Hello Everyone...
My name is Jeff Berger, and I have been making stained glass commissions since 1978. My studio is currently located in the old Dutchboy Paint Factory in Oakland, California, right on the main railroad tracks leading to the Port...
I graduated from the University of Virginia in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science in Architecture. If you are wondering why I didn't then proceed to an architecture firm, it's because I was powerfully attracted to the charms of stained glass. I paid for my last semester at the University by making (and installing on my spring break) 3 stained glass windows. I earned enough to pay for all the expenses of my final semester! No doubt many of my professors thought I had been seduced by the dark side.... But I owe those professors an enormous debt... For, the longer I work in design the more I realize how much they taught me...
My name is Jeff Berger, and I have been making stained glass commissions since 1978. My studio is currently located in the old Dutchboy Paint Factory in Oakland, California, right on the main railroad tracks leading to the Port...
I graduated from the University of Virginia in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science in Architecture. If you are wondering why I didn't then proceed to an architecture firm, it's because I was powerfully attracted to the charms of stained glass. I paid for my last semester at the University by making (and installing on my spring break) 3 stained glass windows. I earned enough to pay for all the expenses of my final semester! No doubt many of my professors thought I had been seduced by the dark side.... But I owe those professors an enormous debt... For, the longer I work in design the more I realize how much they taught me...
From its very inception in the early medieval period, stained glass has been a medium that has told stories. LOTS of them! And my experience as an artist working on commission has been filled with fascinating stories... Every single commission that I have worked on has told a tale about the person who commissioned it.... In a very real way, although I am the artist, my work has been about the people I have worked for...
All of these stained glass projects were assembled using what is known as the copper foil technique (a method invented by Tiffany for his lampshades). Each piece of glass was cut and fitted and then its edges were wrapped in copper foil tape and when all the pieces were ready, the foil was soldered together producing a single network of metal that holds the colored glass together. There is a great deal of design freedom in this method. Copper foil allows for exceptionally detailed and articulated work that is inconceivable using traditional lead came...
What's behind a window made from transparent mouth blown antique glass is very influential! When you view the windows in person, the motion of your breathing, the little movements of your head, the ever-changing quality of the light shining through, and the motions of the leaves of bushes and trees in the wind outside, all make for an almost magical effect. None of this can be captured in a still photograph. This is what happens when you look directly at stained glass, but it also has another effect...
Stained glass throws light and color into the space of the room itself. No other art form does this in quite this way!
Stained glass throws light and color into the space of the room itself. No other art form does this in quite this way!
How a project evolves...
For my patron and for the studio each project is an adventure, and I love to encourage a strong sense of fun for everyone involved. That adventure usually begins with a visit to the site where I can get a sense of their tastes and a good idea of the environment and lighting for the stained glass. Once we've established a preliminary budget and a deposit, the design fun begins!
Sometimes, what's behind a project plays an influential role in the design decisions. The image for one project was initially inspired by the architectural details of the building next door seen through the window of the gentleman's apartment. In another project, the details of the darker inlay in the hardwood flooring inspired the image for the windows and the stained glass panels for the cabinet doors they commissioned... You just never know what the site itself can inspire until you see it!
I always spend a great deal of thought and time on a design, sometimes as much as a third of the total time for the whole project. Once the design is approved, the cutting begins, and the thinking and designing continue with each piece of glass cut... I think of each project as a work of art, and I handle every piece of glass myself, deciding how best to fit it into the overall design...
I really enjoy keeping everyone informed of the movement of their project either by periodically emailing work-in-progress pictures directly, or by posting those pictures on my Facebook fan page for everyone to see. One fascinated lady became so interested in these pictures that I ended up emailing her 20 to 30 pictures every evening of the work that was accomplished that day... She downloaded, opened, and saved every single picture... In this way, she was able to begin her avid enjoyment of her window from the moment we started... instead of waiting for the final installation...
Many of my projects have had wonderful unveilings... a couple of them at black tie gala events in the Gold Room at the Fairmont Hotel on Nob Hill in San Francisco! Some were unveiled at celebratory events in the studio, and others in the building where the patron lives. Unveilings at churches are particularly enjoyable!
For my patron and for the studio each project is an adventure, and I love to encourage a strong sense of fun for everyone involved. That adventure usually begins with a visit to the site where I can get a sense of their tastes and a good idea of the environment and lighting for the stained glass. Once we've established a preliminary budget and a deposit, the design fun begins!
Sometimes, what's behind a project plays an influential role in the design decisions. The image for one project was initially inspired by the architectural details of the building next door seen through the window of the gentleman's apartment. In another project, the details of the darker inlay in the hardwood flooring inspired the image for the windows and the stained glass panels for the cabinet doors they commissioned... You just never know what the site itself can inspire until you see it!
I always spend a great deal of thought and time on a design, sometimes as much as a third of the total time for the whole project. Once the design is approved, the cutting begins, and the thinking and designing continue with each piece of glass cut... I think of each project as a work of art, and I handle every piece of glass myself, deciding how best to fit it into the overall design...
I really enjoy keeping everyone informed of the movement of their project either by periodically emailing work-in-progress pictures directly, or by posting those pictures on my Facebook fan page for everyone to see. One fascinated lady became so interested in these pictures that I ended up emailing her 20 to 30 pictures every evening of the work that was accomplished that day... She downloaded, opened, and saved every single picture... In this way, she was able to begin her avid enjoyment of her window from the moment we started... instead of waiting for the final installation...
Many of my projects have had wonderful unveilings... a couple of them at black tie gala events in the Gold Room at the Fairmont Hotel on Nob Hill in San Francisco! Some were unveiled at celebratory events in the studio, and others in the building where the patron lives. Unveilings at churches are particularly enjoyable!
Many Thanks....
I need to say THANK YOU to three very fine people who helped me put this website together. First to Michelle Bassler, who took the pictures of me in my studio, second, to Dee Doherty who held my hand throughout the six weeks it took to design and build the website, took care of mountains of technical stuff, and stood by with humorous patience and guidance when I actually pushed the "publish" button! "OMG! It's live!" And finally, to Poochie, my rescue dog ..... who brings a fine level of affection to everything that comes into the studio...
I need to say THANK YOU to three very fine people who helped me put this website together. First to Michelle Bassler, who took the pictures of me in my studio, second, to Dee Doherty who held my hand throughout the six weeks it took to design and build the website, took care of mountains of technical stuff, and stood by with humorous patience and guidance when I actually pushed the "publish" button! "OMG! It's live!" And finally, to Poochie, my rescue dog ..... who brings a fine level of affection to everything that comes into the studio...