Transfiguration

1967 – Washington National Cathedral – Apse, South Clerestory

The challenge for Rowan and Irene in this window was to create a figure that was emanating light from its entire being. They met this challenge by using white glass to portray Christ as an almost translucent figure, with shards of red, yellow and orange light emanating from him. The dark reds help set off the figures that are being illuminated by this great light.

One thing to note here are the slender, elongated figures used in this clerestory window. Rowan often chose this elongation technique for windows that were high up and had to be viewed from a less-than-optimal angle. The angle of vision for seeing this particular window is very narrow, and the long figures become foreshortened, making their proportions appear normal as you look up at them. Also of note here is the unusual situation (for Rowan) in which he and Irene created and fabricated the window, “assisted by Dieter Goldkuhle,” who also installed it. It is rare that we see Rowan, Irene and Dieter working on the same window.

Iconography

Here our attention is seized by the transfigured Christ in all his glory. Christ dominates the center lancet and emits powerful rays of light to his right and left. He is standing on a green mountain-top, with his feet pointing toward Jerusalem. His orientation, along with his purple robe, symbolize the events of his last week on earth and his ultimate sacrifice on the cross. At the top of the left lancet, three sweeping arcs of blue or white glass suggest the voice descending from a cloud that proclaims, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5; see also Mark 9 and Luke 9 for similar accounts). Also in the left lancet, Peter, ever a symbol of humanity and its limitations, is overcome with awe at the voice and this great light and must shield his eyes. Below him are James and John, the other two chosen witnesses of the Transfiguration. As Peter, James and John look on, the glorified Christ converses with two of the most revered historical figures in the Bible, seen in the right lancet: Moses, the lawgiver, and Elijah, the great prophet.