Manufacture Update.

On returning home I fired up the computer on Sunday evening (having for once left the laptop at home for a few days - it was tough...) to find a email from Allan Bruce at Fyfe Glenrock, with several images of the work completed so far on the grey Pitcaple stone. From what I can see it looks very promising, and although I am feeling pretty delighted, I will feel even happier when its confirmed (hopefully) that we are within budget.

The block for the 750 sphere - a pink corrennie from Tillyfourrie Quarry, is to be put to the saw for a first cut on Tuesday. Again the first cut should reveal any major flaws hidden within the mass of the stone, so I look forward to hearing how it goes.

I would prefer all three stones to be brought up to a similar stage of manufacture, before beginning work on the final form and surface design, so that this last stage can be informed not only by the quality of the individual stone and how they work together as a group, but also by how much budget there remains in the pot.

Marking Time

At the end of last week I had to go to 'Up Country' from Cornwall and by chance passed by Stonehenge - somewhere I had never previously visited. However as it was also my birthday I felt it was appropriate to visit this timepiece which was definately even older than me. Its a curious experience to be funnelled around the fenced off monument, clutching the audio guide handset, while dodging busloads of schoolchildren ferried in from the far corners of Europe and beyond.

Here is a classic tourist photo to prove I was there. No photoshop - I promise !

The stone of course for this construction was not local, but brought, somehow or other, from Wales. Astonishing...... I wonder how far the builders allowed the material to lead the design, or did they demand stone exactly to their previously decided specifications.

But the arrangement we see today is the remains of an installation which evolved over hundreds of years, and would have possibly involved several generations of designers. Let us hope that the Oldmeldrum Public Art Project artwork is finished a bit more speedily ......

Taking shape....

Today I went to the Fyfe Glenrock yard to see how things were going. Although they had hoped to have finished roughing out the Pitcaple stone, a difficult week meant that they were a little behind, but it was still great to see that work was actually beginning. Over the past days or so one of the most skilled masons in the yard has been taking the angled edges off the cube shape and using a chipboard template as a guide pulling out a sphere from the rock. Even with the aid of diamond blades, compressors and dust extractors this is demanding work, both mentally and physically. There is a possibility that this stone, the smallest of the three at 600mm, could possibly when a little more reduced, be offered to the turning lathe, which could save time and I guess release the mason for other pressing tasks.

(Increasing respect for the ancients........)

If you look at the images above however you will no doubt see where we are a little concerned... there is definately a crack.. however it does not seem to run all the way through the stone and we hope that with care it will stay that way. This can be the face of the sphere eventually nearest the ground and we hope that the drilling and pinning which will be required to fix the stone to the site will help to stabilise the fault.

This is one of the hazards of working with any stone, but particularly local stone, which may have been blasted from the quarry wall. By trying to stay true to the ethos of the project , which is partly to celebrate the local geology, archaeology, and stone industry past and present, we may have to be prepared to adapt our working methods.

The material now is making its own demands - asserting its character, formed so long ago, and we must find a way to respond synpathetically and embrace these qualities.

Meantime...another project...

Sandwiched between my efforts to progress the OMart pieces, I have been working on a couple of projects which have culminated in exhibitions at the Woodend Barn Arts Centre over in Banchory, on Deeside. The first is 'Calendar Variations' which runs until April 27th, and the second is 'The Redsuit Project Who's Who', which is open from 1st - 26th May. Please visit www.woodendbarn.co.uk for information and opening times etc.

Aberdeen's Rock Festival!

Today I stumbled upon a leaflet promoting this latest (not rock!) festival. So it would seem that Omart has its fingers on the pulse - perhaps I will contact the festival curator and alert her to the efforts we are making to respect and celebrate aspects of the local stone working traditions.

Here is some text from the brochure.

'Aberdeen has a unique cityscape created over 200 years of using granite for building, sculpture and monuments. Aberdonians sculpted the city itself out of the local stone and wherever we’re from we know our home as the Granite City.

This May, we invite you to join us in celebrating everything granite – from its ancient geological origins and the industries which thrived on it, to the superb architecture we see every day. We want to give Aberdonians old and new a chance to talk about granite and hope to make the festival a regular event.

We have a full programme of talks, walks and events which offers something for everyone. We look forward to seeing you soon!'

Information about the programme of events can be found at the Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museum Website, www.aagm.co.uk

I am also struck that the image chosen to grace the front of the brochure is remarkably similar to a documentation shot from former Turner Prize winning artist Simon Starling's show at Tate St Ives, Cornwall. I didn't have time to catch this show before travelling north, even though I had a preview ticket, but was very interested to hear that Starling was continuing to explore the 'excavation and transformation of the material world', exemplified in the work

"The Long Ton", 2009, described as sculpture featuring two rough-cut white lumps of marble suspended in space. The larger of the two stones, an import from China weighing one ton, is counterbalanced by approximately 250 kg of Italian marble thanks to a 4:1 ratio pulley system that allows the two stones to sit in perfect equilibrium. On closer inspection it is clear that the two stones have exactly the same form, the Italian stone having been precision laser-cut to exactly the same, although reduced, specifications as the larger Chinese stone. Despite its long voyage to Europe, the Chinese marble has a similar market value to the European stone one-quarter its weight.

Simon Starling image from www.artcornwall.org

Dates for the diary

Good news at todays meeting at Fyfe Glenrock. Work on the first sphere will be starting almost immediately, and I have been asked to return next Thursday 28th April, ( conveniently the same day I have to be in Inverurie to meet with the Aberdeenshire Council Arts Development Officer now supporting the project) as the manager feels confident that the initial sphere will have been roughed out. My spirits are lifted although I have my fingers crossed that the dark grey Pitcaple stone will prove to have been a good choice.

Meantime, I am also working as an artist in quite a different manner, towards opening of a participative art exhibition at the Woodend Barn Arts Centre, Banchory, entitled the redsuit project which invites people improvise with a disposable bright red coverall in a place of their choice. The show opens on May 1st: Labour Day, associated with the colour red, which I understand started out as a campaign for an 8 hour working day. It seems slightly ironic that I am still tapping away at my keyboard at 10.14pm, preparing for this show.

Thanks to Aggregate Industries

I would like to say thankyou to Aggregate Industries, who currently work Tillyfourrie Quarry, for the donation of the stone to the project and for their assisatnce in selecting and preparing the blocks for removal. The project budget is quite tight and this has helped considerably.

Here is some information about Aggregate Industries lifted from their website www.aggregate.com

Aggregate Industries quarries, manufactures and supplies a wide range of heavy building materials to theconstruction industry.Through continued innovation and investment we have been certified The Responsible Source^TM offering a diverse portfolio of sustainable solutions to complement our traditional product offering. Operating across the UK, Channel Islands and Northern Europe, we are a member of the Holcim Group.

The Responsible Source
As a supplier and manufacturer of concrete and aggregate products we have been working for more than a decade to create sustainable solutions for all our core markets.

We have been addressing issues such as health and safety, quality control, ethical trading, carbon and water management, biodiversity, and social responsibility so that we can offer our customers truly sustainable solutions.

This work has culminated in us becoming the first company in the world to be certified to BES 6001, framework for responsible sourcing of construction materials, by the Building Research Establishment (BRE).

Commitment to quality and environment
We strive to provide high quality service, best value and are committed to continuous improvement. We aim to further develop our responsiveness to your needs year on year and all of our wholly owned businesses are certified to the quality and environmental management standards BS EN ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001.