A couple months ago I submitted a proposal for the Stone Sculpture Legacy Program in Barre City, made possible by the Semprebon Fund and Studio Place Arts. My proposal was accepted based on concept, and the scale model shown here. The final piece will be carved in Barre grey granite, out of an 8 x 3 x 4ft block, and in more detail than the model. Below is the concept proposal, which asked for, “the creation of a granite sculpture that helps to tell the rich, multi-cultural story of the people who settled in Barre to work the quarries, to start small businesses, and to create their ideal new home”.
Culmination
For the Stone Sculpture Legacy Program, I propose a sculpture titled “Culmination” which will consist of a cluster of geometric forms that will suggest the silhouette of a small city emerging from a mountainous base. Negative spaces around and below the cluster will refer to the “quarries” from which these forms were built. The sculpture will be slightly larger than average human height and there will be “windows” in the forms around eye-level.
The concept for “Culmination” is an abstract representation of a small developing city. The buildings will all have different shapes that recall different architectural styles from around the world to allude to the cultural diversity of Barre. The way in which those forms emerge from the boulder but remain connected to it will evoke the idea of a town which consists of many different parts but remains unified. In this way, “Culmination” will reflect the spirit of the quote by Aristotle that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” “Culmination” will be both an abstract sculpture with rough natural forms and refined geometric shapes as well as an architectural model that combines highly detailed sections which depict the facades of buildings and draw the viewer in.
For the better part of 2014, I was working on a larger than life sized grizzly bear head, mounted on an architectural keystone. The keystone had scroll elements, known as a corbell, and acanthus leaves on the sides and under the bear’s jaw. Above the bear head is a rosette, with some basic wreath work that blends into the hair, and ogee moulding overhanging the front of the face and going back into the wall. I’ve included some progress photos showing the carving in its unfinished form, and the preliminary model in clay. Done for Barre Sculpture Studios as one of three keystones. The measurements are approximately 4 x 4 x 3ft.
I’ve decided it’s time to learn these 3D programs, starting with Sculptris. It’s free, and I like it better than blender. Next on the list is ZBrush, then, if I can *gulp* Maya…
I call this guy, Duckman.
This one is a Bighorn Sheep study. Took about 2 hours.
Here are some working photos of a 1ft miniature of Princess Zahara, a character out of the Spider Stories comic book series created by John and Charles Agbaje. Their recent kickstarter campaign to create a 11 minute pilot animation of the comic was a complete success! Great job guys! More progress photos to come.
been a while since I posted anything. So here goes!
In addition to all the comedy I’ve been doing at night, I have have also been working on a commission for Barre Sculpture Studios back in Vermont. The project is a wild boar, to be carved in granite this winter. Here are some progress shots so you can see the evolution of the piece.
(C) Barre Sculpture Studio
(C) Barre Sculpture Studios
(C) Barre Sculpture Studios
(C) Barre Sculpture Studios
(C) Barre Sculpture Studios
To get a better idea of hair direction, here is a drawing that was done over the photo for some final editing before the sculpture is cast.
For the past 2 months I have been living on Koh Chang, one of Thailand’s largest islands. Near Koh Chang there are many coral reefs, and there are local initiatives to tackle the issue of dying coral reefs. Not only on Koh Chang, but all over the world people are responding to this same problem by creating new artificial reefs for coral to colonize, using different approaches. The idea of creating an artificial reef has been gaining momentum for the last 15 years.
An artist, Jason Decaires Taylor’s under water sculptures in Cancun, Mexico combine sculpture and reef restoration. Hist work resembles reminds me of the process Antony Gormley used while making Domain Field, a project he did in 2003 at the Baltic Center for Contemporary Art in Gateshead, England. During the creation of Domain Field, Gormley made plaster life casts of 250 people from the town of Gateshead and Newcastle, and used those plaster molds as templates for constructing steel sculptures that loosely delineate the shape of each person. Gormley has also had molds of himself made to make iron casts that are installed facing the sea in Another Place, in Wattenmeer Cuxhaven, Germany. Where Gormley creates softly formed iron casts of his own body, and abstracted forms of the community members of Gateshead, Taylor creates detailed cement casts of people from the communities close to where his sculptures are installed that are softened by the coral over time. What is so interesting to me, is that Taylor has had remarkable success with growing coral, the true aim of his sculpture.
Reef Balls, the name of an NGO that could only be American, also creates underwater structures using pH neutral cement, which is what Taylor uses in creating his cement life casts. PH neutral cement being the key phrase, here. According to Reef Ball research, normal cement has a pH of 13, and alkaline levels are too high for coral to colonize when the structures are initially installed, therefore more aggressive life forms, such as barnacles and algae get there first and inhibit coral growth. The pH in the cement is neutralized through mixing additives, such as micro silica, and curing of the cement for at least 30 days. Here is a photo some finished Reef Balls before and after installation:
Ideally, aided by transplanting coral from existing reefs, it takes only a couple of years for coral to grow over the entire structure.
