I'm no way any kind of carver, but it's interesting how you work like a Japanese "carpenter" or furniture maker, just more impact, bigger tools, but proportional tools and understanding of the materials... Thanks for the effort in sharing your skills and experience and talent!
That is a very humbling comment- thank you. Being a true craftsman in whatever I do is my goal. There is no difference between being a chef in the kitchen or carving granite in the studio. Many times, finding the parallels between very different crafts is beneficial in ways that you never considered. Having tools, a work bench or space and materials is what I enjoy. It’s just hard sometimes to stay focused and only do one or two things.
@@carolinasculpturestudio I will for sure. I quarry marble at the Danby quarry in Vermont. A local artist has taken me on as a student. I spend four to six hours with him a week. I pretty much have unlimited practice material.
@@andrewroberts2737 very cool, Andrew. I fielded a project specifying Danby marble a few years ago but it didn’t sell. Along with your stone, consider getting some clay to just rehearse in 3D. During your time there, maybe you can help me answer a question. One of, if not the first, recognized granite sculptor here in SC was a man named Joseph G Sassi who operated Rock Hill Marble and Granite works in Rock Hill, SC during the first half of the 20th century. He was from Italy. in a 1937 article about a show he had at Winthrop College in Rock Hill, it mentioned that he carved in Vermont between leaving Italy and arriving in SC. That article mentioned his use of fine quality “Happy Valley” marble from VT for his pieces in the show. They look fairly clear of veining. I’ve not been able to identify where that Happy Valley Marble may have been quarried. Inquiries with Carol at the Carving Studio in W Rutland produced no additional info or leads. If you happen to learn anything about the marble, quarry or even where Mr Sassi carved in VT, I would be appreciative of any information to document and add to the oral history of this work in the USA. Additional info- As far as we know, Master Sculptor Joseph G Sassi is not related to my Master Sculptor Gary Sassi at Celestial Memorial Sculpture Studio in Barre, VT. Even if they share some family relationship, Gary had never heard of him and had no knowledge of him. Rock Hill Marble and Granite Works was sold around the time of Mr Sassi’s death in 1945 and the remnant company is now part of Gaulden Monuments in Rock Hill, SC.
I'll ask my coworkers from Cararra if they know any information on Mr. Sassi. I haven't heard about Happy Valley marble. Sometimes in block quarries you might run into a pocket of a particularly different kind of coloring in the overall coloring and character of the stone. It would probably take minimum 2years to even create a market and supply for the new stone. This is all assuming the stone is structurally fit for any application you sell it for. Anyways a quarry could have had a three year run on something good enough to get a name but short lived and small in quantity. So it's going to be difficult to track down.
A good student/apprentice is not "stupid", or else they wouldn't be looking to learn from a master ... They are, to begin with, a bit like a square chunk of granite, unfinished, but hopefully material that can take form, without cracking or crumbling.... I worked for a while with a very successful photographer, and he told me that 98% of people would process to want to learn from him, but just didn't*listen* and then, didn't put in *the work*.... Eventually, I had learned so well that his wife decided that I was now a competitor, rather than a student!
More than once, I have had a mentor or a master tell me to hear what they mean & not what they say. That “stupid” statement is one of those statements, as I qualified it. Seeking is easy. submitting is often more difficult. I have seen (and had) new persons who were incredulous because they were smarter than the instructor, always challenging, correcting and showing they had a better way. It rarely ends well unless they realize they are not the superior. Occasionally, they were smarter and didn’t need instruction,. usually, they did. This is why I value employed apprenticeship or instruction the most. People that know too much- whether they do or don’t- are discharged to go their own way. In a classroom, they can stay and be “right” as long as they keep paying. There is a fine line between adequate confidence and arrogance. If a Master has to tell the apprentice that he or she is stupid, the process fails. As I explained, the apprentice needs to recognize their inability and inadequate amount of knowledge internally in order to submit & accept the superiority of the Master. It’s a critically important step to growth towards becoming a Master in their own right. Then, as the apprentice thinks they are becoming skilled enough to be seen as a Master, the lesson is taught again. As your skills grow, you realize how effortlessly the stone will reveal that your confidence has becomes arrogant. The more I do, the better I understand that I am only a stupid man, compared to the profound capacity that a piece of stone- my enduring Master- has to humble me.
