Pulteney Grammar School stained glass windows: Ron views this exhibition of the stained glass craftsmen's workmanship in the Adelaide City region of South Australia

The Tiffany Windows in the Art Gallery of South Australia convey the terrible sadness of a mother - Ada Ayers as she remembers her late husband Harry Lockett Ayers and six of their children. Each cherub represents an infant who died at childbirth.

The windows entitled "Angel of Faith" and "River of Life" were commissioned by Ada Ayers in 1908. They were designed by the famous American Louis Comfort Tiffany and are the only examples of his highly sought in the Southern Hemisphere. Tiffany and his New York Studio were famous for their unique opalescent glassware and for their invention of melting coloured glass together to create this milky rainbow-like effect.

They were originally designed for Saint Paul's Anglican Church in Pulteney Street and have been moved several times since the Church's de-commissioning in the early 1980s.

For fifteen years, they took pride of place in Pulteney Grammar School's Chapel. But the burden of responsibility for such artistic treasures - not to mention the prohibitive cost of insuring them - weighed heavily on the School and so in 2001 they were moved to North Terrace.

But the Gallery's acquisition left Pulteney with a gaping hole and a dilemma - one which has now been resolved.

Rod James, Art Teacher: "We'd been sitting in chapel and we thought we needed a bit of inspiration for some new windows to go in. For a while we had frosted windows so we went back to the classroom and each of the students came back with their own ideas for the piece."

Some of those ideas came from past students Hannah Hannaford and Jack Jones. Jack was a member of the Pulteney rowing team and was pleased to see the inclusion of Pulteney's Boat Shed. Hannah pushed for the century old cloisters and Pulteney's distinctive connecting walkway to the South Parklands.

Hannah Hannaford, Former Student: "When I first started at Pulteney people didn't know what school it was and I would tell them about it and they'd say 'oh, the school with the bridge?' So everybody know that one I guess."

Like the Tiffany Windows - there's also a river. This one's the Torrens winding it's way past icons like the Festival Theatre, which many of the students pass on the way to the inner city school.

The Tiffany Window's replacement was installed earlier this year and is the culmination of a major collaboration between Pulteney teacher Rod James and his year eleven class of 2007 and glass artist Judith Carletti.

Judith Carletti, Glass Artist: "I guess the ultimate thing for me was coming back to take a photo recently and I saw a class full of primary kids sitting on the floor underneath them and they're just such happy vibrant colourful windows. I think it's really something lovely that they can appreciate while they are in here during chapel."

Pulteney's stained glass replacement for the famous Tiffany Windows will be officially unveiled when the Chapel will be open to the public on July 31st.

Those designed by Loius Comfort Tiffany more than a century ago are on display in the Art Gallery of South Australia on North Terrace.

Pulteney Grammar School Chapel Stained glass windows Public unveiling 2pm July 31st Free admission

Tiffany Windows
Art Gallery of SA
North Terrace City
Free Admission

Published 26th July 2009