CNC! (Computers, Not Carving!)

I had my annual visit to the Natural Stone Show 2013 at the ExCel London last week and as ever it is a must see experience for anyone who is working within the stone industry. The one thing that has become so noticeable each year when I visit is the increase in computer aided design and computer aided manufacturing. There was even a miniature version of ‘Big Ben’ to marvel over, being carved by a robot out of statuary marble.

On return to the studio it got me wanting to develop drawings using software on the computer. I wanted the prints to have a very digital and manufactured feel to them and they have opened up other possibilities for designing sculptures.

Object 2. 'Lumbar'

'Lumbar', 2013. Dimensions: 30 cm x 17 cm x 12 cm

Within the study of biology, knowing the structure of something does not necessarily reveal its function. Comparing this idea to sculpture and my exploration of the 'stone tool artefact', I wanted to develop this idea of 'structure and function' and play with this biological theory, that it is unlikely to identify the function of something with only structural information. This small portland stone carving is a playful experiment with this notion where there appears to have been a previous function or a usefulness to the object / artefact. The viewer is presented with the limitation of possibilities in the sculpture rather than the adaptive honing of perfection in an structure which is a dominant theme in biological evolution.