Not all preservation movements have public funding or corporate underwriting. Neil Ralley is one person who is single-handedly bringing awareness to an often-neglected art form: stained glass. He travels, at his own expense and on his own time, to photograph windows that have historic and artistic value - and then makes these beautiful images available for all to see at his website Stained Glass Photography. Why is this important? Many of these windows are unavailable to the public and, more importantly, under threat of being lost due to fire, storm damage, lack of funds for maintenance or by being absorbed into private collections.

In my humble opinion, efforts such as Neil's should be supported whenever possible. To that end, he is now offering fine note and/or Christmas cards. Each contains an actual photograph (not an ink-jet print) in acid-free, heavy card-stock, with a matching deckle-edge envelope. The image to the right (© Neil Ralley), a Nativity window by Powell's, is representational of the Christmas card selections. Please visit the website, immerse yourself in the splendid art there and help his work if you can. Thanks!

Today in Art History:

• Paul Signac (French painter), born in 1863

• Édouard Vuillard (French Post-Impressionist/Nabi painter), born in 1868

• Alexander Calder (American Kinetic sculptor), died in 1976