Organ | Stained glass windows | Cross
The Architects' Vision
Saint John's was designed and built by architects George
Dodge and J. Walter Dolliver. Their focus was the expression
of the community's historic ties, the cultural evolution
of this particular religious branch, and the social
structure and derivation of the community, as well as
certain fashionable and culturally responsive design
ideas.
In 1905-06, a popular design motif was the "shingle
style," evocative of rustic simplicity and directness.
The style used broad sweeping gables, with deep overhangs
and an overall shingling to express the romantic vision
of life so popular with the late Victorians and Edwardians.
This style is important in the development of religious
architecture in that it is a direct response to the
humanization of scale and integration of nature.
The ritualistic symbolic aspects of the exterior design
are derivatives of the trend begun by Christopher Wren
in England, namely the clean, Puritan lines of the design
which respond to the personal, intimate, and self-realized
approach to religion, which was an early part of our
national heritage. Similarly, the tower's placement
in the front of the structure reinforces the symbolic
use of the church as a community gathering place. It
is not only a call to worship; it is a call to meeting
and assembly. This use is a carryover from the early
Puritan times, when the church was also the political
hub of the community. As a symbolic statement, the front
tower should be viewed as a reiteration of the church's
focal position in the community.
 Interior Description
The present church, designed by the architectural firm
of Dodge and Dolliver, copies almost exactly the design
of the original church at Post and Mason Streets. The
arch spanning the pulpit with the inscription "Worthy
is the Lamb that was slain to receive honor, glory,
and blessing," the pews, the pulpit furnishings, and
the Rose window on the south wall of the Narthex are
all from the original building.
Floor Plan
Internally, the stylistic content is equally eclectic,
integrating different levels of symbolism with complementary
design techniques from divergent historic origins. The
first amalgamation of styles and concepts can be seen
in the floor plan of the church. In architectural expression,
the plan is a modified Greek cross, which has been detailed
with Gothic tastes and designed to be used as an axial
Basilican nave with a false narthex.
The use of the Greek cross plan can be traced to the
flowering of the English church in a period when it
had just established its independence from Rome. Again,
being an English church, reference was made in the detailing
to the fine woodwork and tracery effect developed in
late English Gothic design. The Roman Basilican seating
and flow plan is also a reference to the reform nature
of the newer English church. This simplistic approach
to religion developed in the Cromwellian period (Puritans)
and was reflected in the starkly elegant designs by
Wren. It is firmly unidirectional in flow, expressive
of Puritan man's affirmation of God, yet acknowledging
man's existence on an equal axis, the linking line being
man's rationality.
The quality of light in the interior combines the Gothic
interpretation of colored light as the purest form (seen
in the circumberal windows) with the Baroque "sense"
of pure light reflective from white on pale surfaces
and also a suspended chandelier of Spanish origins providing
the dimmer "candlelight" of Gothic space.
Decorations also combine eras. Here there are hanging
banners, a custom dating to English Crusade churches.
The lettering on the altar arch may have several origins,
one of which is the Arabic calligraphy seen by the Crusaders.
The door at the entrance uses a Tudor flattened arch
style frame. Art Nouveau naturalism is seen in the pew
design.
Stained Glass Windows
Stained glass windows add much to the beauty of the
sanctuary. The Foster window, on the
east wall of the Narthex which depicts the Prophet Elijah
being fed by ravens (1 Kings 17:6) was the gift of Arthur
Foster in 1906 in memory of his parents. The windows
in the choir loft were given by John and Flora Kemp
in 1920. All others were moved from the church's second
home on California and Octavia Streets.
The Hope window, commonly called the Newhall window, commemorates the life
of Henry Mayo Newhall and is located on the north side
of the Sanctuary. On the south side of the Sanctuary
is the St. John window, given in memory of William Anderson
Scott.
Stained Glass Window Restoration  Click
on any image for larger view and details. |
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