Robinson Residence

Fort Davis, Texas

Designer & Builder: Rainbow Adobe, Alpine, TX; Steve Belardo

Hummingbird Garden
3.6' w. by 6.7' h. overall

Bear Dance
3.6' w. by 6.7' h. overall


These stained glass doors celebrate the natural world that embraces this house. Hummingbird Garden depicts the darting, elusive color of these unique and tiny birds. Bear Dance was created for a lover of all things “bear” (and cobalt) and an astronomer.

HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN: This door pays homage to the hummingbirds that dart and zip and flash in and around and among this oasis of native plants. Located in the Davis Mountains of west Texas, this house lies in the primary North American Hummingbird Flyway which ferries 16 species of these birds along their migratory journeys. The stained glass remains true to itself as a transparent medium. Rather than zoologically-correct detail, the design recreates the three-diensional sense of movement, depth and flashing color that summarize first impressions of hummingbirds. Afternoon sun manages to find its way under a cool ramada to the stained glass and into the the master bedroom.

BEAR DANCE: In response to large adjacent windows which provide ample light in this residential library, a polychromatic glass palette was used for the six lights in this door. With its saturated color, Bear Dance is the conceptual opposite of Millennium Moons, although both are integral parts of their respective adobe houses. Taking cues not only from Ursa major and minor (the “Big” and “Little” Bear constellations in the night sky), but also from the Davis Mountains beyond, Bear Dance becomes a colorful focus within this warm interior of painted adobe, Ponderosa pine, saltillo tile and cobalt accents.

 


Materials: German, French and Domestic Mouthblown Glass; Etched Flashed Glass; Lead; Solder.