an architectural arts studio located in new berlin wisconsin . it provides ecclesiastical art stained glass artistry art glass decorative painting mosaics murals and sculptural arts . the studio specializes in restoration services for buildings of architectural historical and religious significance . founded in 1889 by german american artist conrad schmitt the company is one of the oldest and largest glass studios in the united states . contents 1 history 2 technological innovations 2.1 dalle de verre 2.2 leptat 3 current operations 4 notable artists 5 publications 6 references 7 external links history edit in 1889 bavarian immigrant and formally trained artist conrad schmitt organized the conrad schmitt studios with a focus on stained glass decorative painting and liturgical artwork . originally located at 223 2nd street in milwaukee wisconsin the studio was among the city s pioneer businesses . 1 as one of the few art studios with the capacity to handle large scale interior design projects it quickly gained a national reputation and participated in increasingly complex projects across the country . 2 some of the studio s prominent early commissions included st. mary s cathedral in winnipeg canada in 1919 the milwaukee public library in 1920 and milwaukee s davidson theater now closed in 1925 . 3 during the 1930s studio branch offices operated out of new york city and washington d.c. bernard o. gruenke who was hired by company founder conrad schmitt in 1936 purchased the company in 1951 from members of the schmitt family . 4 in 1981 his son bernard e. gruenke assumed leadership of the company . since 2010 the studio has been owned and operated by a third generation of the gruenke family b. gunar gruenke and heidi gruenke emery . conrad schmitt studios is represented at the smith museum of stained glass windows at navy pier in chicago and a replica of the early studio is featured in the streets of old milwaukee display at the milwaukee public museum . technological innovations edit dalle de verre edit in 1950 bernard o. gruneke then art director of conrad schmitt studios was one of the first american artists to experiment with the dalle de verre technique of producing stained glass also known as slab glass or faceted glass . 5 gruenke was inspired while traveling in france during the 1940s and is credited with what may be the first dalle de verre window created in the united states . 6 experiments with epoxy and support structure at conrad schmitt studios led to the first large scale installations of faceted glass in the country including a chapel at notre dame university s moreau seminary in south bend indiana in 1959 . 7 leptat edit leptat glass is a signature etched glass patented and produced by conrad schmitt studios . after viewing a czechoslovakian glass exhibit at the 1969 world s fair in osaka japan bernard o. gruenke began to explore etching techniques at his new berlin studio . he and his son experimented with new methods that produced results unlike the evenly frosted effect achieved by traditional acid etching methods . the process called leptat from the czech word meaning to etch creates a deeply etched and varied crystalline surface . in some instances gold leaf or colored enamels can be inlaid for further decoration of the glass . leptat windows can be seen at the waldorf astoria hotel in new york city . current operations edit the studio is under the direction of president b. gunar gruenke and vice president heidi gruenke emery . at the 34 000 square foot 3 200 m2 facility in new berlin wisconsin artisans create conserve and restore stained glass . the company also provides ecclesiastical art art glass decorative painting interior design mosaics murals and sculptural arts . notable artists edit peter recker helen carew hickman 8 conrad pickel felix senger bernard o. gruenke publications edit schmitt conrad . the al secco method of mural painting church property administration magazine 1937 . schmitt edward j. protecting church decorations church property administration magazine 1938 . references edit william george bruce and josiah seymour currey history of milwaukee city and county volume 2 . ny s.j. clarke publishing co 1922 p. 810 . emma lila fundaburk and thomas g. davenport . art in public places in the united states . bowling green university popular press 1975 p. 63 . bruce & currey p. 810 . peter c. merril german american artists in early milwaukee a biographical dictionary . madison wi friends of the max kade institute for german american studies 2009 p. 33 . see also jean m. farnsworth carmen r. croce & john f chorpenning stained glass in catholic philadelphia . philadelphia pa st joseph s university press 2002 p. 449 . bertha kitchell whyte craftsmen of wisconsin . racine wi western publishing company 1971 pp. 178 185 . erne r. frueh & florence frueh chicago stained glass . 2nd ed . chicago wild onion books 1998 p. 124 . see also gary gray & carrie crow the stained glass appraisal guide . edmund ok presidential press 2007 pp. 212 213 . john gilbert lloyd stained glass in america . jenkintown pa foundation books . 1963 p. 90 . virginia chieffo raguin & mary clerkin higgins stained glass from its origins to the present . new york h. n. abams 2003 pp. 188 191 . external links edit official website retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title conrad schmitt studios & oldid 736341210 categories companies based in wisconsinwaukesha county wisconsinarchitecture firms based in wisconsin navigation menu personal tools not logged intalkcontributionscreate accountlog in namespaces article talk variants views read edit view history more search navigation main pagecontentsfeatured contentcurrent eventsrandom articledonate to wikipediawikipedia store interaction helpabout wikipediacommunity portalrecent changescontact page tools what links hererelated changesupload filespecial pagespermanent linkpage informationwikidata itemcite this page 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