The Best Stained-Glass Pictures are Not All Glass

This link has some stunning pictures of stained glass from across the world. I've seen a few of these and hope to see more someday.

I'm struck by how the best pictures are not of the glass by itself, but also include the walls nearby. The light from the glass paints the walls in a diffuse reproduction of the original, stamping the surface with color. The real power of stained glass is in its context and how it changes the entire space, its secondary effect rather than its primary effect. The point is not the glass, the medium is not the message. The point is the light.