Splitting The Liberty Slab: 35 Down, Around 20 More Sculptures to Go!

Posted on August 23, 2026August 23, 2026 by Martin Cooney, Stone Sculptor

Whilst The Liberty Slab in the picture below may at first glance, look somewhat formidable, it shrinks in comparison considerably from the 3-ton behemoth that sat in The Liberty Building late last spring. Then, it was a near perfect rectangle of pure, white Colorado Yule Marble. But as the following pictures are about to show, those days are long gone, and now the humungous block is rendered into conveniently suggestable rough blocks – each destined to be transformed into something quite exquisite.

An older man working on a large block of stone in a workshop, wearing a sleeveless shirt and focused on his task.

~ The last sizeable chunk of the slab, about to be hewn in two ~

And so, by direct comparison, here is the slab in all its original glory, as it was forked into the Martin Cooney Stoneworks in the early spring of 2025.

A large block of stone or material resting on wooden pallets in a warehouse, with red and black markings on the side.

~ The freshly delivered Liberty Slab ~

Well, perhaps not ‘perfectly’ rectangular: I suspect, from the rather weathered and slightly ‘punished’ state of the slab’s surface, it had been out of the ground for quite some time. I’m guessing, from the numbers stenciled on each end, that it was quarried in 2018. That would seem to fit with the well-worn condition of its surface. But don’t let that fool you, for just as the rind of a cheese wheel looks generally unappealing and downright unappetizing, just a fraction of an inch below that crusty exterior lay three tons of beautiful white Colorado Yule Marble. I knew this from previous experience with this semi-precious stone: in fact, all 102 COLLECTION SERIES Marble Sculptures were hewn from similarly ‘experienced’ blocks, all of which told the same story. Crummy, beaten and worn on the outside / incredibly beautiful and wonderfully carvable marble just millimeters below. And so, it proved to be.

~ Please click on an image to enlarge ~

Three pieces of white stone sculpture in a workshop setting, including two triangular shapes and a flat, angular piece, with a dusting of stone powder on the surface.

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These rough blocks, recently photographed on my ‘banker’ (…. stone carver’s workbench), constitute the perfect platform for my Direct Method Reductionist tendencies. That is: I familiarize myself with their unique shapes and characters until I “see” the sculpture within. My first task is to remove all unusable material, and it is via this process that the vision materializes out of my initial vision for the piece.

Three abstract white stone sculptures of varying heights, displayed against a blurred studio background.

~ Pointy points ~

As you can see, at this point in my COLLECTION SERIES sculptural journey, I am drawn to tall but relatively small and convenient upright pieces that I carve to be easily picked up and moved around from one location to another without a second thought. These pieces I tend to think of as ‘Window Carvings’, as they are light and airy and capture the full spectrum of light as the day passes; absorbing both passive and direct light to quite dramatic effects. The vivid translucence and subtly array of shimmering shadows, as light passes through the thin walls of my Curvilinear marble sculpture really must be seen to be understood, sadly. Photographs do not even begin to capture this quite phenomenal effect.

~ New splitting technique ~

“Sculptural Journey”, I hear you say: yes, very much so. Direct Method Carving, pioneered by the legendary Constantin Brancusi over a century ago, pretty much provokes constant exploration and experimentation that quite definitely resembles a journey of sorts. By freeing oneself from pre-prescribed notions of a finished product, the whole process of carving stone releases possibilities that would otherwise, quite certainly, never materialize. The resulting sculpture is always the product of an alliance between the sculptor and his stone – a most gratifying experience, I can tell you!

The above montage of images, for instance, displays a method, or technique, that I have invented to split the marble within the narrow confines of the banker workshop. Plug and feathers, with their out of proportion one-inch drill holes would prove too intrusive upon so tiny a rough block – and so I utilize the plugs and ditch the ‘feathers’. That is, I use the wedges and drive them directly into the stone. It is not as accurate a method as the traditional arrangement, the one I use on the big old slab, to split it down into rough blocks, but the results are more (how should I say it?) creative? artistic? Less wasteful of vital material…. definitely.

