Work Window

This window depicts Jesus helping his father, Joseph, in the carpenter shop. The scene is not based on a biblical passage, although Matthew (13:55) asks "Is not this the carpenter's son?" in reference to Jesus. Fittingly, the “Work Window” portrays more movement than any of the others in the nave aisles. The composition consists of a series of curves, starting with the three figures. One curve is defined with the young Jesus at the lower left , then moving up to the right to Joseph, and then reversing to the left up to Mary, who is in the background of the scene. Curves also appear in the curls of Jesus’ and Joseph's hair, Jesus' scarf, Joseph's cloak, and again in the elegant shape of the shaving from Joseph's plane. Juxtaposed to the curves, moving from the lower left hand corner of the scene up to the right, and then ending with Mary on the top left, are the heavy horizontals of the work bench, the lumber, and the orientation of the window that frames Mary.

The curves and the strong horizontals are emphasized by the diagonals, starting with the saw Jesus is using with his right hand (note: the Latin word for “left hand” is “sinistre” [read “sinister”]); thus religious figures are usually depicted using their right hands). The action in this scene really centers around the image of Jesus, with his body bent and his legs flexed as he saws. The board which he is sawing helps tie the scene together by being at a right angle to the strong horizontals.

Although Joseph is the largest figure, he is almost an onlooker. With a calm, protecting presence as his arms plane the wood, he seems to be embracing Jesus. But it is the smaller, compact figure of Jesus, as he uses the saw, who commands the viewer’s attention. The diagonally downward orientation of the saw adds to the sense of motion in this window. The flesh tones of Jesus' legs and arms carry the eye upward to the rolled-up sleeves of Joseph, which to the viewer emphasizes the strong, protective arms of the father. The appearance of Joseph’s bare arms also reinforces the idea that he is a working person, a man at his craft.

As the viewer’s eye sweeps upward, the focus comes to rest upon Mary. The artist has placed Jesus' mother out of the field of action, giving the scene a three-dimensional quality as Mary becomes an onlooker from within her house. She is next to her distaff, working with the material on it. She is a regal figure in her traditional blue garments. Although she views the activity going on in the shop, she is rendered as an essentially static figure.

The colors of this window are intense. The brilliant blue of the background to the left gives a strong vertical feel to the scene, with Joseph's columnar figure forming a balancing vertical element on the right hand side. His dark outer garment with its intense, brilliant green draws the eyes upward beyond his face to his large, bright gold nimbus, which complements the blues and greens. The brilliant green of Joseph's robe is repeated and intensified in the colors of the roof above Mary.

Burnham’s fondness for patterns is exemplified in this window, for instance in the rendering of the floor of the workplace. Patterns of curves are repeated in drapery, hair, and wood shavings. The patterns on the haloes bring more design elements into the scene, patterns which, while pervasive, do not dominate the scene.

As in all the Burnham windows, various designs envelope the scene in the manner of an elegant picture frame. The blue of Mary's robe is repeated in this frame in the leaves, and the reds that are shown in the border have picked up the red in Jesus' halo.

Typically, the scene is full of symbols. Directly behind Jesus' halo with its red triforum, symbolizing the cross, are carpenters’ instruments -- a hammer for driving nails and pincers for removing them. These provide a strong sense of irony for this scene as they are the implements to be used in his crucifixion. In the apex of the window is an axe on a red blood-like field. The axe is a carpenter’s tool and thus an iconographical attribute of Joseph's, but also is a symbol of destruction. The multipetaled flower in the ventilator represents perhaps a daisy, which according to Hall and Webber is a symbol of the innocence of the holy Christ Child.

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