the Queens Park Synagogue Project
This is the windows for the Queens Park Synagogue project completed in 1992. I worked on this for around three years designing and making. The first windows, the vertical windows were made in my then studio in Glasgow. All remaining windows were made in the Derix Studio in Taunusstein in Germany.
this project, I started making when I was about 30. It is the kind of project that you think you would make much later in life. It was a career defining project that took me to another level of understanding that knowledge comes from research, it is not inherently inside you, you have to find it and absorb it before you can begin to design. I took me about six months just to research the themes before I began designing. The result of my research astonished the people who asked me to do this work. Probably the most important conclusion I came to was that the Sabbath was the most important festival and it is generally overlooked. The half dome was not part of my original brief but changed everything.
Queens' Park Synagogue, Glasgow – The Jewish Festivals Windows
In the early 1990s, I was commissioned to design and create a series of stained glass windows for Queens' Park Synagogue in Glasgow. What began as a fundraising initiative to save a historic but deteriorating building evolved into a major artistic project closely linked to Glasgow’s year as European City of Culture 1990.
The synagogue, tucked away in a cul-de-sac with an unassuming exterior, possessed a quiet elegance inside. When I first visited, the smaller windows were largely plain, with only a Star of David steel-framed Sabbath window and some painted and silver-stained patterning on the dome. The new windows were conceived to celebrate the Jewish Festivals — bringing colour, symbolism, and renewed life to the space.
The Project – 22 Windows Celebrating Jewish Life
The complete scheme comprises 22 windows, including two large east and west façade windows. The designs were created to be appealing to potential donors while forming a cohesive artistic narrative throughout the building.
I began with the Sabbath Window — often overlooked as a festival even within the Jewish community, yet the most important. This design is a Creation window, depicting elements from the six days of Creation, with Sabbath symbolism concentrated in the central circle and Star of David points. The centre panel features the Menorah and Torah. Once the committee approved this symbolic approach, I applied the same language to design the remaining festival windows.
The Central Dome – Jewish Mysticism
Although not part of the original brief, I was later asked to create a spectacular central glass dome and half-dome. Inspired by Jewish Mysticism, it features the Hebrew Alphabet and the 10 Sefirot (emanations through which creation unfolds). This large work dominates the space and sets a profound spiritual atmosphere.
Legacy
The project was a heartfelt attempt to re-invigorate the synagogue and raise funds from the local Jewish community to prevent closure. While it achieved partial success at the time, the building eventually closed around 2003. The windows were carefully removed and re-installed at Giffnock Synagogue, where they continue to be admired today.
This remains one of the most meaningful and ambitious projects of my career — a celebration of Jewish tradition, community resilience, and the power of light and symbolism in sacred space.