~ Please click on an image to enlarge ~

An artist's studio featuring scattered blocks of stone, sculpting tools, and various sculptures in progress. The floor is covered in stone dust.

~ Workshop meets sculpture gallery at the Martin Cooney Stoneworks ~

A collection of white stone blocks and wooden beams scattered on a workshop floor, with a visible layer of dust and some tools in the background.

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And so, let’s go back in time to the spring of 2025 and see how these few surviving rough blocks came to be all that remains of a once might 3-ton slab of renowned Colorado Yule Marble, Building Stone of the Lincoln Memorial, with a legacy stretching all the way back to 1873; a most prestigious past, indeed.

Two large blocks of stone showing rough surfaces and marks, with metal tools resting on top, set in a workshop environment.

~ Nothing stops the mighty Plug and Feather Wedges. Nothing! ~

A large, rough-cut block of stone with embedded metal rods, placed on a wooden base in a workshop setting.

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A sculptor chiseling a block of stone in an industrial workshop, wearing a tank top and focusing on his work.

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An elderly man sculpting a stone block in an artist's studio, holding a hammer and chisel.

~ ‘Ringing the Stone’ ~

At this point, I must admit that although this looks like a lot of hard work – and it most certainly is, I never lose the thrill of splitting a mighty block of marble, as there is always that moment when a new sculpture makes their first appearance. The variables, as you can imagine, are many. For deep within each block of marble reside a myriad of seams that twist and turn like the Kansas wind – this way and that. So, you are never quite sure which element will prevail. Sedimentary stones such as limestone, and to a lesser degree sandstone, are predictable in their nature, and will pretty much adhere to whatever pressures the wedges bear upon them; meaning straight splits, and no nonsense. But marble is a metamorphosed rock, comprised of super-heated and pressured limestone that serves to turn the resulting stone into a toothpaste-like material that over time hardens into a mindbogglingly complex system of fissure, seams and invisible to the naked eye contrasts between hard and softer stone. This wanton ‘Spirit of the Stone’ I call Mabel.

~ Please click on an image to enlarge ~

A large block of stone with a sculpting tool and a chisel embedded in it, showing a rough surface and debris around the work area.

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A craftsman focusing on a workbench as he drills into a surface, surrounded by tools and a spray bottle.

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A sculptor using a power drill on a block of stone in a workshop, surrounded by various tools and sculptures.

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~ Split after split after… split ~

Over the course of carving The COLLECTION SERIES’ Fourth Edition, The Liberty Collection, a familiar pattern of splitting and carving / splitting and carving soon emerged and somewhat imposed itself on my life, as these compelling series are apt to do. The summer of ’26 however has brought with is a series of diversions that have served to pause activities somewhat – a much-needed respite, you could say. But before the year is through, I should be reaching the end of The Liberty Collection’s imperious grip on my life. Not that it wasn’t fun – fun and hard work, it must be said. But it will certainly mark a period in my life that I will look back upon quite fondly.

Upon its completion, The Liberty Collection will bring over 50 COLLECTION SERIES Marble Sculptures to my signature body of work – eclipsing The Maiden Collection’s 41 carvings by a substantial margin, expanding the whole body of work to around 120 sculpture all told. Who knows what lies next: another series, hopefully. This has been an incredible journey for me. Yes, a Sculptural Journey in the truest sense. And honestly … I feel like I am just getting started. 100 down, 400 to go !!!

~ Please click on an image to enlarge ~

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Close-up of a cracked piece of stone with rough edges, showing signs of splitting.

~ ‘Prairie Twist‘ is in there, somewhere ~

A large block of white foam with several embedded bolts, surrounded by construction tools and materials in a workshop setting.

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~ Back to the Beginning ~

Finally, a glimpse of where it all started: September 2011 in my Woody Creek, Colorado stone yard. Little did I know when I drilled that first row of plug and feather holes. The rest, as they say, is history.