Stone Artistry By TimWmasonry

As I worked with stone over the last 35 years in the Seattle area i find that i am still amazed at this simple & basic material called stone.  I have design and created a wide variety of stone projects and works of sculptured stone art.  Including stone fireplaces,  drystack garden walls,  stone patios and out-door kitchens.  Stone is a natural media in which to create magnificent works of art, the presence that stone has is not just what we can see with our eyes but also what can feel and sense with our minds and heart.   Natural uncut stone has been used in many ways by almost every culture on earth, some of the more interesting techniques for fitting stones together were used by the European cathedral builders, Egyptians, and the Mayans, Incas, and Aztecs of South America.  Here in Seattle area i like to identify all the different elements that make some designs more pleasing to the eye then others, this is a process that has developed with in my own mind and senses over the years and is a on going part of the stone mason that i am.  Some of the different elements of Stone Masonry Artistry and design can be identified in the many components of the stone, such as the color, size, shape, texture, balance and harmony of the stone.   I have always try to observe stone in it's natural setting, by trying to understand the natural setting of stone i impress and interpret my own technique for the artistry of Stone art.  Most of my stone art is done with out the use of mortar between the stones, my stone art is what you might call dry stack stone masonry.   It is one stone fitting up against another as they create a sense of balance, harmony and strength, it is just one stone bearing on other stone that produces a tension holds the stone masonry together.

 

The stone art of a Fireplace is one of impact images, that make up the focal point of a room. no other architectural feature makes the same visual statement as a stone artistry in a  fireplace.  A stone fireplace make a dramatic statement about the room that it is in, good stone masonry will have a sense of balance while still looking solid and natural.  You want the stone in the fireplace to fit in with the design of the home, not to overwhelm the room.  Make your stone artistry complement and enhance the other decorative aspects of the room, a stone fireplace should be the visual starting point that create the design and scale of the room.  I like to visualize the stone artistry in a fireplace as a piece of natures work, the actual stone fitting should have a natural feeling with a tightly fit joint with one stone resting on other.   Beautiful stone masonry artistry is about subtleties, in that there are things that you might not see the first time that you look at them.  And as you look closer the artistry of the stone can change just by the angle or distance that you are standing from the piece of masonry art, just like a painting by an grate artist.  When i am working on a concept for a stone fireplace i first try to open my mind to the environment of the space that the stone will be going in, here in Seattle area we have quite a few natural stones to work with.   I begin every project by establishing the main elements that i will be working with, there are many times when the flow of the stone artistry can change or present it's self in a entirely different manner.  The further along the stone masonry progresses the clearer the image becomes in my mind, as to the design and artistry of the Stone.  One of the challenging aspect of design is all of the different options that are to chose from, and how to use them in your stone artistry.   At a certain point you decide the direction that your art will follow and let your instincts respond to the stone.

 

Landscaping with stone masonry art  is another aspects of  stone design.  Stone can be used in totalness of our landscape projects here in the Seattle area.  The way to use stone artistry is in a flowing harmonious design is by complementing the other features that we have in our landscapes.  The other features are the flow of the land, hills and slopes, flat area, water ends and beginnings, any buildings or structures or natural boundaries.  The stonework in the design then becomes the framing element for the entire landscape, starting with your boundary Walls or lines you can now plan for other stone artistry in the landscape. The winding stone wall that will retains the hillside slope behind the house, and set of stone steps and landings that access the garden area at the top of the hill.  I try to stay true and open to the environment of the area that i am working in, as i am designing a stone artistry project.  In my mind i can see the outline of the main elements  for the artistry involved, but not every detail of it.  These present themselves most clearly as the work progresses, taking into account all the factors that you have to work with is the key to building a artfully design landscape.  Everyone has a little different approach and technique to working with stone, and although we work closely with architects and designers, i like to be involved in the process as mush as possible.  Please take a moment and view our beautiful gallery of pictures and you will see some of our stone artistry that we have built here in the Seattle area, and if you have a stone project that is in another area we will travel.

 

 

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My father once told me that, a person who who works with his hands is called a laborer, and person who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman. But a person who works with his hands, head,  and  heart is an artist.