Roman Halter • Life and Art through Stained Glass 1 | Page 49

fig. 7

Woman Wearing Mantilla
1974
Oil on canvas
Imperial War Museum

fig. 8

Doña Isabel de Porcel
Francisco de Goya
before 1805
The National Gallery, London

special occasions.
“Before producing this painting, I visited the
National Gallery in London and came across Goya’s
portrait of Doña Isabel de Porcel. His painting
reminded me of my mother’s dignified look. My
mother had a longer face. Each time I see Doña Isabel
de Porcel I imagine my mother sitting in the balcony
and looking down on the men praying below.”
Roman’s Woman Wearing Mantilla (fig. 7) is
however more than simply a fond memory of his
mother at the synagogue. The fronds of lace are
delicately and subtly depicted and conceal further
tiny portraits, each with a different expression. In
the two upper corners there are groups of figures,
corralled, huddled and naked. Closer viewing will
see they are woman holding small children, echoing
the composition of another of the paintings from
this series, Mother with Babies. Roman was never
aware of what specific fate his own mother suffered
and she stands in his painting as a symbol of all
those mothers who perished.
There are surely cogent reasons why Roman
was attracted to the medium of stained glass. Its
clarity and boldness, with the black divisions of the

leaded framework incorporated into the design,
make it a medium that is highly appropriate for
bold visual statements that present themselves
immediately to the viewer. Indeed, for Roman
the need to communicate, to make unambiguous
statements loudly and clearly, overrode any
other considerations.
Many of Roman’s glass productions feature rich
saturated colours and beautiful motifs taken from
nature. They are often calm, reassuring and evoke
a mood of spiritual harmony. Visit, for example,
the Central Synagogue in London and you will be
met with an expansive vista of the city of Jerusalem.
Its location, above the landing of a large staircase,
gives it an additional meaning because visitors must
approach it from beneath, whilst looking upwards.
Upwards, as if towards heaven. The rich blue sky
becomes paler yet brighter as it descends towards
the horizon and is complemented by the infinity of
the real sky that is, of course, behind it. The artist has
not just considered the design itself but about how
it will function in tandem with the light that shines
through it from outside. Beneath the blue sky is a
rhythmic patchwork of shapes amongst which one
Roman Halter  43