For a long time, the cherished dream of man is the conquest of stone. An example is the Egyptian pyramids. But even now the demand for natural material is great. Stone is a raw material for various industries, such as jewelry or construction, as it has incredible strength and amazing beauty. But this is not the limit of its use. There is such a form of art as stone carving. This industry originated a very long time ago, but does not lose its relevance today. This will be discussed in this article.
Instruments
To perform stone carving, you need to have a set of tools that is called “classic”. But this does not mean that each master is the same. The presence of only some tools in the kit is mandatory for work - this has remained unchanged since the ancient masters first mastered this art form.
Sledgehammer
A tool with a long handle (one meter) and a massive hammer. It is heavy, its weight reaches four to six kilograms. Due to its large scale, the impact force is significantly increased.
Jackhammer
Its main difference from the usual instrument of this kind is its large weight, as much as three kilograms. Due to this, the impacts become more powerful, because of which the stone can be processed more quickly. A jackhammer is used when there is a need to trim a stone. One side of the tip is blunt, the other is sharp.
Pickaxe
This stone carving tool is currently used. Dropping into mines or quarries, the workers take it with them. The pickaxe tip has two ends: one is blunt, the other sharp, with one or two teeth. This tool has a large destructive force. For this reason, it is considered the main tool of the mason.
Bushhammer
This tool has one blunt firing pin, it differs from a sledgehammer in a more compact size. Its purpose is to trim small stones or small parts.
Mallet
A tool is used when it is necessary to lay a stone somewhere - in the ground, for example. He has a special striker, for the manufacture of which elastic material is used, for example leather, rubber, wood.
Chisel
The inventory is small, fits easily in the hand of the master. It is used to perform work characterized by high decorativeness, when you need to perform an accurate fit of the composition elements. To give the stone a faceted shape, use different chisels: wide, sharp or blunt.
Wedges
They are bushings made of metal. Used when a block of stone needs to be split into many smaller pieces. To do this, holes are made in the stone, bushings are inserted into them. The master takes a sledgehammer or a hammer and strikes them alternately.
Scriber
This tool makes drawings on the stone. He has a tip made of solid material, so the master performs tough work while carving on stone.
Boaster
Decorative tool in appearance similar to a pencil. They are engraved on the stone. Scarpel tips have teeth with different thicknesses, from two to two and a half millimeters.
Milling cutters
They are used for carving on a stone that is considered precious, to give it the desired shape. Using cutters, unnecessary elements are removed from the stone. These tools are hand, mechanical, polishing, grinding.
Files
These are hand tools, they are used when you need to process the soft rock of the stone. They come in two forms: straight and curved. Files are supplemented with other devices: handles, cords, knitting needles, hair pins.
Grater
This tool is called a brush or sponge, it is used when the work of the master comes to an end. The grater is designed for grinding or polishing stones. However, the degree of impact may vary, depending on what kind of grain the tool has.
Artistic view of the thread
This is the most noble, but also the most difficult art of stone carving. In fact, these are the very elegant forms of stone that are so difficult for newcomers to this business. Using artistic stone carvings, masters create real masterpieces.
Particularly popular are products made from stones such as marble and granite. But for artistic carving, different breeds of stones are used, the hardness of which varies. Tools for work are more diverse than with conventional threads. Stone carvers most often use the following materials.
- White-pink, bluish anhydride. It is also called "heavenly stone" or "Nizhny Novgorod marble."
- Monocrystalline gypsum, the surface of which is shiny and smooth, is cast with mother-of-pearl. It is called "Maryin Glass" because in the distant past, stone replaced people with glass.
- Selenite - this stone is called "lunar". It has a fibrous structure and an incomparable luster resembling a silk surface. The veins formed by stone in fine-grained gypsum and clay look amazingly beautiful.
- Stearite - it is called the "black stone". Masters use it when you need to create eyes or noses for animals.
- Alabaster is natural with pale yellow as well as pinkish tones. It is characterized by soft transparency and graceful patterns made up of spots and stains of a bizarre shape.
The embodiment of the idea in the work
Working with a stone, the master becomes a creator. The shapeless solid block is given a new shape. The stone receives a new life in a work of art created by the artist. This is on the one hand. And on the other hand, it is important for the master to fulfill the main task, which is to reveal the beauty and peculiarity of minerals created by nature, and then demonstrate it to people. Looking at the creation of human hands, many want to master this type of art. Stone carving training requires a lot of perseverance, patience and time. But if you follow the recommendations of the wizard, everything will work out. Of course, there will be failures, but there is no need to be upset, the work should be continued, and knowledge and qualifications will come with experience.
- First, the plan is drawn up. To do this, a sketch is drawn on paper, all the details of the future composition are thought out, the image is worked out. The creative search of the master should not be considered wasted time. Indeed, it is at this stage that the artist gives the future masterpiece with feelings, emotions.
- A sketch of a soft material (plasticine, for example) creates a planned image taking into account the natural anatomy. Then the finished prototype is molded from plasticite, which replaces gypsum.
- The next step is to select the stone from which the sculpture will be created, as well as materials for decoration. It is important to consider their "proximity" to each other.
- The stone blank is given its primary shape. A large saw is used for this. After the sketch is made, the details are worked out in accordance with the model made before. Small saws are used. The main tool is diamond discs. It is important that water is supplied to the machine - so every movement will be visible. There is no need to rush. For stone processing , shallow, shallow movements are used. This is necessary so that the master could feel the slightest changes in the structure of the stone. Work requires a lot of concentration, distractions are unacceptable.
- The next stage stonecutter outlines the necessary details for the sculpture: facial features, folds of clothing, muscles and more. This stage of work is considered the most painstaking, extreme care is needed here. There is such a machine for stone carving - a drill, which includes diamond drills with different calibers. With its help, every detail is worked out. But before the eyes of the master there should be a layout in order to constantly check the stone figure with the plan.
- The penultimate stage is grinding the sculpture with a paste and a machine. Every detail is brought to a mirror shine. As a result of this operation, the pattern and color of the stone are visible.
- The final step in creating a work of art is the assembly of all processed elements into a single composition. They are connected by inconspicuous seams, pins, strong gluing. There are also many secrets here. Over time, the beginner will take possession of them too, because the result of a complex and time-consuming work largely depends on this final step.