Jean-Jacques Duval

Jean-Jacques Duval (Feb. 8, 1930 - Oct. 21, 2021) was a French-born American artist who pioneered abstract art and the use of faceted glass in stained glass design in the 1960s. In 2005 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Stained Glass Association of America. Best known for his window designs in Germany, Israel, Japan, the West Indies, and the United States, his paintings and sculptures have also been exhibited throughout North America.

In the United States Duval first worked in Florida, before accepting a position at Daprato Studio in New York. In 1955 he was drafted and served two years in the US army in Germany. During this period he attended the Art Students League of New York.

Career Duval was one of the first stained glass designers to use Dalle de verre, a thick, faceted glass created with a hammer and anvil rather than cut. He is credited for "developing, refining, and putting his personal touch on both aesthetic approach and improved technique." His use of both transparent and translucent glass allowed nature or the surrounding environment to be included in his designs. His choice of faceted- or cut-glass was determined by the building design and, throughout his career, Duval worked equally within the two media.

1957: In 1957 Duval entered and won the international competition for the windows of the Vatican Pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair, now in St. Mary's Church (Groton, Connecticut). Another early abstract design, the 1962 sanctuary windows for Congregation B'nai Jacob (Woodbridge, Connecticut), was likened to windows by Robert Motherwell. In 1964 he was commissioned to design windows for the historic monument, St. Martin Church in Martenhöhe, Germany. Duval also created stained glass sculptures for the chapel at Holy Cross High School (Waterbury, Connecticut) in 1965 and for the Altman and Wolf Equitable Building (Baltimore, Maryland) in 1968.

During this period Duval continued to paint and developed a style which reflected his use of stained glass. In 1967, he exhibited at the Madison-Avenue gallery La Boetie.

1970: In 1970 Duval moved from Manhattan to Carmel, New York. During this period he designed liturgical windows for the historic monument B’nai Israel (Pittsburgh) and Christ the King Lutheran Church (North Olmstead, Ohio). Other commissions included the Fine Arts Building, State University of New York (Geneseo) and a window for Pennsylvania State University (Altoona). During this period, he taught stained glass at the New School for Social Research in New York City.

Until his death on Oct. 21, 2021, Duval lived and maintained Duval Studio in the Adirondack community of Willsboro, New York. His work was featured in cover stories in Progressive Architecture (Dec 1971), TWA Ambassador Magazine (Jan 1972), Intellectual Digest (Feb 1973), Faith & Form (winter 1993–94, and fall 1997), Topia Magazine (fall 1997), and Art Glass Magazine (Mar-Apr 2012), and was reviewed in Stained Glass Quarterly (2005).

In recognition for outstanding service and contributions to the arts, in 1999 Duval received the Artist Award from the New York State Council on the Arts. In 2013, The Plattsburgh State Art Museum held a solo exhibition of his paintings, sculpture, and glass-installation studies in Plattsburgh, New York.

Throughout Duval's career his stained glass designs, sculptures, and paintings were featured in solo exhibitions in public museums and associations including the French Embassy (New York City), The Artist Guild of New York (New York City), the Arts Council of New York (New York City), Museum of Contemporary Crafts (New York City), Rochester Memorial Art Gallery (Rochester, New York), Lake Placid Arts Center (Lake Placid, New York), the North Country Cultural Center For The Arts (Plattsburgh, New York), Museum of Allentown (Allentown, Pennsylvania), the Arts Club of Chicago (Chicago, Illinois), and the Pavilion des Arts (St-Jean sur Richelieu, Quebec, Canada).

Public art