LAC LA BICHE - A Lac La Biche artisan says what she enjoys most about working with stained glass is that it allows her to play with colours and textures, making wonderful finished art.
Noella Somerville operates a business out of her home called ‘Healing à la Source.’ The local artisan, who also does leatherwork, and is a certified cultural art instructor, began doing stained glass work in 2012. Her first contract was for the a church in Janvier, located between Lac La Biche and Fort McMurray. A total of 16 3’ x 6’ stained glass windows were made for the project, which took two years from start to finish.
Another custom work undertaken by Somerville were three stained glass panels done for the Bridgeland Distillery in Calgary.
“It took me four months from start to finish,” she says, adding that half of the contract money went to buying glass. “Whenever a person contacts me with an idea, I am pleased to make it happen.”
Options for purchasing the type of stained glass needed for these projects are very limited. According to Somerville, there is only one place in Alberta to buy this glass, Bissett Stained Glass, located in Edmonton.
As with any art form, when making stained glass, there are many steps to follow, whether it’s a two-piece work or a 200-piece work. As Somerville explains, it all begins with a pattern. After that, she chooses the glass, which is then cut, ground, foiled, soldered, and polished.
When working on projects, she uses three kinds of grinders, a soldering iron, a glass cutter - as well as many small tools.
“I use the same method as 100 years ago, with better technology,” she says
In addition to her workshop, which is located in the basement of her home, she also has a a boutique with her products on display. ‘Healing à la Source is also among a handful of Alberta-based artisans who belong to the "Économusée" program, which is part of the Artisans at Work network, an organization that includes various artisans from across Canada and Europe.
Her art is sold at different stores in Lac La Biche, in British Columbia, as well as at farmers' markets and shows.
Somerville, a school bus driver, works on her stained-glass projects between her regular bus runs.
She also passes on her knowledge and passion for stained glass to others by teaching classes in her studio. For a beginning class, she explains, it takes around four hours to make a three to four piece stained glass project.
She teaches mainly on Wednesday evenings, but also teaches on weekends, and is available at other times as well.
“In my studio, I teach from three to six students at a time. If the group is bigger, I need to rent another place,” she explains.
Somerville, who believes that art can heal, also does some holistic work. She has the ability to make simple projects complicated like 3D birds or spinning swirls, and also does mosaic, overlay and many other types of stained-glass art.
“What I like the most about stained glass is to be able to choose and match the colours with the texture. When you see your finished product against a light, it is wonderful,” she says. “I need a balance in my life, and creation is part of it.”
