Artwork copyright Ludwig Schaffrath. Composite image of artwork parts A (top) and B (bottom). Photo courtesy of the artist.

Artwork copyright Ludwig Schaffrath. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2017.

Artwork copyright Ludwig Schaffrath. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2017.

Artwork copyright Ludwig Schaffrath. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2017.

Artwork copyright Ludwig Schaffrath. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2017.

Artwork copyright Ludwig Schaffrath. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2017.

Untitled, 1981

Ludwig Schaffrath
German (born 1924, died 2011)

Location: University of Washington, Seattle

About the Artwork

This two-part stained glass artwork by Ludwig Schaffrath is made in his graphic and abstract style, with a lack of color. He uses the lead lines of the stained glass like powerful drawn lines. The graphic qualities are emphasized by the mostly white and opaque glass. Schaffrath believed that color was generally overused and abused in our modern world.

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with University of Washington.

About the Artist

German artist Ludwig Schaffrath (1924-2011) was a celebrated creator of abstract stained-glass artworks. In the 1970s, he taught at the Pilchuck Glass School in Stanwood, Northwestern Washington, among other U.S. schools. He was influential to many American glass artists. He served as a teaching assistant to architectural glass artist Anton Wendling at the Technical University in Aachen, Germany from 1947 to 1954. He also taught in Austria and Japan, and he served as a professor at the State Academy of Fine Arts in Stuttgart, Germany from 1985 to 1993.