New church window for wartime poet dedicated

A STAINED glass window in memory of First World War poet Wilfred Owen was dedicated during a church service on Saturday.

The window, which was created by artist Natasha Redina, has been installed at All Saints’ Church in Dunsden where Owen worked as a vicar’s assistant from 1911 to 1913 when he was a teenager.

The initiative was organised by the Dunsden Owen Association, which celebrates the poet’s life and work.

Ms Redina was given the commission after winning the Stevens Competition, run by the Worshipful Company of Glaziers and Painters of Glass, with her design.

Her window was then chosen by popular vote from a shortlist of five drawn up by a judging panel.

The association covered the cost of the window, which came to £17,500.

The window has replaced a lancet window in the nave. The lower panels, in brown and yellow, depict the poet holding a pen in front of a tree.

The service featured readings from Owen’s letters during his stay in Dunsden, read aloud by 18-year-old Fred Potts, from Wallingford School. These were accompanied by short explanations by Jennifer Leach which gave context to the excerpts and showed Owen’s gradual conflictions about his faith, culminating in his decision to leave in 1913.

The quotes were taken from Wilfred Owen, Collected Letters, edited by Harold Owen and John Bell.

In between were hymns including Jerusalem and prayers. The Rt Rev Steven Croft, the Bishop of Oxford, blessed the new window, which depicts Owen writing in a notebook. He sprinkled holy water on the window with Rt Rev Gavin Collins, the Bishop of Dorchester, and said a prayer.

After the service, people enjoyed refreshments and talking to one another.

Ms Redina, who lives in London, said she found the service “moving”.

She added: “It’s lovely to see the church and the community coming together and seeing the church full of people as well.

“It’s lovely that art can bring people together. I didn’t expect this many people to turn up.”

David Woodward, chairman of Eye and Dunsden Parish Council, who was on the judging panel that selected the design, said: “It’s a culmination of four years of hard work and a great tribute to the generosity of all of our donors.

“We hope as many people as possible come and visit the new window. It’s a wonderful piece of design.”

Bishop Steven said: “The service was very moving and also very interesting. It helped give insight into the time that Owen spent here in Dunsden and his own worship and crisis he was having.

“I think the window is absolutely beautiful and draws the eye to different parts. It is comparatively rare for there to be new stained glass windows in churches. This is a very contemporary design but seems to fit the church very beautifully.”

Owen’s descendants attended the service, including his great-nephews, Hamish and Stuart Owen.

Hamish, who lives in Sussex, said: “We’re very proud that there’s a window for Wilfred here. I think this place was obviously part of his life and so much work has gone into it by the artist.

“My father passed away four years ago but he would have absolutely loved to be here. He was in with the Wilfred Owen Association, followed it, looked after it and did a lot of work with it.

“For me to be here is quite moving, especially the fact that [Owen] once stood here too. Dad would have wanted us to be here.”

Stuart, who lives in London, said: “The window looks spectacular. The effort that has gone into it is incredible. The imagination that Natasha put into the whole window, from the flowers to the ground to the sky to the poetry, is superb. It’s incredible.”

Owen was killed in action in France on November 4, 1918, a week before the war’s end, aged 25.

The service was livestreamed by Clive Robertson and Tom Zajac, of Real Time, and is available on YouTube, https://tinyurl.com/2ekp5kk2