South West Bay 1 | The Windows of Rowan LeCompte

Photo – Peter Swanson

Southwest, Bay 1

1961 – Church of the Incarnation, Washington, DC

This modest and unassuming church on the eastern edge of our nation’s capital is completely illuminated with windows by Rowan and Irene. Their windows create a moody, almost mystical light in the space. Irene may have been the principal designer, given that friends of the family have told us that she really loved to let the glass be its unadorned self in windows. The glass in all of these windows is exquisite artisan glass in warm, rich colors. The effect of the whole bank of windows is almost kaleidoscopic.

This is the bay of windows nearest the altar, on the southwest side of the church. On that side of the building, the window colors begin in this window with blues and yellows dominating. By the time the progression has reached the fourth bay near the rear of the church, the colors have transitioned to deep reds, and that transition begins in the left lancet here.

Iconography

The windows on both sides of the church nave are abstract in design, and we have not yet uncovered any documentation telling us why they were created in this style. Part of their beauty, however, is that the outside world is visible through them, and one can see cars passing by, leaves blowing, clouds moving, and weather shifting. For people to be able to sit in this beautiful light, looking at the changing world through this marvelous transition of color may have simply been all that Irene and Rowan intended.