My Carving Process

From a block of stone to a one-of-a-kind sculpture, here is an example of how a block of high-quality granite is transformed into a stunning work of art.

· stone carving,granite,monument design,process,sculpture

Welcome to the first installment of the Michael Angelicola Stone Carving blog! Here, I hope to reveal a bit more about the process of carving a monument to give our customers a better sense of the true scope of craftsmanship and effort that goes into each piece. Over the coming months, I will document how a sculpted monument is made using an example currently in my workshop.

First, I source my granite and receive a raw, granite block. I use high-quality, monument-grade granite to ensure that each piece stands the test of time. I begin by chiseling out a general shape to begin.

broken image

At the same time, I employ a plaster model to guide me in recreating the sculpted piece. For this monument, I use a plaster model of a sculpted angel that was made circa 1900 in Barre, VT and is currently owned by a granite sculptor in Barre who loaned it to me to take back to Connecticut to copy in granite.

It is an exciting project and I look forward to transforming what is starting out as a block of granite into an accurate copy of such a beautiful figure with so much history behind it. What makes it even more special is this is the first piece I worked on when I went to Barre, VT to be trained by a notable sculptor.

The depth of the details are transferred from the model to the block of granite by use of the device in the picture, most often called a pointing machine, among other names. Its purpose is to measure depth of a particular location on the model and you will then know how deep to carve the granite in the same location on the granite.

Pointing Machine and Plaster Monument Model
Pointing Machine and Plaster Monument Model Photo #2

It is a slow but rewarding process and I look forward to sharing her progress over the next several months.