BOOK BARGAIN

I have visited hundreds of charity shops and am always attracted to collections of books. I judge how good a shop is by the range of subjects covered on the bookshelves. There is a shop in Inverness has one of the best collections of art books and even has a title relating to glass. Every time I go into the shop, I take comfort that it is still on the shelf and being well looked after. Alas I cannot justify buying it as I already have the said title. With my collection of over six hundred books about glass I would be foolish to make space for duplicates. I think in the last five years I have only managed to find two books that have interested me enough to buy. One concerned Venetian glass and the other is the one illustrated her about stained glass. I will be the first to admit I am not a great fan of this type of glass art. Having said that I do recognise the skills and importance of the craft. However, this book has really opened my eyes to how colourful the imagery can be from simply photographing stained glass windows.

The title says it all; “Design Source Book – Stained Glass.” ISBN 1859740359. The author is Lynette Wrigley who has compiled a fantastic collection of imagery which clearly demonstrates the beauty of coloured windows. I feel there should be more credit given to the photographers as essential this is a picture book to inspire the reader to create their own designs. Contact details are given of the various artists involved and I suppose one would contact them to find out how to view the art for real.

The designs have been arranged imaginatively with non-secular and abstract leading the field which also consists of marine life, people and portraits, birds, and animals, and of course flowers. There are always flowers. They are so pretty, aren’t they? Most designs are contemporary and many I could have cut out to frame and then decorate the walls of my home. That would be an insult to the book and horrify book lovers across the World but as my copy only cost me fifty pence the thought was slightly attractive. The new price is £12.99 so not expensive.

Whether this book will help me be a better lampworker I have no idea but who cares. Just gazing and ogling over the pictures has given me immense pleasure and at the moment times like this are to be treasured.

Many books about stained glass concern themselves with how to make windows and other objects using glass and going into detail of the best way to use special tools. Thankfully, this book is an exception and focuses on the pure joy that stained glass can offer. I am off not to more charity shops to see if I can bag a bargain!