Though the above photo is the ideal result, I have seen many photos of Reef Balls that look unsuccessful as well. Reef Balls are installed all over the world, and I’m sure it must be hard to guarantee success for every installation. They mention on the website that they have a patent to ensure quality, but I would guess they play a role in project management as well. Site location is the most important factor when trying to create a new reef, where currents and temperature are most suitable for coral to grow.
All in all, Reef Balls are an impressive organization who have found diverse applications for their design. There are also a few related companies, one of which is called Eternal Reefs, who specialize in creating artificial reefs, or ‘memorial reefs’, which are mixed with the ashes of loved ones, complete with an engraved memorial plaque on the side. Fun!
More practical applications of the Reef Ball design are taken on by another offshoot of Reef Balls called Reef Beach, where Reef Balls are used to prevent beach erosion and act as a ‘submerged breakwaters’, surrounding long stretches of shoreline. In some cases, the Reef Balls are simultaneously used to grow oysters. Reef Beach is also undertaking Mangrove restoration using the Reef Balls.
The Reef Ball Foundation is not alone in their quest for reef restoration and coral cultivation. I came across another, more science fiction approach called Biorock, which makes similar claims to successful coral growth. Biorock has an interesting history. Originally thought of to be used in conjunction with ocean thermal energy conservation, Biorock uses the process of electrolysis to create calcium carbonate, the same substance that coral produces naturally. A steel frame is constructed and hooked up to an electric current, and over time the steel is encased in calcium carbonate produced by electrolysis. The calcium carbonate coating will then naturally attract coral, and provide an appropriate substrate where coral can be transplanted. Biorock claims to provide a substrate that makes the coral more hardy, and able to survive coral bleaching where natural coral cannot, so they claim.
Here is a great informative/promotional video from one of the founders of Biorock, Thomas Goreau Ph.D:
The founders of Biorock are a well decorated team in terms of education and work experience and the videos out there for Biorock are pretty convincing. Here is a video of a Biorock reef filmed after 2 years of growth in North Sulawesi, Indonesia:
Each method boasts positive results, but as it is noted on the Reef Ball website, no project can be successful without sufficient scientific data to back it up. The water must first be tested, and the site must be thoroughly analyzed to assess whether or not it will be a good location for coral. I doubt that building a Biorock structure in already polluted water will have good results.
That being said, both approaches leave something to be desired aesthetically. There must be a good team of biologists behind Jason Decaires Taylor work.
In addition to intentionally created artificial reefs, I also came across an unexpected and unintentional source of artificial coral reefs — the offshore oil industry. I had never thought of it before, but oil rigs also act as artificial reefs. Though I’m sure the health of marine life around active rigs is up to debate, this video shows oil rigs teeming with life:
The unintentional results of an ultimately environmentally damaging industry, are amazing. Yet decommissioned oil reefs are taken apart or even blown up, destroying the newly created reefs along with them, adding insult to injury, but there is hope. Here is a link to the Rigs-to-reefs program taken on by the U.S. Department of Interior in Texas.
My favorite method that I have found was good ol’ fashioned gardening. There is no electricity, sparing use of concrete, and a wonderful educational element behind what biologists in Fiji and the Florida keys are doing. Here are two videos about coral proliferation, or ‘coral gardening’.
To create new coral reefs, there must be a combination of good science, simple gardening (coral proliferation), and good site location with a suitable substrate. That is a lot to ask, but it is frustrating to see other examples of projects that are driven by people with no patience or true appreciation for science. Like these concrete cube frames thrown into the ocean by the Thai government, or Osbourne reef attempt off the coast of Florida.
Could I get a hell, yes!?? First travel gig. Me and the boys from Berlin gonna SHOW YOU SOMETHIN’, the 10th and 11th in ANTWERP, baby! Check us out this Saturday at the Barcode in Antwerp, Muntstraat 22. and Sunday at Cafe the Joker
While I was at home in Vermont this Thanksgiving, I tried my hand at carving text in stone at the shop.
Here is my first try.
Here is My second attempt.
Here is the Third try in a larger font size. Just one letter in this size takes much longer to carve because of the increased depth (1/2in.) The font is Trajan.
Ein Amerikanischer Steinbildhauer interviewt einen Deutschen Steinbildhauer.
SW: Sean Williams
Wie bist Du zu deinem Beruf Steinbildhauer gekommen?
A: Andreas Hoferick
Mein Vater geriet im Kalten Krieg zwischen die Fronten und wurde 1972 beruflich passiviert. Daraus erwuchs in mir der Wunsch beruflich etwas ganz Anderes zu werden und die musischen Ambitionen meiner Mutter führten mich zur Bildenden Kunst. Die lange unfreiwillige Kindheit in der DDR und sozialistische Erziehung gegen die ich mich früh genug positioniert habe und deshalb nicht an den DDR-Kunsthochschulen studieren durfte, führte zu einem ausgeprägten alternativem Denken. Deshalb auch der Umweg über eine Bergbaulehre im Kupferschieferbergbau (Lehrling im Bergbau) . Danach begegnete ich auf meiner Suche nach einer Bildhauerwerkstatt dem Steinbildhauermeister J. Klimes in Berlin. Er war Leiter einer Klassischen Bildhauerwerkstatt mit 27 Kollegen und vermittelte historisches Handwerk in der Steinbildhauerei. Kulturell und alternativ orientierte Menschen hatten in der DDR lediglich in einer Nische eine Überlebenschance. Und für mich bot sich diese Gelegenheit in der Werkstatt Klimes. Isoliert von der Welt, konnte ich mich in 11 Jahren Anstellung den Klassischen Stein-Skulpturen widmen, die es zu rekonstruieren galt, denn durch den II.WK waren in Berlin hohe Verluste entstanden.
