Photo – Peter Swanson

Saint Luke

1959 – Saint Alban’s Church, Washington, DC

This is one of 5 windows Rowan and Irene have in Saint Alban’s Church, which sits on the grounds of the National Cathedral.  Unlike the other four, which are totally abstract, this window has a recognizable figure, Saint Luke.  The painting is striking in this window in that they use thick, heavy lines that are then scratched and crosshatched to add texture character and to control the light. The lead lines are also heavy and the combination of all this painting gives the window a kind of kinetic energy. The other element of note is the stark contrast in background colors that cut diagonally through the frame.

Iconography

This window celebrates Saint Luke, the evangelist and physician.  In addition to the Gospel that bears his name, Luke is credited with writing the Acts of the Apostles, thus making him the author of nearly one third of the New Testament.  Clearly it is this prolific writing that is being honored here. 

We also see the Caduceus, or the Staff or Hermes, in the lower right hand of the window.  This symbol, especially in the US, has been associated with medicine and was most likely intended to pay tribute to Luke the physician here.  There is controversy, however, about the use of this as a medical symbol.   It seems that it somehow got mixed up with Rod of Asclepius, which has only one snake on it. That symbol comes from the Old Testament where Moses made a brass pole with a serpent on it to help heal his followers who were suffering from snake bites.  Rowan usually did such good research and so it is curious that he uses this symbol.  It could be that, as a veteran of WWII, Rowan was paying tribute to the Army Medical Corps, which adopted it as their symbol in 1902.

Year Completed

1959

Artists

Rowan LeCompte

Irene Matz LeCompte

Fabricator

Rowan LeCompte

Irene Matz LeCompte

Location In Building

Clerestory, South Side, West End