The Solution
The church is a mixture of old and new materials which sculptor Colin was asked to include in his design. “After visiting the church I came up with a design which I felt fulfilled the brief; octagonal to reflect the shape of the old font, with legs shaped to match the old arches in the in the architecture of the church.”
Part of the design brief was that the font needed to be portable and so the top and base were made from oak, which is a material used elsewhere in the church, and the legs were made from glass in-keeping with the glass wall which had recently been installed.
Colin, experienced in working with glass, continued: “You can’t use regular glass in portable fixtures. I knew finding a glass manufacturer that could meet the slim design specification in toughened glass would be problematic, but it was important to the design. They wanted to create something that reflected the history of the church but also looked to the future.”
It was then that Colin contacted Romag, in particular our Technical Director Kevin Webster, who advised on a method that would meet the design specification without compromising the aesthetics he wanted to achieve. Romag was able to supply the toughened glass that would form the font’s legs, drawing on our knowledge of the architectural market for this intricate project.
Kevin comments: “We were happy to be given the opportunity to work on such an interesting project. The difficulty with glass is there are dimensional limits on toughening and we were happy to work with Colin and come up with a solution that fit the design brief that fit the high standard required.”
What they say
"Given the slim design of glass legs, the church font was a challenging project. All the staff at Romag were very supportive in helping me achieve my goals and feedback from the Diocese has been very positive. I wouldn't hesitate in working with Romag again".
Colin Wilbourn
Sculptor
