Friday, May 16, 2008

don't you just hate show offs?

a friend asked me to post about a historical mosaic i made, but i couldn't find a picture of my favorite part.

yeah, yeah, i know...

as my dad used to say, "excuses, excuses."

but while looking for that photo i found a ton of pictures of several limestone fireplace surrounds i carved. so i decided...what the heck.


i found these photos in harold's computer. they were there because he did the design work. i just did the carving and installation. (click on any picture to enlarge.)



this one was apparently in some magazine...



i'm guessing the whole thing weighs about a ton and a half, maybe two. i used to know exactly. the lintel alone weighed at least 1500 lbs before i started removing material.
the nicks and gouges are intentional, done after the fact with a chain and other crude implements. believe me, it hurt me worse than it did the stone. i guess rich people like to pretend they're buying something real old. very often they specify "stained and distressed." thank god for rich folks. hahahahaha.


the next 15 pics are of the same fireplace. i'll just download them here sorta hodgepodge and let blogger save 'em for me. click on any you want a closer look at. and listen, if you want anything carved...call me.














2 more pics i found of stained and distressed fireplaces i carved...



again, my friend harold designed them. that's the most difficult part. i just hefted stone blocks, made patterns, lifted, drew, carved, grunted, carved, sanded, got hernias, and installed. and enjoyed every minute of it.


15 comments:

Mary said...

You're the man if I ever need anything carved!

Seriously, lovely designs and beautiful work!

cornbread hell said...

thanks, mary.

Annie said...

They take my breath away! Dammit, I want to touch them!

cornbread hell said...

thanks annie. me too.

there are an awful lot of great memories in those photos.

Anonymous said...

BRAVO!!!
APPLAUSE...STANDING OVATION!

The more I see of your work, the nore amazed I am by your talent.

Let's write some music now and record it. ~grin~

lt

cornbread hell said...

thank you, lt.
but a musician i'm not.

~Betsy said...

These are amazing, Rick. Your talent is awesome!

rilera said...

Absolutely gorgeous, Rick! What a huge talent you have.

wendy said...

Yikes, what Mary says! I'd be curious to know how you acquired such a talent. I took a wood carving class once and the best I could do was a shapeless penguin-esque doohickey that I was, nonetheless, very proud of. So if you're busting with pride, you've got every reason to be! Thanks for sharing these artifacts.

cornbread hell said...

wendy, here's the formula:

first you draw it directly on the stone/wood.
then you remove any material not in the drawing.

and voila!

Annie said...

Dang, mister. I keep coming back here and looking at these photos. Each time there is another detail I hadn't noticed before.

wendy said...

well, that sounds like a piece of cake, mr. modesty!

Anonymous said...

WOW! You are amazing!

josephine terese said...

yeah... you JUST did the carving and installation.

Anonymous said...

im truly speechless.... thx for sharing ur art with us...... what a talent u have..and Harold well hes not bad either.:-)