In 1950, the Japanese government, in their concern to preserve their cultural heritage, especially in the aftermath of the war and the occupation of Japan by Allied forces, initiated a procedure, by which individuals who were accomplished in traditional artistic skills, could be named as "Preservers of Important Intangible Cultural Properties". These individuals have since been known as "Living Treasures".

Other countries, particularly South Korea, Australia, France and Romania, inspired by the success of the Japan, have initiated similar designations.

In Bermuda, we have no particular official recognition of individuals who are preservers of our heritage and in some instances, traditional crafts, such as palmetto braiding and basket making are now, largely a thing of the past. Nonetheless, we do have "Living Treasures" and Vivienne Gardner is one of them.

Mrs. Gardner is an accomplished and versatile artist, but is best known for her stained glass, Indeed, many Bermuda churches, such as St. Peter's West, St. Mark's, St. John's, the Anglican Cathedral, St. Paul's, St. Mary's, St. Ann's and others have one or more of her windows. Her stained glass work is not exclusively for churches, however. She also does commissions for private homes and she estimates that maybe as much as fifty percent of her windows are for secular situations. She is also, additionally, a sculptor, a muralist, mosaic artist, painter, a skillful draftsperson and much more.

Currently the Bermuda National Gallery is hosting an exhibition of her work, entitled, "Vivienne J. Gardner: A Tribute". The exhibition showcases her stained glass windows and the show, which has been organised by the National Gallery's curator, Sophie Cressell and her assistant, Will Collieson, is brilliantly magical. In order to show the windows most effectively, special light boxes have been produced, which allows the windows to be seen to full advantage. Additionally the gallery lights have been slightly dimmed, so as to allow the windows to shine forth in all their glory.

Mrs. Gardner has been making art in Bermuda for at least 70 years and although known and highly regarded by the more discerning public, her work is seldom seen in the usual exhibition venues. This is because much of what she does not easily lend itself such situations. The National Gallery's exhibition is therefore timely. I recommend it to anyone interested in Bermudian art or for that matter, anyone responsive to pure beauty. That surely must includes everyone.

In addition to the exhibition, there is also a recently published book called, "The Stained Glass Art of Vivienne J. Gardner", which is available at the Bermuda National Gallery. It is a good introduction to the life and work of this prominent Bermudian artist. It is well illustrated with many coloured photographs of her windows, plus biographical and technical information.

My earliest memory of anything about Vivienne Gardner, goes back to when she was a student at Bermuda High School for Girls. Actually, my memory is not of her personally, but of a drawing she did, that impressed me, so much so, I still remember it all these many years later. I must have been about eight years old at the time. It seems that Vivienne Gardner was destined to be an artist and having recently read her book, I am even more impressed with that thought.

When writing about her Second World War years in Bermuda and the shortages we all experienced, she recalled having to find her art materials from scraps of cellophane, metallic foil, candy wrappers and shards of broken, coloured glass. Notice that what attracted her, was either transparent or a material that reflected light. It seems that she was not only destined to be an artist, her natural inclination predestined her to be a stained glass artist.

Painters replicate light on canvas, but stained glass artists capture light, that then radiates onto surrounding walls and floors, thus creating an atmosphere of pure coloured beauty. This often engenders a sense of the spiritual and it is notable that the Bible suggests light as symbolic of the spiritual. These qualities – light, colour, beauty and the spiritual – are what I sense in Vivienne Gardner's stained glass windows.

The exhibition continues through June 3, 2010.