NB NK Rotary learns about the art of stained glass...

 Retired business owner, stained glass artist, and fellow Rotarian Bernie Schroer shared his art with the NB-NK Rotary Club.  “I have four hobbies, with woodworking being my most enjoyable hobby,” said Schroer.  “Once I retired, my wife said “we need something we can do together.”  So, they and several friends (six couples) took stained glass classes in Celina.  Out of the six couples, only one of us does the glass work any more.  “My wife still helps with the design, and I put it altogether.”  

Schroer showed several different tools required for stained glass work, firstly, and most importantly a box of band-aids.  Schroer showed his cutters, soldering iron, various pieces of glass and types of solder used in stained glass work.  Schroer got many of his glass working tools from the very same couples who took the classes with him and his wife.  He showed the various types of “masking” (the metal between the pieces of glass) that are used in stained glass work.  Most of the masking is made of lead and some is brass and comes in various sizes.  “Depending upon what type of masking you use, it may require the use of grout to tighten the fit of the glass pieces,” said Schroer.  “The process starts with a detailed design drawing, with each piece of glass numbered so I know what I am cutting as I go.  I cut out each piece in the drawing and lay the whole thing out.”  Schroer went through the entire process of cutting, grinding, cleaning, foiling and soldering the glass pieces together, demonstrating how to cut and break off the cut piece.

 Schroer repairs church windows, glass lamp shades, and other various pieces of stained glass work in addition to making his own original designs in stained glass.  Once the pieces are fit and soldered into place, Schroer can paint a patina or special finish on the masking to make the glasswork a unique piece of art.  Over the 17 years he’s been glass working, Schroer has learned not to throw away anything from the glass working process.  He has found uses for all sizes and shapes of scrap, including mosaic patterns and jewelry pieces.  Schroer then showed many of his various pieces of beautiful stained glass artwork.  He offered one sage piece of advice: “If the glass doesn’t cut the way you want it to two times, stop and have a beer,” said Schroer.  One of Schroer’s pieces hangs in the chapel at Joint Township District Memorial Hospital .  At the end of the meeting, Schroer raffled off a piece of his artwork.

 

Hosting Rotarian: Bernie Schroer