Convergence

“Convergence” by David Bacharach fills the Plantation Key Courthouse’s stairwell with color and light. The stained glass installation occupies a prominent window on the second-floor landing, visible both from inside the building and from the parking area below, serving as a beacon of civic and artistic presence.

Bacharach designed the window using a contemporary geometric vocabulary that departs from traditional stained glass approaches. Triangular and trapezoidal panels in varying shades of cobalt blue, sea green, and warm amber are arranged in a composition that suggests the convergence of ocean, sky, and the coral rock foundation of the Keys. The leading between panels follows flowing, organic lines that soften the geometry and reference the natural forms of the surrounding landscape.

The installation required careful engineering to meet Monroe County’s hurricane building codes, with each glass panel laminated to impact-resistant backing and the overall framework reinforced with stainless steel supports. Bacharach, a nationally recognized stained glass artist based in Baltimore, traveled to the Keys multiple times during the design process to study the quality of local light and ensure his color selections would respond authentically to the subtropical sun.