Beste Clinton! Wees gerust… ik vertrouw je !!! Het is zo belangrijk wat je steeds aanhaalt, luisteren naar je meester! Oók in mijn werk( ik ben een matrijzen maker, nu al 42 jaar ervaring..)heb ik dit ondervonden! Dankjewel voor de tips!💪
My only goal it to give everyone good advice, Erwin. The more I learn, the more I understand how little I actually know. We all have so much to learn, including me. Thanks again for watching!
Howdy Clint. Recently my friends returned from italy with a chunk of marble for me. It is small and I am inexperienced, but I am working through the lessons from nbr 1, as well as keeping up here. My stone cutting integrity is not yet ready for me to touch stone with tools yet. Thanks for the education.
Marble is a great place to start. There are several videos on my channel including VSCA 38-44, Traditional Stone Finishing Techniques Dormered Capitol in CO Yule 1-3 and more that can provide information about working marble successfully. When working with an incidental piece of stone (I.e.- not quarried and sawn to dimension) I alway recommend planning the final display aspect of the piece. Think about the joint or lack thereof. It will help you avoid a haphazard end to a project. It’s discouraging to work a piece of stone only to realize that is won’t stand up on its own after completion without a disproportionately large base. Keep me posted! edit- don’t forget, ice is a fantastic medium to carve as a metaphor for stone. due to its crystalline structure, it performs just like stone. there is nothing except a puddle to clean up when you’re done. place a box with a plastic bag in freezer, fill with water and have fun. I carved actual tons of ice as a chef and firmly believe it greatly benefited my success as a professional stone carver.
I’ll plan to get out my tools and do a video about ice carving shortly. The related downside of decades of stone carving with hand machines is nerve damage that now makes carving ice very difficult. my hands are incredibly sensitive to cold, so I rarely carve ice anymore.
I'm no way any kind of carver, but it's interesting how you work like a Japanese "carpenter" or furniture maker, just more impact, bigger tools, but proportional tools and understanding of the materials... Thanks for the effort in sharing your skills and experience and talent!
That is a very humbling comment- thank you. Being a true craftsman in whatever I do is my goal. There is no difference between being a chef in the kitchen or carving granite in the studio. Many times, finding the parallels between very different crafts is beneficial in ways that you never considered. Having tools, a work bench or space and materials is what I enjoy. It’s just hard sometimes to stay focused and only do one or two things.
I am a quarryman who's just learning to carve. Your videos are great.
You’re exactly who I’m trying to reach, Andrew. Thanks for watching and good luck with your progress. Keep in touch if I can be of assistance.
@@carolinasculpturestudio I will for sure. I quarry marble at the Danby quarry in Vermont. A local artist has taken me on as a student. I spend four to six hours with him a week.
I pretty much have unlimited practice material.
@@andrewroberts2737 very cool, Andrew. I fielded a project specifying Danby marble a few years ago but it didn’t sell. Along with your stone, consider getting some clay to just rehearse in 3D.
During your time there, maybe you can help me answer a question. One of, if not the first, recognized granite sculptor here in SC was a man named Joseph G Sassi who operated Rock Hill Marble and Granite works in Rock Hill, SC during the first half of the 20th century. He was from Italy. in a 1937 article about a show he had at Winthrop College in Rock Hill, it mentioned that he carved in Vermont between leaving Italy and arriving in SC. That article mentioned his use of fine quality “Happy Valley” marble from VT for his pieces in the show. They look fairly clear of veining. I’ve not been able to identify where that Happy Valley Marble may have been quarried.
Inquiries with Carol at the Carving Studio in W Rutland produced no additional info or leads. If you happen to learn anything about the marble, quarry or even where Mr Sassi carved in VT, I would be appreciative of any information to document and add to the oral history of this work in the USA.
Additional info- As far as we know, Master Sculptor Joseph G Sassi is not related to my Master Sculptor Gary Sassi at Celestial Memorial Sculpture Studio in Barre, VT. Even if they share some family relationship, Gary had never heard of him and had no knowledge of him. Rock Hill Marble and Granite Works was sold around the time of Mr Sassi’s death in 1945 and the remnant company is now part of Gaulden Monuments in Rock Hill, SC.
