Editor’s note: As we celebrate the Jubilee Year of Artists this month, this is the first of an occasional series on artists whose work has transformed our diocese and brings us all a little closer to the beauty and majesty of God.
Raising our minds toward God
Windows done by Laws Stained Glass Studios in Statesville pay homage to the patroness of St. Therese Church in Mooresville. (Photos by Troy C. Hull)STATESVILLE — A small family-owned business without Catholic traditions but with deep Southern roots has inspired parishioners across the Diocese of Charlotte with the sacred art of stained glass. Stained-glass companies from around the world have worked in the diocese, but one close to home has designed, repaired and installed stained-glass windows for nearly two dozen parishes and Catholic schools.
From Holy Infant Church in Reidsville to the historic St. Lawrence Basilica in Asheville to Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Charlotte, Laws Stained Glass Studios in Statesville has been gracing the diocese with its works of art for 79 years.
The ancient artform is so omnipresent across the diocese one would be hard-pressed to find a church without it. At St. Therese Church in Mooresville, the kaleidoscope of multicolored beams that shine through the stained glass is just one example of Laws’ work.
During Mass at St. Therese, red and purple triangles dance onto the faces of parishioners as they sing or pray – a reminder they are in a sacred place. This same scene has played out in Catholic churches since the 7th century, when the art form is said to have begun, and thanks to small fine-glass companies, it continues to survive and thrive.
“There was a time that not everybody could read, not everybody had a Bible, but you could go into a church and you could learn your catechism and your scriptural stories, and learn about the saints by looking at stained-glass windows,” says Father Mark Lawlor, St. Therese’s pastor. “They add to the beauty as well as to the art. They play a valuable role in teaching and devotion.”
The late Jack Laws founded his stained-glass company in 1946, and decades later, the business remains a family affair with Jack’s daughter, son and grandsons running the office, overseeing sales, or cutting and designing stained glass alongside 40 other glass crafters and artists. The company creates and installs about 100 works annually for churches of all faiths across the country. Even before the Diocese of Charlotte was established in 1972, a relationship was forged: Laws installed stained glass in steel frames at St. Stephen Church in Elkin in 1955.
In Albemarle, parishioners Don and Nancy Barker are inspired by the glasswork the Laws studio installed at their church, Our Lady of the Annunciation, in 1971.
“The stained glass is gorgeous and full of color. When the sun comes on it and lights it all up, it is absolutely beautiful,” says Nancy Barker, a parishioner for 19 years.
The church’s windows depict the Stations of the Cross.
“You can have a very intimate connection with our stained-glass because they are the Stations of the Cross,” Barker says. “A lot of people stand in front of each depiction, one window at a time, and say prayers during Adoration. It is a quiet meditation.”
Debbie Coyler displays one of Laws’ hand-painted clear glass inserts of Jesus. (Photo by Lisa Geraci | Catholic New Herald)
Painting saints and angels
Despite technological advancements – electric kilns, computer blueprints and aluminum frames – the process of creating this sacred art remains largely unchanged. At Laws, each intricate window takes two weeks or more to complete.
The process begins with Chief Artist Nina Haynes sketching life-size designs on paper in charcoal pencil. In her dimly lit studio lined with sketches, Haynes spends hours hand-painting saints, angels and the Holy Family on pieces of clear glass – artistry that will live on for generations.
After 48 years, she can’t pick a favorite:
“They are all my favorite,” she says, “every single one.”
The glass pieces are fired at 1,200 degrees in an electric kiln, sometimes once, sometimes five times, depending on how many layers of paint Haynes has added for a variety of desired effects. The pieces are waterproofed with a glaze, then they’re off to a drying rack.
When the glass is ready, Jack Laws’ grandsons Eythan and Caleb lay the pieces out on the table as if to assemble a jigsaw puzzle. They bind the pieces together with lead strips. Soon, the work is ready to be shipped across the country – or the world.
Chief Artist Nina Haynes hand paints a depiction of the baptism of Jesus. These glass inserts will later be placed in the middle of larger stained-glass designs.
Humble beginnings
Born and raised in Iredell County, Jack Laws picked cotton as a young man, then went West in search of opportunity. He worked on the Hoover Dam, then landed a job in St. Louis installing windows – which led to an apprenticeship in stained-glass work.
