Richard Paton

Private commission · 2020

Stained Glass Conservatory

An extraordinary year-long commission of 300 individually identifiable butterflies, made in stained glass for a conservatory roof and three large double doors.

The completed stained-glass conservatory roof with butterfly panels
The completed conservatory, with butterfly panels extending across the roof and doors.
Project
Stained Glass Conservatory
Client
Private commission
Butterflies
300 identifiable species, with none repeated
Installation
Conservatory roof and three large double doors
Team
Five people working full time
Making time
One year

Three hundred butterflies in glass

This project was designed and made by Rainbow Glass Studios over the course of a whole year, with five people working full time to produce 300 butterfly panels set into a conservatory roof and three large double doors.

Every butterfly is an identifiable species from around the world and none is repeated. I also made a book that can be used to identify each one.

“This was certainly one of the most technically and logistically challenging projects I’ve delivered, but in the end it was a great success.”

The making

From species research to finished glass

  1. 01
    Butterfly reference drawings and colour studies arranged across a studio workbench
    Reference drawings and colour studies for the individual butterfly species.

    Research and identification

    The commission called for 300 different identifiable butterfly species from around the world. Reference material and an identification book formed part of the project.

  2. 02
    Design drawings and production planning for the stained-glass conservatory
    Full-size drawings, colour studies and production planning for the conservatory.

    Drawing and design

    The individual butterflies were drawn and translated into a repeating architectural framework for the roof and doors, while keeping every species distinct.

  3. 03
    Glass paints and pigments used for the detailed butterfly panels
    Glass paints and pigments prepared for the butterfly details.

    Glass, colour and painting

    The butterflies were developed through coloured glass and detailed painted work, with the surrounding geometry creating a vivid field of colour.

  4. 04
    A member of the studio team installing panels into the conservatory roof
    Installing the completed panels into the conservatory roof.

    Assembly and installation

    Hundreds of individual panels were fabricated and coordinated for installation across the conservatory roof and three large double doors.

Gallery

Three completed stained-glass double doors viewed from inside the conservatory
The three butterfly-panelled double doors viewed from inside.
The conservatory doors viewed from the stone courtyard outside
The conservatory doors from the courtyard.
A single arched door filled with brightly coloured butterfly panels
One of the completed arched doors.
Kaleidoscopic view through the multicoloured butterfly roof panels
Colour and structure seen through the completed roof.
Richard Paton and Eleanor Watson standing inside the completed conservatory
Richard Paton and Eleanor Watson with the completed work.
Wide interior view showing the stained-glass roof above the three doors
The roof and doors working as one continuous composition.
Close view of the butterfly panels and metalwork in the conservatory roof
A closer view of the roof structure and butterfly panels.
Finished stained-glass roof panels seen against the conservatory structure
Finished roof glazing and painted butterfly details.
Butterfly door design sheets with numbered species, colour studies and a studio production checklist
Design studies, species references and the production checklist for the butterfly doors.
Glass being cut by hand for one of the butterfly panels
Cutting glass for an individual panel.
A small butterfly panel being wrapped in copper foil
Copper foiling one of the butterfly motifs.

A private, technically demanding commission

Because the work was made for a private client, the completed conservatory is not open to the public. The scale of the commission, the need for every butterfly to be different and identifiable, and the coordination of hundreds of panels made it an unusually demanding project.

The photographs document both the completed stained glass and the long process of drawing, selecting glass, painting and assembling the work.

Credits

Design and fabrication
Rainbow Glass Studios
Lead artist
Richard Paton
Client
Private

Commissions & collaborations

Have a project in mind?

For commissions and studio enquiries, visit Rainbow Glass Studios.

Studio enquiries →