Oak Tree Ristorante in Felton has restored the iconic stained glass butterfly doors situated at the restaurant’s entrance.
The restaurant is on the Felton Guild property, which was purchased by Kathy and George Topusidis in 1994. Both the restaurant and the property have been renovated in recent years and still maintain an artistic feel from the days when the property served as an artists’ guild.
“Now that everything else has been freshened up here on the Felton Guild property, it came time to address the front doors of the Oak Tree Ristorante,” Kathy Topusidis explained.
Guests entering through the restaurant’s front double doors are greeted by a beautifully carved wooden sculpture of a woman in lotus position, reminiscent of the artists who used the property as a center for art, learning, and meditation during the 1970s.
Behind the woman is a large pair of stained glass monarch butterfly wings that divide the double doors in half symmetrically, and the woman’s arms serve as the handles.
“A few pieces got broken and we just kind of left it because it wasn’t super noticeable, but it wasn’t until recently that Aldina Rubino said she would repair it,” Topusidis said. “So she took on this huge project.”
The doors were restored approximately two weeks ago, and the restorative process took around two weeks. New Plexiglass had to be installed and the stained glass had to be removed in pieces.
Aldina Rubino, the local stained-glass artist responsible for the restoration, used the individual glass pieces as a template to duplicate the exact glasswork on the new glass, Topusidis said.
“I totally noticed that the wings were falling apart and I took it in my heart and promised myself that I would be ready someday to take them off, make them new, and start again,” Rubino confessed.
Originally, the wings of the butterfly were multi-colored, but most of the glass had to be replaced after years of wear and tear on the doors.
Some of the original yellow glass was reused for the new design, which has been modeled after a monarch butterfly and now features brilliant shades or red, orange, and brown.
“I blessed her with the design of the monarch butterfly because I honor the fact that there are monarch butterflies flying around this place,” Rubino said.
It is unknown when the glass doors were originally completed in the 1970s or who the original artists were, but Rubino said that the glass was at least 45 years old before the restoration.
“It’s a mix of modern and old,” she stated.
The doors are composed of over 140 individual glass pieces that were soldered together to form the beautiful stained-glass wings.
From the inside of the restaurant, the light passing through the wings and illuminates the darkness with vivid colors.
“People always talk about the doors,” said Sabastian Nobile, head chef and manager of the Oak Tree Ristorante. “Before they enter, they stand in front of the doors and take pictures.”
The monarch butterfly doors will continue to be an artistic landmark in Felton and many of Rubino’s stained glass works of art hang in the windows of the restaurant as well. These art pieces add to the majestic atmosphere of the Felton Guild property and allow guests to gaze in wonder while they enjoy an Italian meal.