SW: Wie und wann ist Deine Werkstatt gegründet worden?
A: Als die Werkstett Klimes 5 Jahre nach der „Maueröffnung“ in dem Neuen Wirtschaftssystem nicht mehr überlebensfähig war entschloss ich mich 1995 mit 3 weiteren Kollegen eine kleinere Werkstatt auszugründen und ich fand Anschluss an des Kollegium der Restauratoren Berlin welches eine freie Assoziation von Restauratoren im selben Stadtbezirk Weißensee war und ist. Von 1989-1993 studierte ich an der TFH – Wedding Steinrestaurierung, so kann ich meine Steinbildhauerischen Arbeiten unterstützen.
15 Jahre lang (1995-2010) ist es mir gelungen die Werkstatt Hoferick in demselben Stil wie die Werkstatt Klimes weiterzuführen, allerdings nur noch mit 7 Mitarbeitern.
SW: Welches war das Projekt mit der interessantesten Herausforderung für Dich und warum?
A: Pferdeportraits sind noch vor den Kolossalskulpturen wie z.B. der der „Caritas“ welche eine Größe von 5,70 m besitzt, eine besondere Herausforderung. Abgesehen von meiner unbefangenen Entdeckung, dass Pferde Fabelwesen gleichen, ist die Skulptur eines Pferdes wohl das Komplizierteste was einem naturalistisch arbeitenden Bildhauer begegnen kann.
SW: Wie ist Deine Werkstattphilosophie?
A: Skulpturen oder Ensembles zu schaffen, die der vermeintlichen Kurzlebigkeit unserer Zeit widerstehen. Wir kreieren die historische Zukunft in unserem Metier: Steinbildhauerei
SW: Wie sieht die Zukunft für Dich aus?
A: Was ich als nächstes machen will ist meine KUNST in anderen Ländern und Kulturen bekanntzumachen und an den in der Kunst bisher üblichen Selbstdarstellungen vorbei zu agieren. Z.B Themen anderer Kulturen aufzunehmen und in einem kulturellen Dialog bildnerisch darzustellen.
English:
SW: How did you become a Stone carver?
A: Andreas Hoferick
In the cold war my father operated between the two fronts and was occupationally passified in 1972. From then on there grew a desire to become something completely different and my mother’s musical ambitions drove me to fine art. The long restricted childhood in the DDR and socialistic upbringing, which I had been against early on and thus didn’t allow me to study in the DDR fine art colleges, lead me to an distinct alternative route. I began with the indirect route of becoming and apprentice in a copper mine. Afterwards during my search for a scupture workshop I came across the Stonecarver J. Klimes in Berlin. He was the head of a classical sculpture workshop with 27 co-workers and subcontracted historical works of sculpture. Cultured and alternatively oriented people in the DDR’s only chance to survive was finding a Niche. The workshop of J. Klimes offered me this opportunity. Isolated from the world, I was able to dedicate 11 years of employment to classical stone sculpture intended for reconstruction, and the many losses of WW2 in Berlin provided ample work.
SW: How and when did you establish your workshop?
A: When Klimes’ workshop was no longer viable in the new economic system 5 years after the ‚opening of the wall’, 3 other colleagues and I resolved to start up a small workshop and found connections in the College of Restuaration Berlin which is a free association of conservators in Weißensee. From 1989 to 1993 I studied stone conservation at the TFH-Wedding (University of Applied Sciences), which supports my work as a stone carver. For 15 years I successfully ran the workshop Hoferick in the same fashion as the workshop Klimes, if only with 7 co-workers.
SW: Which was the project with the most interesting challenge for you, and why?
A: Horse portraits, even in comparison to collossal sculptures like „Caritas“ which is 5.7m tall, are especially challenging. Irrespective of my naive observations, the horse is that of a myth, and the form of a horse if definitely the most complicated form that a figurative sculptor can come up against.
SW: What is your workshop Philosophie?
A:To create sculptures or compositions, that withstand the professed humanity of our time. We create the historical future in our profession: Stonecarving.
SW: What do you have in mind fort he future?
A:What I want to do next is to make my art well known in other countries and cultures, and to work past what has been traditionally called self-expression in art. For example: taking up themes of other cultures and expressing them in a visual cultural dialogue. Stone carving is an age-old tradition in which every person doesn’t have to think of within a specific epoch or culture and in times of such global thinking it is important to foster a continuation of these skills.
Fotos mit freunchliche Genehmigung von Andreas Hoferick
Sean Hunter Williams 