On display in the Cathedral's narthex, April 17 (when many from around the diocese made the trip downtown for the annual Celebration of Confirmation Eucharist) were some elements of the new bell spire soon to be erected at Christ Church Cathedral.
The smallest bell of the four that speaks an “A” and is also engraved with the first part of the Cathedral’s motto, “Open Doors, Open Hearts, Open Minds” is seen in the photo with the Cathedral’s associate warden Ian Birtwell.
There were also two samples of the more than 200 pieces of stained glass that will create the bell spire’s outer covering. The bell spire will be a 100-foot tower of steel, clad with 60 feet of stained glass designed by Canadian artist, Sarah Hall. The glass spire entitled ‘Welcoming Light, will be one of the most significant investments in permanent Canadian public art in the province in recent decades.
In the photographs we see a full photo of one of the two pieces on display and then two different photos of the same piece taken from different angles. The dichroic glass used with opal and transparent glass creates the illusion that the two blue lines are different shades depending on the angles from which they are viewed.
Installation of the spire is scheduled for late summer of 2016.