International Design Arts Award
Interfaith Forum on Religion, Art & Architecture/American Institute of Architects
Pastoral Care Department: Kent Taylor, Chaplain; Lisa Wraith, Chaplain
Architect: Perkins & Will (The Lauck Group) Dallas; Bob Brendle, AIA
Interior Planning and Design: Hermanovski Design, Dallas, Texas; Carol Hermanovski
Hope Chapel Windows
Over 855 square feet of stained glass.
Color and light in Hope Chapel’s stained glass convey’s an enlightening sense of strength and reassurance allowing each person to respond in terms of their own spirituality.
As the physical focus of (Texas Health) Presbyterian Hospital Plano’s chaplaincy program, Hope Chapel provides a 70 seat nondenominational meditation and worship area for the hospital’s patients, visitors and staff members. The windows’ powerful yet serene area of warm color and white glass sparkles with transcendent wonder. From this bright central focus, light expands outward, pushing back the darkness. An etched, starry night sky represents both our physical reality in this world as well as the absence of Light (the Creator).
Because of the chapel’s location at the intersection of two multi-story building wings and the resultant distracting views directly into these wings, the dense night sky also functions as a partition that reintroduces intimacy into the chapel. The billowing, 3-dimensional night sky was made possible by the rich watercolor-like gradations found in mouthblown glass. By carefully choosing each piece of glass from the thick (darker) or thin (lighter) areas within the sheets of mouthblown glass, the illusion of under- and over-folds was created.
UPDATE: Recently my sister-in-law, Kaye Edwards was rushed to Presbyterian Hospital. “Kaye’s Village” of family and friends gathered to hope and pray for Kaye. Sadly, in spite of the best care possible and non-stop prayers, Kaye did not recover. During our time there the warmth and sensitivity of the care she/we received was a huge comfort to us all. Hope Chapel is a visible symbol of the wonderful chaplaincy program that was endowed by Ray and Nancy Hunt. I suspected this before, but have now experienced first-hand the warm, positive and inspired spirituality that flows from the pastoral care team to every patient, doctor and nurse while permeating the entire hospital campus. It is humbling to know that Hope Chapel and its stained glass continue to provide comfort and inspiration in support of a very dedicated chaplaincy program.
OTHERS COMMENT:
When dealing with works of art, I have often found the “heart and soul” of the artist inseparable from the quality of the final work. Jeff Smith is a person of high capability, tremendous character and deep conviction. His work reflects the character of the man – and both are superb. I have had the pleasure of working with Jeff on a couple of different projects and, suffice it to say, I would not be writing this if I had not emerged from each of those experiences with an extremely high regard for Jeff.
Ray L. Hunt, CEO, Hunt Consolidated, Inc., Dallas, Texas
For more than eight years, I have had the pleasure of knowing Jeff Smith, who, through his wonderful work, has helped fulfill our design concepts for projects of all scales and types. Always responsive and reliable, he consistently produces outstanding results. He has a rare combination of skills: he is a conceptual thinker, a talented artist, a good communicator, a team player and a detail oriented technician.
Jeff’s dedication to quality and generous spirit have endeared him to all who have known and worked with him. He deserves to be awarded the best, most challenging projects available, and I recommend him without reservation.
Carol Hermanovski, President, Carol Hermanovski Design, Dallas, TX
At Presbyterian Hospital of Plano Jeff developed a beautiful as well as intellectual design that has made the Chapel the focal point for the hospital’s interiors. We hope to collaborate in the near future with Jeff to bring the added dimension of his glass to our design. I hope that you will also give this talented artist your consideration.
Bob Brendle, Vice President, Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum, Inc., St. Louis, MO
Materials: German mouthblown glass, fire-polished lenses, dichroic glass, lead and solder; installed behind tempered protective glazing.