His daughter Debbie Colyer remembers him saying one day: “We got to go back home because that is where the Bible Belt is. There is a little country church on every corner.”
He opened his studio in Statesville a year after serving in World War II, and demand grew steadily as the region’s population did. The rise of Catholicism in the South – and a resulting church construction boom – helped fuel his business, just as his business helped fuel inspiration.
Laws isn’t the only such artisan company in Statesville. The town also is home to Statesville Stained Glass Co., which has been in operation for nearly 50 years and served at least 17 Catholic churches in the diocese.
“Stained-glass windows bring tranquility,” says Father Peter Ascik, who enjoys gazing at the angel Gabriel speaking to Mary in a stained-glass pictorial of the Annunciation at his church. He is pastor of St. Mary Help of Christians, in Shelby, where the Laws’ artwork adorns the back wall.
“Stained glass makes a building feel like a church. They make it feel like a sacred space,” Ascik says. “The artistry and craftsmanship are beautiful. The effect of transforming natural light into color images helps to raise our minds to God. The images help us contemplate the mysteries of the faith and God and the saints.”
Caleb Laws uses lead to bind together pieces of opalescent glass. God’s hand at work
Laws has fulfilled orders from as far away as Korea, American Samoa and the Cayman Islands. Usually the masterpieces are carefully cushioned in Styrofoam and sent off, but some clients prefer on-site installation, including “The House on the Rock” in Lagos, Nigeria.
“We packed a shipping container and then flew two of our guys out there for installation,” says Colyer, who is the office manager.
The work, she says, is long and difficult and sometimes unpredictably busy or slow – but it’s a priceless way of life.
“The churches aren’t like they used to be,” Colyer says. “They have become more like concert halls and auditoriums and movie theaters – so they are not getting stained-glass.”
But as the industry evolves, for every opportunity lost, she says, God provides a new opportunity. Laws has endured innumerable trials – from financial challenges, to family illness, to a devastating fire, to the death of Jack Laws and his wife Helen. Yet the family remains hopeful and inspired.
The fire, in particular, tested them. The studio burned to the ground in 1991, but the resilient Law family moved operations into a shed until the new shop could be built. Recovering from the devastation deepened the Laws family’s faith – in their business and in God.
“There have been a lot of ups and downs over the years, and if it wasn’t for God we wouldn’t be here,” Colyer says. “I think God has had a hand in this all along.”
Eythan and Caleb Laws feel God’s hand as they install the colorful artwork.
“You can get numb to it in the studio, but when you hang up a new piece of glass, you don’t realize how much more it looks like a church,” Caleb Laws says. “It really changes the atmosphere.”
For Colyer, she believes – and hopes – that “what we do brings people to God.”
Indeed, at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Lenoir, the windows transfix and transport parishioners spiritually.
“Our stained-glass windows remind us when we go into the church that we are entering a heavenly realm,” says Father Alfonso Gamez, pastor.
The church’s eight windows depicting Franciscan saints are situated low in the church so the saints appear to be among the people. The windows date to 1939 and were moved, under the careful guidance of Laws, from the original church to the new church in 2001.
“They provide beauty and inspiration,” Father Gamez says, “and the saints depicted come from all over the world, reflecting the great diversity of the Church.”
— Lisa Geraci. Photos and video by Troy C. Hull
Laws Stained Glass Studios clients
Petals showering down in the stained-glass design honor her name as “The Little Flower.”Our Lady of the Annunciation Church, Albemarle
St. Barnabas Church, Arden
St. Lawrence Basilica, Asheville
Mary Help of Christians Basilica, Belmont
Charlotte Catholic High School, Charlotte
Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Charlotte
St. John Neumann Church, Charlotte
St. Matthew Church, Charlotte
St. Vincent de Paul Church, Charlotte
St. Patrick School, Charlotte
St. Stephen Church, Elkin
Immaculate Conception Church, Hendersonville
St. Francis of Assisi Church, Lenoir
St. Dorothy Church, Lincolnton
Our Lady of the Angels Church, Marion
St. Therese Church, Mooresville
St. Charles Borromeo Church, Morganton
Holy Infant Church, Reidsville
St. Mary Help of Christians Church, Shelby
St. Philip the Apostle Church, Statesville
Holy Trinity, Taylorsville
St. John the Baptist Church, Tryon
