It’s ironic how my exposure to decorative glass as a child has impacted what I do as an adult. I remember being captivated by the glass crystals employed by one Hayley Mills (British actress) in the movie Pollyanna, when she made and sold “rainbow makers” at a fair that were made from pendants taken from a light fixture. I found this amazingly cool. (As an aside, I developed a huge crush on the actress as well, one that I carried long into adult life; so long, in fact, that my wife bought me dinner theatre tickets to see her just a couple of years ago as an anniversary gift).A while after that first experience, I carried the fascination into the spare parts room of the lighting company (a distributor of Strauss Crystal Chandeliers) for whom my dad was the national sales manager. On frequent trips to his NYC showroom, I would hijack parts that ended up on fishing lines in my bedroom window, casting patterns and rainbows onto the adjacent floor and walls.

Fast-forward 40 years, and I’m predisposed to designing leaded glass windows with plenty of faceted glass jewels and bevels to create the same effect. Of course today there are lots of ways to change light with glass and new ways are being introduced all the time. We’ve grown a giant industry around glass that takes light and adds colors, images, shadows, forms, textures; changes colors as you move, creates electricity, and so much, much more.

On a simple level it’s very magical. So I’m still going to remember Pollyanna, Hayley Mills and my first “rainbow maker” each time I see the sun shine through anything that magically changes plain light into something “just a bit more,” and experience that same fascination again through the eyes of my own children and their discovery as well.