From the Archives: The Egg & Edith Wright

A couple weeks ago, I shared the story of UU Lansing’s “Egg” sculpture in this blog, crafted by artist Edith Hazard Wright. Since then, while researching another topic in the church archives, I discovered a summary of an interview conducted with the artist on April 22, 1998 by the late Pat Colburn. Pat was a long-time member of the church community and collaborated with me on the Archives Committee.

In this blog, I’ll summarize some of the information Pat learned from Edith Wright. Edith was first commissioned for the “Egg” and then later for a smaller piece that is now integrated into the sign situated outside the church office door. As I had mentioned, the larger piece was in memory of Evelyn Osborn. Edith told Pat it took about a year to produce.

The glass used in this project was procured from Blenko in Milton, West Virginia. Founded in 1893 by William Blenko of England, the Blenko Glass company has remained a family-owned enterprise. After initial establishment in Kokomo, Indiana, it closed temporarily in 1903 due to economic challenges. Following a brief stint back in England, William Blenko returned to the United States, eventually establishing the glassworks in Milton, West Virginia, in 1921, where it continues to operate to this day.

Edith Wright designed the pattern for the Egg, describing it as an abstraction of the usual lamp and flame. Within her home, she cut, faceted and glued the pieces into the wrought iron frame. The frame was fabricated by the Ledo Iron Works in Holt, Michigan. Upon completion, the sculpture was affixed to the church building, with the assistance of the American Sign Company. Wright expressed that the purpose of hanging the piece was to “stamp our image” onto the building.

The smaller glass piece serves as a memorial to Burr Osborn, Evelyn’s husband, who passed away a few years after Evelyn. The glass piece was set inside a wooden frame crafted by their son, Stephen, and was originally placed near Grove Street on the east side of the building. In 2010, church members refurbished this sign as depicted in the photograph below. When it was moved to our new location, it was reframed to fit the space by Bob Lovell.

Have you spotted errors or missing details in this story or earlier ones? Let me know at uucgl.archives@gmail.com and I’ll update them.

Image citations:

1. Burr Osborn sign 2010 provided by Dan Talhelm.

2. Church Office sign from UU Lansing website