New Arrivals at Quarry Farm

The arrival of the Ragstone blocks and boulders has brought with it much anticipation. I can be a very patient man, but when you have preselected quarry blocks for so many specific ideas you just want to transpose them onto the stone instantly. I have a vague idea as to how long each piece should take but you can never quite tell. Everything from the weather to lack of light, my tools and most importantly my health always plays a major factor in completing work for a deadline. The intention is to start with the 2-ton slab and once the blocking out is complete and I have a sense of how the stone is behaving I can then turn my attention to the two medium sized carvings. I always like to have several sculptures on the go at once when making a small body of work. I believe that the thought process and concepts from working on one sculpture will feed directly into the next and vice versa.

In The Hands of The Stone Gods

Selecting the right quarry block for a new sculpture was the priority yesterday. The Gallagher's Hermitage Lane quarry is managing to get some nice large blocks out at the moment and it was this one in particular that I was immediately drawn to because of its length. The ragstone, like many natural stones can be unpredictable and it's important to look for sound surfaces. There are several obvious faults and flaws visible on the quarry block but these look like they run out. Sometimes, others are only made apparent when the stone is opened up and explored through cutting. Luckily for me the opportunity to do this in the quarry allows me to see how the stone could behave and if it's right for the purpose of carving. It also helps me reduce the weight of a 5 ton block to just under 2.5 ton, something I would have had to do at the studio! The dimensions I'm now left with after sawing 3 sides is a block, 2 m x 1 m x 500mm....more than enough to carve the idea I've been wanting to do for a while. 

The Lure

Moby!

'Moby'- Kilkenny Limestone and Oak plinth. 2m x 30 cm x 30 cm

Stones were the first hammers!

Most hammers were selected for practical reasons like a convenient fit in the hand or appropriate hardness.  Archaeologists can distinguish ancient hammer stones from naturally formed pebbles because of where they were discovered and evidence of wear. Some hammer stones were even given spiritual significance. Below are some sculptures and small maquettes Ive been experimenting with, exploring a similar form using a variety of different stone types.

 

Kilkenny Limestone.

Carrara Marble

Ancaster Weatherbed Limestone

Kilkenny Limestone

Ancaster Limestone

Ancaster Weatherbed Limestone

On the look out for some Jade and Quarts!!

Ancient ceremonial jade axes are relatively common.  They were probably valuable from the very beginning because jade is rare, working it is difficult and people cared enough about these objects to carry them great distances from the sources of the stone.  In his book The Mind in the Cave, David Lewis Williams described the round quarts hammer stones used by southwestern Native Americans. Quarts stones possess triboluminescence, which means that they produce flashes of light in their interiors when rubbed together. This was particularly effective in dark spaces.  This does not necessarily happen when they are used as hammers, but it is felt, then that strange quality by itself might have been enough to confer spiritual significance onto quartz hammer stones. In some cases pairs of quarts pebbles are still referred to as “lightning stones’ or “lucky stones.”  These are ‘power tools’ of a different sort than the way we use the term today.

White Out!

The beginning of a new carving has been progressing well despite being hampered slightly by the persistent rain today. Resorting to cutting the 1m block of Portland limestone indoors means that so much dust is being thrown up and visibility is poor! I am carving a scaled version of one of the small 'hand - held' axe heads. Interestingly, when changing the scale of one of your carvings into a bigger version, the presence and even the interpretation can change instantly. The work may loose some of its original intention from the model however I'm sure over the course of the next few days working on it and as the dust settles, the purpose and meaning will become a lot clearer!

 

A New Stone Age

My neolithic fascination around stone tools has developed further with this exploration in the form of a limestone harpoon! After several days of carving and refining the curves and outline, it is now ready to be polished to a dark shimmering black. I want to make the 1.7 m stone inviting to touch, so the edges have been smoothed and rounded as if this polishing and erosion has occurred in the sea by water and time. The pattern of the spikes on both sides are asymmetric, as to allow the form to suggest its modelling from an original archeological artefact. 

Open Studio

ARTIST’S OPEN STUDIO – A chance to view work in progress plus a variety of stone sculpture for both the interior and garden at the artist’s studio. 
Open daily - 24th August – 12 September, Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm. Or alternatively Contact Jason on 07771816901 to arrange an alternative viewing over the weekends. 

 

Trails with Tales

The final sculpture installation at Cobtree happened today. The new artwork, 'Trails with Tales', stands at 2.4 m high and is carved from a single 4 ton block of Kilkenny Limestone. The sculpture is located at the entrance to the new visitors center and at the pathway that is the start of the Cobtree Sculpture Trail. There is still some landscaping to be completed before the grand opening on the 3rd of August! Its great to see the sculpture in a different environment than the one Ive been used to at the workshop. The scale of the sculpture works really well and the long deliberation and consultation between Jo, Lewis, Lizzie and myself regarding the positioning of the sculpture has paid off! Even Gert the elephant looks right at home on top!

Industrial Movement in Caledon!

