Art Discovery in London Home

Two historical stained glass panels have been discovered in the former home of Margot Ariss.

Read their fascinating history below, and stop by The apARTment at Westland Gallery to see them in person.

These leaded glass windows were part of a series of windows commissioned for the Riverview Public School in London Ontario. They were installed at the school in approximately 1907. They found their beginnings in a book called “Nursery Rhymes” published by Bell Cockburn and illustrated by Arthur Rockman. In order to make each art piece, the colored nursery rhyme pictures were removed from the book and used as patterns.

The windows were constructed by Roy Edward Suhr, an expert glazier, and his helpers. The artwork, painting and etching was done by the artist Tommy Lofengren  at Hobbs Glass Company here in London. A 2010 London Free Press article shares more on the Hobbs Hardware Stained Glass legacy.

We are unsure of the total number of windows that were commissioned, however three are currently installed at the London Children’s Museum, formerly the Riverview Public School. These three are “Little Miss Muffet”, “Little Tommy Tucker”, “Ride a Cockhorse to Banberry Cross”.

Another window, “The Pie Man”, appears on the cover of a poetry book titled “Rat Jelly” by Michael Ondaatje.

We understand that these two windows ,“Jack and Jill” and “The Big Bad Wolf”, were removed from the Riverview Public School for a renovation and were later displayed in the home of Margot Joan Phillips Ariss, a London artist and potter. The windows were salvaged from the former residence of Margot Ariss in 2015 during a renovation. The windows did need some minor repairs which were undertaken by Sunrise Stained Glass in London Ontario.

Jack and Jill ~ 21"x43" ~ $4000
The Big Bad Wolf ~ 21"x43" ~ $3500