I'll ask my coworkers from Cararra if they know any information on Mr. Sassi.
I haven't heard about Happy Valley marble. Sometimes in block quarries you might run into a pocket of a particularly different kind of coloring in the overall coloring and character of the stone. It would probably take minimum 2years to even create a market and supply for the new stone. This is all assuming the stone is structurally fit for any application you sell it for.
Anyways a quarry could have had a three year run on something good enough to get a name but short lived and small in quantity. So it's going to be difficult to track down.
@@andrewroberts2737 I understand but it piqued my curiosity. Any additional information is always great to learn.
A good student/apprentice is not "stupid", or else they wouldn't be looking to learn from a master ... They are, to begin with, a bit like a square chunk of granite, unfinished, but hopefully material that can take form, without cracking or crumbling.... I worked for a while with a very successful photographer, and he told me that 98% of people would process to want to learn from him, but just didn't*listen* and then, didn't put in *the work*.... Eventually, I had learned so well that his wife decided that I was now a competitor, rather than a student!
More than once, I have had a mentor or a master tell me to hear what they mean & not what they say. That “stupid” statement is one of those statements, as I qualified it. Seeking is easy. submitting is often more difficult.
I have seen (and had) new persons who were incredulous because they were smarter than the instructor, always challenging, correcting and showing they had a better way. It rarely ends well unless they realize they are not the superior. Occasionally, they were smarter and didn’t need instruction,. usually, they did. This is why I value employed apprenticeship or instruction the most. People that know too much- whether they do or don’t- are discharged to go their own way. In a classroom, they can stay and be “right” as long as they keep paying.
There is a fine line between adequate confidence and arrogance. If a Master has to tell the apprentice that he or she is stupid, the process fails. As I explained, the apprentice needs to recognize their inability and inadequate amount of knowledge internally in order to submit & accept the superiority of the Master. It’s a critically important step to growth towards becoming a Master in their own right.
Then, as the apprentice thinks they are becoming skilled enough to be seen as a Master, the lesson is taught again. As your skills grow, you realize how effortlessly the stone will reveal that your confidence has becomes arrogant. The more I do, the better I understand that I am only a stupid man, compared to the profound capacity that a piece of stone- my enduring Master- has to humble me.
Beste Clinton! Wees gerust… ik vertrouw je !!! Het is zo belangrijk wat je steeds aanhaalt, luisteren naar je meester!
Oók in mijn werk( ik ben een matrijzen maker, nu al 42 jaar ervaring..)heb ik dit ondervonden!
Dankjewel voor de tips!💪
My only goal it to give everyone good advice, Erwin. The more I learn, the more I understand how little I actually know. We all have so much to learn, including me. Thanks again for watching!
Howdy Clint. Recently my friends returned from italy with a chunk of marble for me. It is small and I am inexperienced, but I am working through the lessons from nbr 1, as well as keeping up here. My stone cutting integrity is not yet ready for me to touch stone with tools yet. Thanks for the education.
Marble is a great place to start. There are several videos on my channel including VSCA 38-44, Traditional Stone Finishing Techniques Dormered Capitol in CO Yule 1-3 and more that can provide information about working marble successfully.
When working with an incidental piece of stone (I.e.- not quarried and sawn to dimension) I alway recommend planning the final display aspect of the piece. Think about the joint or lack thereof. It will help you avoid a haphazard end to a project. It’s discouraging to work a piece of stone only to realize that is won’t stand up on its own after completion without a disproportionately large base.
Keep me posted!
edit- don’t forget, ice is a fantastic medium to carve as a metaphor for stone. due to its crystalline structure, it performs just like stone. there is nothing except a puddle to clean up when you’re done. place a box with a plastic bag in freezer, fill with water and have fun. I carved actual tons of ice as a chef and firmly believe it greatly benefited my success as a professional stone carver.
@@carolinasculpturestudio ice, i have plenty of! Awesome
I’ll plan to get out my tools and do a video about ice carving shortly. The related downside of decades of stone carving with hand machines is nerve damage that now makes carving ice very difficult. my hands are incredibly sensitive to cold, so I rarely carve ice anymore.