A Stone Sculptor and Banker Mason with 20 years of experience and an NVQ Level 2 from the City of Bath College, England, I live and carve at 8,000 feet in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.
Maypole / Sold / Home Page / COLLECTION SERIES MARBLE SCULPTURE By Martin Cooney
When the time came to carve the block that would become ‘Maypole’, the 4th sculpture of the 1314 Winter Collection, I had enjoyed ample time during which to familiarize myself with its form and innate characteristics. I had already split this piece from a large block of Colorado Yule Marble, and while the one side broke into several pieces, the remainder sheared off in such a manner that I instantly knew the lovely long sliver of stone would serve very nicely as the first of the ‘Ribbons of Light’; Curvilinear Standing Stones, carved in a manner so as to allow light to travel through the walls, and in so doing serving to illuminate the thinly carved marble walls from within.
It’s odd just how often a major decision regarding key and signature features of a sculpture manifest themselves in the final moments prior to the actual carving – and such was the case with ‘Maypole’s 180 degree twist. It was only once I had the block in the workshop, and on my banker, that my mind turned to marking out a spiral twist.
The name ‘Maypole’ struck me as apt, as this ancient symbol of springtime fertility was gleefully danced around in a twisting, bobbing, ducking and weaving fashion, and that simple turn, once applied in the workshop, seemed to give the sculpture dynamism and spontaneity in return. Also, the implied movement in the pole’s twist seemed to suggest just such merriment as must have accompanied the festive occasion as giddy dancers spun round and around their annual May pole.
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