Permanent Art Collection

The story of how the beautiful stained-glass window titled “Harmony” came to be displayed in the Main Hall of the West Vancouver Memorial Library begins nearly 150 years ago. In 1877, the English Victorian painter Sir Francis Dicksee (1853 – 1928) submitted an oil painting to London’s Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. Set within a medieval religious interior, his painting, “Harmony”, depicts a young man gazing adoringly at a woman playing a lavishly decorated organ. Light filters through a large stained-glass window, casting a warm glow over the musical scene. The accuracy and detail with which the artist portrays the stained glass, and the effect of filtering light may stem from his time spent assisting fellow artist and stained-glass designer Henry Holiday. (Figure 1) 
 
“Harmony” was well-received at the Royal Academy and quickly became a favorite among the public and critics alike. Due to its popularity, the image was reproduced as a black-and-white etching by Charles Albert Waltner (1846 – 1925). (Figure 2) This reproduction provided an affordable fine art option for the growing market of amateur art collectors, while also making the image accessible to publishers of newspapers, journals, magazines, and books at a time when copyright laws were still developing. Many articles hailed the painting as the “Picture of the Year,” and the Tate Gallery swiftly acquired the masterpiece for their permanent collection. Dicksee went on to achieve significant success in his career when he became the President of the Royal Academy and received a knighthood in 1925. 
 
As reflected in the work of Francis Dicksee and the larger body of work of his fellow Pre-Raphaelites, an artistic movement based on the revival of traditional techniques and lost craft knowledge was gaining momentum throughout the latter half of the 19th century. Known as the Arts and Crafts Movement, it was a reaction to a perceived decline in manufacturing standards associated with machinery and large-scale factory production. Artists and craftspeople presented designs and patterns that reimagined everything from architecture to domestic interiors, including wallpaper, carpet, light fixtures, and ceramic tile. The Movement celebrated the inherent beauty of nature and the value of high-quality craftsmanship. 
 
William Morris (1834 – 1896) was a prominent figure in late 19th century design and had a significant influence on the Arts and Crafts Movement. In 1861, Morris founded Morris & Co. to provide fashionable British families with everything they needed to furnish their homes in the new Arts and Crafts style. The firm became a leader in producing textiles and large stained glass, featuring medieval themes, imagery, and strong bold colours. Their stained-glass workshop took on domestic commissions, allowing clients to choose unique illustrations or select from a catalogue of designs. 
 
In 1882, businessman and amateur artist Henry Stone and his wife, Beatrice, moved from Britain to Canada. Around 1902, they settled in the Caulfeild area of West Vancouver. Henry was dedicated to fostering a vibrant arts community in Vancouver, which inspired him to donate $50,000 toward the establishment of a new art gallery. In 1931, he became the first president of the Vancouver Art Gallery and traveled across Europe to acquire a diverse collection of artworks for the gallery. (Figure 3) During this trip, the Stones met and commissioned John Henry Dearle, the principal art director of Morris & Co., to design a large stained-glass window in memory of their son, Lieutenant Horace Gordon Stone, who died while serving in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) during the Great War. (Figure 4) 
 
It is unclear why the Stone family ultimately chose Sir Frank Dicksee’s painting “Harmony” as the memorial for their lost son. In 1877, “Harmony” was purchased for the nation by the Royal Academy using funds from the Chantrey Bequest. This bequest aimed to establish a public national collection of British fine art. Dicksee’s composition was the first painting acquired for this collection. 
 
It’s likely that Dearle recognized the outstanding quality and the metaphorical significance of Dicksee’s original painting. Dearle designed a stained-glass window featuring a stained-glass window as its background, almost as a visual joke. The musical interior inhabited by the figures is actually a window that allows natural light to stream through. 
 
The Stone family chose for Dearle’s stained-glass “Harmony” to be installed in Vancouver’s newly constructed Art Gallery, making it a cornerstone of the city’s art collection. Owning not only a splendid example of stained-glass artistry but also a replica of a well-known and critically acclaimed painting would make “Harmony” an attractive addition to any art collection. The “Harmony” window adorned the north wall of the Vancouver Art Gallery until the Second World War, at which point it was removed for safekeeping and placed in storage. (Figure 5) 
 
After the war ended, the gallery began renovations to reshape the building’s façade and interior to accommodate 157 works donated by Emily Carr. The window was returned to Lieutenant Stone’s sister, Elsie Gentles, until a new home for the piece could be found. During this time, a public referendum was held in West Vancouver, deciding that the community’s new library would serve as the official War Memorial to honour West Vancouver’s fallen soldiers. The District’s Library Committee initiated a fundraising campaign, acquired land along Marine Drive across from the Memorial Arch, and enlisted architect Robert A.D. Berwick as the designer. From the beginning, the Library’s architectural plan included a memorial shrine to be located within the building’s west wall. Several early sketches of the Library’s west wall depicted a large wooden cross embedded within a stained-glass window, surrounded by locally sourced granite stonework. (Figure 6) It is unclear when the idea to replace the conceptual shrine with the “Harmony” window originated, but it is easy to see how Lieutenant Stone’s memorial window became a fitting addition to the interior of West Vancouver’s Memorial Library. The window was installed in the Library in 1951, one year after the official opening on November 11, 1950. (Figures 7, 8, and 9) 
 
Ever since Elsie Gentles gifted “Harmony” to the community, it has remained a prominent feature of the West Vancouver Memorial Library. Renovations in 1976 and 1993 resulted in the window being first moved to the Second Floor, facing the Memorial Arch, and then returned to the Main Floor, where it now resides across from the front doors. (Figure 10) 

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