chapel. It is recessed behind an opening in the stone wall allowing direct access to the Chapel from the Altar. The eleven foot width of the Glass Cross Window is wider than the opening in the stone wall, thereby insuring that worshipers in pews on the Sanctuary side do not see around its edges.

White glasses define the Cross and emphasize its presence behind the Corpus. The symbolic relationship between the crucified Body of Christ on one side of the Glass Cross and the Tabernacle on the other side is a fitting dichotomy. Besides the dominant Cross motif, imagery implied by shape and line in the stained glass include Dove, Tree, Angel, Stone, Wings as well as the radiating Love and Light of God’s presence. Because of the parallax created by the separation of the Cross and Corpus, the horizontal aspect of the cross was widened so that it remains behind the Corpus regardless one’s vantage in the Nave. With two exterior Chapel windows glimmering directly behind the Glass Cross, the subtle color and textures of the glass cross are animated in the daytime. This light creates an amber shift in color of the white glasses that echoes the color and texture of the surrounding stone wall. Interior lighting in the Chapel transforms the window into a glowing beacon at night.

Initially the emphasis was on an strict achromatic palette of white and clear glasses. As the design progressed, the palette gradually expanded to include subtle, pale tints of color in background glasses in a variety of textures.

Click images for a larger view.

View from Tabernacle