Australia’s Hidden Stained Glass Windows - Lecture @Glaas Inc

Annual William Montgomery Lecture 2022.

This lecture acknowledges the wide range of Australia’s stained glass, which encompasses work in churches, houses, and public buildings, but its particular focus is on windows in residences. Hidden from public view, some are highly distinguished artistically – all are historically and culturally significant, telling diverse stories of Australia and Australians at different times and places. As part of the lecture series named for William Montgomery (1850-1927), the focus of this lecture also honours Montgomery, who was himself an eloquent advocate for the use of stained glass in residences.

Dr Beverley Sherry is an Honorary Associate at the University of Sydney, formerly a Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Queensland. The lecture is based on her pioneering book Australia’s Historic Stained Glass (1991) and uses PowerPoint with photographs by Douglass Baglin. More recently, Beverley has related stained glass to her main academic interest, the poet John Milton. She has documented numerous portraits of Milton in stained glass as well as rare representations/translations of ‘Paradise Lost’ in stained glass. Her work is published in the UK journal Vidimus 2019 and as chapters in Global Milton and Visual Art (Lexington Books, 2021), Milton in Strasbourg (Peter Lang, 2022), and Milton Across Borders and Media (forthcoming 2023, Oxford University Press).

17 November 2022

Annual William Montgomery Lecture: Australia’s Hidden Stained Glass Windows

Sydney Town Hall