Set Up in Stradbally

Working on the two large cogs in the stone yard in Stradbally, Co. Laois. The 14 pockets have been cut out for the bronze tiles and both stones have been turned, ready for the final surface finish. There is still lots to do before the delivery to site in a few weeks time.

 

Inside & Out!

Getting to work on the 14 pockets for the Bronze tiles along with a lot of grinding and polishing on the stones to bring out that beautiful Kilkenny luster. First job though however is to get set up inside!

The Right Tools For The Job!

Packing and sorting some tools for a trip to Kilkenny, Ireland to finish off the carving of the two cogs before they get delivered to Caledon. The majority of the work left will include very little carving and a lot of grinding and polishing!!

Its always a great opportunity to go and work in the stone yard and quarry along side the stone workers who work with the stone in its place of origin. I always learn so much on these occasions and am grateful for Niall at McKeon Stone for the opportunity. I have the dilemma of taking more tools than I may actually need, especially ones I am so comfortable using, but as always on budget airlines I don't want to get hammered on the baggage, literally!! The main essentials required will defiantly have to include the obligatory wet weather gear!!

Follow the progress of the Caledon Public Art Project here: http://thecaledoncogs.blogspot.co.uk/

The Stanmer Group!

Well after several wet and windy days of installing, we finally had the chance to enjoy the fruits of our labour. The exhibition was well curated between the group and there were some stunning stone pieces through out the grounds of Stanmer House and within the beautiful Grade I listed building. It was also a pleasure to have the Mayor of Brighton and Hove at the Private View who opened the exhibition which runs until the 24th May. 

The Little Dipper

Another new outdoor sculpture featured as part of the Garden Gallery Summer Exhibition.
The Little Dipper is carved from a block of Kilkenny Limestone and is displayed on an oak plinth. (The sculpture dimensions are 30 cm x 30 cm x 26 cm and the oak plinth is 80 cm x 30 cm x 30 cm). It functions as a unique sculptural and functional bird bath, perfect for any garden setting. The title and design is derived from the Ursa Minor constellation seen at night in the northern sky.

 The Exhibition opens on the 9th May and a copy of the list of works is available here.
http://www.gardengallery.uk.com/cms/images/invitation.pdf
The Garden Gallery
Rookery Lane
Broughton
Stockbridge
Hampshire
SO20 8AZ

Truth to Material

Brighton Rock!

I am pleased to announce that I will be exhibiting a selection of interior and exterior stone sculpture during Brighton’s, ‘Artists Open Houses Festival’ in May alongside 4 other established and emerging stone sculptors:

Mark Stonestreet
Rosie Jones
Guy Stevens
Jason Mulligan
Alyosha Moeran

Set against the backdrop of the beautiful grounds and interior of the magnificent Stanmer House, the exhibition will also be supporting local children's charity Rocking Horse. This is a great opportunity to support a wonderful cause and a group of local artists.

The House & gardens will be open to visitors of the exhibtion from May 2nd - May 24th from 9am until 7pm.

Our Private View will held on Sunday 3rd May from 6pm

Filling the Void

It started out six months ago as twelve black circular cut out designs on an A4 page and has undergone a variety of transformations throughout the design process. Now finally in the client’s garden, the sculpture takes center stage underneath the dappled light of four olive trees. The subtle polish to the stone still catches a reflection, while the natural inclusions and fissures of the stone display honesty in the natural material of the Kilkenny Limestone. It’s been a extremely rewarding project to work on, with the additional benefit of having generated lots of ideas for more carvings along the way!

LUSTER

 

Cushioned!

This is the first time the stone has been lowered! It gives me a chance to work on the tapering of the base. As most of the weight is mainly on the right hand side of the sculpture, it will be interesting to see if the stone still balances, unsupported when I raise it again! When it comes to pinning the sculpture to the plinth it will sit off - centre on the base to give a sense of balance. I was hoping to drill the sculpture this time around, but I am going to have to lift it up again, place it back on the plinth, mark it up and lower it again! This is only because I think the bottom needs to be made tighter by rounding both of the sides. Over all I'm happy with the twist in the stone but the temptation is still there to push on with making the bands thinner. The only problem however is by doing this, it  increases the risk factor!!

Visual One-sidedness!!

https://sites.google.com/site/themobiusbandart/artistic-implications

London Calling

I have been invited by the director of ARTful, Eleni Polycarpou to showcase two sculptures within the foyer of 1 Curzon St & 72 Welbeck St, London.  You can view both stone sculptures in their surroundings by following the link below.

http://www.artful.org.uk/jason-mulligan-72-welbeck-st-1-curzon-st-w1/

SOIL- A Group Show in Whistable

Kent Creative Live is organising an art exhibition where artists have submitted work around the theme of ‘Soil’. I will be showing two pieces of work as part of the group show in Whitstable, Kent.

“SOIL” will be at the Horsebridge Centre in Whitstable from 21st to 27th January 2015.
148 pieces of artwork were submitted by 79 Kent based artists, covering a variety of mediums: painting, sculpture, drawing, photography, textile, video, music, ceramics, installations, etc..
To find out more about the show clink on the link below.

http://kentcreativelive.org/event/kent-creative-live-exhibition-soil/