A new podcast episode from The Building Texas Show, published May 27, 2026, takes listeners inside the 18-month build process of a Cavallini stained glass window, revealing the intricate engineering and artistic collaboration that define the craft. The episode, part of The Cavallini Legacy series hosted by Justin McKenzie, highlights why authentic stained glass cannot be replicated by AI and why patience is essential for such sacred art.
The discussion explores how themes are developed in dialogue with parishioners, often tracing narratives from the Old Testament to the New Testament, including Creation, Moses, the Nativity, Resurrection, and Ascension. The episode also delves into the hidden structural engineering behind every panel, such as the rebars that transfer weight to the frame to prevent the glass and lead from bowing.
A central story in the episode is the 18-year journey of Munich-style windows salvaged from St. Mary's Catholic Church in Port Arthur after Hurricane Rita. Cavallini purchased the Mysteries of the Rosary windows from the Diocese of Beaumont, stored them, and later recognized their fit for the new Our Lady of the Holy Rosary church in Houston, which was rebuilt after a natural gas explosion. Adrian Cavallini sent photographs to a committee member who, according to the elder Cavallini, "just fell in love with them." The studio is now creating the Luminous Mysteries to complete the set.
Throughout the episode, Mr. Cavallini and his son Adrian emphasize that patience and craft are inseparable from sacred art. McKenzie reflects on the modern pace of design, saying, "Employees coming in here working on a project that might take a year and a half to complete because it is detail-oriented or it's 50,000 square feet of mosaic that takes detail and time. It's not AI is going to create it in 30 seconds and here it is. And I worry for our economy and our workforce on how do we bring that patience back to something as meaningful as the work you're doing."
The Cavallini studio, founded in 1953, has designed and installed handcrafted, architect-grade sacred art for congregations across Texas and beyond for more than 70 years. Episode 2 of The Cavallini Legacy is available now wherever podcasts are heard.