Gabriel Loire

Gabriel Loire (April 21, 1904 – December 25, 1996) was a French stained glass artist of the twentieth century whose extensive works, portraying various persons or historical scenes, appear in many venues around the world. He founded the Loire Studio in Chartres, France which continues to produce stained glass windows. Loire was a leader in the modern use of "slab glass" (French: dalle de verre), which is much thicker and stronger than the stained glass technique of the Middle Ages. The figures in his windows are mostly Impressionistic in style.

Loire was born in Pouancé, France, on April 21, 1904. After completing his schooling in Angers in 1926, he went to Charles Lorin stained glass workshop in Chartres, France. In 1946, he founded his own stained glass studio there, which continues under the direction of his son Jacques Loire and grandsons.

He died on Christmas Day, December 25, 1996, shortly after finishing a design for a new window.

Loire often expressed the view, "La paix donne la joie" ("Peace gives joy") and particularly liked working with shades of blue, which he said represented to him the color of peace. His stained glass artistry, blending modern and traditional elements, attained wide acceptance, as indicated by the considerable output of the Loire Studio displayed around the world. In addition to more than 450 installations in France, Loire's works are found in Great Britain, Germany, Ireland, South Africa, Japan, Chile, Canada, Australia and the United States of America.

Some of his important commissions were for churches rebuilt after destruction in World War II, in particular the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche) in Berlin, Germany (1960) and the Church of St. Walberge, Xertigny, Lorraine, France (1951–1952). His greatest post-war work is in the Church of Saint Paul, Whiteinch, Glasgow (1960). It consists of 162 Square metres of curved window set in cement and embedded with chipped glass. The main panels depict the life of Saint Paul and are ably supported in the side altar by panels of the Virgin and the roof of the Baptismal font. He has other works in the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Succor, Broomhill (1965). Though the technique here is not of chipped glas but more of painted glass. The significance of these works has been noted by the Scottish Government by listing the buildings with, "B" orders.

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