Chautauqua Series Summary
Dr. Barbara Johnson spoke on stained glass windows Sunday during the Madison Area Arts Council Chautauqua Series at Mochavino Coffee and Wine Bar. This program was made possible by the South Dakota Humanities Council, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Most of her presentation focused on windows in South Dakota. She also talked about the process of making stained glass.
Johnson, of Aberdeen, had a slide show with pictures of stained glass from around the state, including windows at the capitol building. She noted the dome as the most prominent stained glass in the building.
It was the “funny looking” windows overlooking the rotunda, however, that were a curiosity to her. The design of these windows had been passed off as curly-Q’s, but Johnson saw more of a bug shape to them.
South Dakota State University entomologist Mike Catungui informed her the pattern looked like a water strider, Johnson said. This insect is also known as a straddlebug.
In his autobiography “A Son of the Middle Border,” Hamlin Garland writes that pioneers of the 1880s used tripod-like boards called straddlebugs to mark their claims of land, Johnson said, who holds a Ph.D. in English.
Those “funny looking” windows turned out to be a tribute to the area’s early settlers, Johnson said.
“Windows tell a story and how they tell it is very interesting,” Johnson said.
She also discussed stained glass windows in area churches, including First Baptist Church, Grace Episcopal Church, United Methodist Church, St. Thomas Catholic Church and Trinity Lutheran Church.
Johnson spent considerable time investigating a window at First Baptist Church with a design she’d never seen before. The window has a ribbon with the words “The Light of Wentworth” inscribed on it. “Wentworth” refers to William Wentworth, Johnson said, a colonial minister who said the light of faith is what should be most important to a Christian.
Johnson mentioned symbols and scenes found in the other church windows, such as the legend of the pelican – where the mother pelican plucks at herself for blood to feed her offspring – and its representation of sacrifice.
There are many unexpected places to find stained glass windows in Madison, Johnson said. She suggested looking at houses near Dakota State University and funeral homes.
Sixteen people attended the event.
(We’re working on finding a great digital picture of the ‘straddlebug’ window, stay tuned)
