| When the staff and students of Caroline Chisholm School in Wootton were asked to produce designs for a contemporary window to commemorate the life of the pioneer and educationalist, Caroline Chisholm, they jumped at the chance and a group of twelve artistically able students from the primary and secondary phases were invited to participate in the project. This was a rare opportunity for the students, to see their drawings and paintings transformed into a stained glass window to be installed in the architecturally significant and beautiful Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Northampton.
The designs symbolise the journeys of female emigrants to India and Australia and the experiences and struggles they faced on arrival. The winding paths represent a journey, the sunshine and the water represent the environment, the teardrops and spiky plants represent hopes and fears. Caroline Chisholm’s hands-on work in Emigration Welfare Reform helped to give emigrants, particularly women and girls, a brighter future in their new homelands through education and development of practical skills including sewing, tailoring and mending. The designs were very well received and interpreted beautifully by the artist Rachael Aldridge of Aldridge Glass in Walgrave. The window was subsequently installed in the church where Caroline Chisholm was married, and was dedicated by the Bishop of Brixworth on Tuesday 2nd June. You can see the stunning window on Thursdays and Saturdays until 30th September; thereafter, viewing is by appointment only with the key holder on 01604 711772. The Church is taking part in Heritage Open Days and will be open from 10am to 4pm from Thursday 10th through Sunday 13th September. Rachael Aldridge will also be part of the Walgrave trail of the NOST – Northants Open Studios Trails over the weekends of 5th & 6th and 12th & 13th September from 11am to 4pm. Visitors will have a chance to look around Rachael’s working stained glass studio and see how her windows are designed and made. For more information, please visit www.aldridgeglass.co.uk or call Rachael on 01604 781924 |
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