Graphite, Pen and Ink, Scratchboard, Charcoal, Colored Pencil, Pastel.
Watercolor, Oil, Acrylic, Airbrush, Mixed Media.
Relief, Embossing, Monoprint, Collagraphy, Intaglio, Chine Colle, Silkscreen, Digital and Alternative, Stone/Plate Litho, Photolitho.
Black and White, Cyanotype, Digital, Gum Prints, Solarized Prints.
Stone Carving, Assemblage, Installation, Wood Sculpture, Metal Sculpture, Casting and Moldmaking.
Handbuilding, Wheel-Thrown, Moldmaking, Mixed Media.
Digital Art, Logo and Identity Development, Advertisment, Web Design and Development.
Click here to go to the RedRock Rambler Music Home Page.

 

stone carv logoThe UnderPressure Fine Art Web Site.

Welcome to Stone, Marble, and Alabaster Carving.

Below, you will see the latest project I have been carving. Some of the hand tools are pictured here, but keeping some electric and airtools around, such as grinders and sanders, gets the job done quicker. You will see in-progress pics of the stone, so keep coming back.

PROJECT: ALABASTER STONE CARVING.

I got this stone from a family-run quarry in Fort Collins, Colorado. They allow sculptors to browse the stone yard and pick out something. They also keep hand tools in their small store. Give them a visit, just for fun. They are called, Colorado Alabaster Supply, and here is a link to their site: http://www.coloradoalabaster.com/ Also, I have included some pics of the tools I am using to do the job. I do use an electric grinder and a sander from time to time, but only where a hand tool does not do the job. Caution: be careful about grinding and sanding on stone of any type. All stones are made up of certain composites, and some of the composites, if airborn creating debris from sanding, may be extremely harmful to your respiratory system. Wear a mask, at least, if chips and powder fly even a little bit. At the bottom of this page, there will be some general stone carving tips, and these mainly come from my research as I study carving in stone (books, online research, help from sculptors I know, etc.). That info spot will be updated as I work on the project, and come across new information.

PROJECT:

alabaster

You are looking at the stone above, which measures about 18 inches high, with about 12 inches at the widest point. Further down, you will see progress pictures, check back about once a month.

TOOLS AND MATERIALS:

stone tools 1stone tools 2stone tools 3stone tools 4

Here you see three hammers, different sizes and shapes. On the far right, you see a white vase with rifflers, they are great for sanding and are shaped for getting into tight spots.

MAQUETTES/SKETCHES: at present, this information is not availabe.

PROGRESS PICTURES: at present, there are no progress pictures.

RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT: this will be ongoing, so check back for more information. I placed a few things in this category just to help you get started reasearching about stone carving, and in particular, alabaster.

Definitions: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alabaster, also here, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alabaster.

and three points below from this site: http://www.answers.com/topic/alabaster?cat=technology.

1. A dense translucent, white or tinted fine-grained gypsum.
2. A variety of hard calcite, translucent and sometimes banded.
3. A pale yellowish pink to yellowish gray.

A great and friendly site that instructs on how to carve alabaster: http://www.stoneshaper.com/how.html.

A site that is very instructive, easy to use, and has a comment blog for posting Q and A. It is less personal than the stoneshaper site, but just as informative: http://www.ehow.com/how_2056489_carve-using-alabaster-stone.html.

Here is an article about choosing a stone for carving: http://www.ehow.com/how_2056480_select-stone-sculpting.html. Another article explains the tools and their differences: http://www.ehow.com/how_2056481_select-stone-carving-tools.html.

A site that discusses stone from a sculpture point of view, more scientific, less friendly, though it has a chat space for Q and A.: http://aboutstone.org/.