The stained glass windows that adorn the Mount Zion Baptist Church in Athens are covered in paper thin cracks.

Ohio Statehouse News Bureau, September 28, 2023

They’re so fragile, one shattered earlier this year, when March rushed in like a lion.

Still, the intricate design and striking size of the windows offer a glimpse into another time — a time when the Black community in Athens was booming and when Ada Woodson Adams was just a child.

“In 1939, when I was born, segregation existed in Ohio and surrounding areas of Athens County. And so the Black church was the center of Black life,” Woodson Adams remembered.

Destination Crenshaw, which organizers have called the “largest commissioning project ever undertaken for Black artists,” is growing.

Los Angeles Times, June 15, 2023

The $100-million, 1.3-mile public art corridor on Crenshaw Boulevard — reflecting and celebrating Black Los Angeles — has added four art commissions to its roster.

The project — permanent, outdoor sculptures and murals as well as 4 acres of new green space— now includes new works by sculptor Gerard Basil Stripling as well as muralists Patrick Henry Johnson, Anthony “Toons One” Martin and Kisasi Ramsess.

Destination Crenshaw also announced the creation of a collections care program to maintain what will have grown to more than 100 public art works along the corridor by late 2027. Ariana Makau, founder and principal conservator of Oakland’s Nzilani Glass Conservation, is serving as interim collections care director. She’ll assess and address the conservation needs of Destination Crenshaw artworks, recruit local talent and develop a collections care tech training program for them, as well as help to hire a permanent collections care director.

Repairing or adding art-glass windows in Bay Area homes increased significantly over the last year and a half.

Berkeley Built, December 9, 2021

Repairing failing residential windows means ensuring personal safety. In fact, what is often referred to as “stained glass” is in truth leaded-art glass (individual pieces of clear or colored glass set into lead cames to create an artistic design). Addressing lead safety while preserving old windows can be tricky when your beloved pet’s favorite sunny grooming spot happens to be under a deteriorating leaded window actively releasing lead dust.⁠

Of course, leaded-glass windows add great value to your home, both historically and monetarily. Effective preservation of older windows is preferable, under correct health and safety precautions. Site work must always be undertaken by a leaded-glass specialist who also has certified lead-worker training.