Coloured glass and creativity is on its way to the former Tahiti Hut shop on the corner of Molesworth and Magellan Streets.

The now empty shop will get a new lease on life when Maire Joy Barron brings her Northern Rivers Stained Glass business to the busy location.

Marie has been operating her stained glass business from a shared shop space on Keen Street since 2019 - sharing with Julie Spinks from Northern Rivers Tiles and Mosaics.

But now, both businesses have been growing and Maire is excited about moving to a larger shop with extra window space, lots of trees and the Thursday markets just outside.

Read about the closing of long established business Tahiti Hut

“My business is doing better than I could have imagined,” Maire said. “I started it solo and now there’s four people working here.

“Now, the new space will give me double the size of the workshop space and Julie can expand her business in the Keen Street shop.”

With lots of items for sale made by local artisans – from ceramics to candles, Maire said having the foot traffic was an important way for people to see gift ideas as they walked past.

She’s also one of the few importers of glass in Australia and opened because she saw a gap in the market as no one was retailing stained glass from Brisbane to Newcastle.

Maire is hoping to be in the new shop by the end of February, which means a few busy weeks ahead while she gets the new space ready.

“I’m hoping to open with a 31 days of wild women exhibition,” she said. “Last March, I had a 31 days of yoni exhibition that was also part of the Lismore Women’s Festival. It would be great to do that again.”

Stained glass love

Maire fell in love with stained glass when she was about seven years old, growing up in New Zealand.

“My uncle had a stained glass shop in Auckland and I loved it in there,” she said.

“I had a complex trauma childhood and I think stained glass reminds me of the safety and comfort of my uncle’s shop.

“Now, I have a big emotional response when I see light coming through coloured glass - it’s a whole body experience.

“I was 11 when I made my first stained glass pieces - I made wind chimes and candle holders. After that, I took any opportunity to play with glass.

“When I was 24, I build a house in Nimbin and did a course in stained glass and made a 153 piece rainbow that was amazing – the sun set through it and shone the light onto the mirror ball and my daughter Zara made a rainbow disco with it.”

Commissions and workshops

Since then, she has made many pieces – large and small and regularly get requests for commissioned work and repair work.

“I was commissioned to make a large phoenix at Hanging Rock Hall,” Maire said. “I’ve also made one for Invercauld House.

“People contact me from far and wide and even come up from Sydney and Melbourne to do my workshops. I’ve also had the disability sector tapping in and recently did a workshop for deaf people.

“My workshops are already booked out for March and often book out two to three months in advance.”

History

With a career history of being a youth worker and counsellor at Headspace, Maire said her business has become a safe comfortable option for many people. After reaching burn out from her counselling work, she went on to set up her own studio and opened the shop as a career change.

“I’d quit my job and had no idea what to do, so I thought what am I too scared to do?,” she said.

“So, I decided to open my own shop. Now, being immersed in glass is so lovely - I do it from my heart.”

Political

Maire’s politics also feature strongly in her artistic work with glass. She’s made lots of stained glass featuring women’s genitalia – including the yoni and clitoris.

“I’ve worked as a teacher of unhealthy relationships programs and it’s been a passion of mine to teach about equality and sexuality,” she said. “I’m finding that coming out of my glass work.

“Some people walk past and see it and are offended by the yonis they see. They may feel it’s an attack on them - but it’s not, it’s a celebration. For me they are important political statements.

“I have no intention to offend anyone, but you can go to the $2 shop and see all the dick and balls paraphernalia – and I don’t hear complaint about that.

“I’m interested in having a conversation about why we need to embrace and celebrate our bodies - that’s what I’m doing with some of my stained glass window displays.

“We have anatomically correct clitorises on display – this was only discovered 20 years ago. Scientists put a man on the moon, invented nuclear physics and found the prostate before they mapped the female organ of the clitoris – and I’m angry about that.

“So, I have clitorises hanging up as part of education and celebration about women’s bodies that have been largely intentionally ignored for so long.

“Now, people come in to buy yoni art as well as the traditional stained glass. It’s fun and so many people embrace it.”

You can find out more about Northern Rivers Stained Glass on Facebook, Instagram or the website https://nrstainedglass.com/