NetWorks RI

My official NetWorks portrait by Scott Lapham, 

probably one of the three or four photos of me I ever really liked. 

Here is the video that Richard Goulis made last spring 

to document my work as part of the NetWorks RI project. 

 February Vacation

Midwinter break from school was marked by warm weather and a chance to get into the studio. For awhile now I have had the idea of setting two slabs (or maybe more) together to make a piece that would stand firmly on its own, and be connected, but dis-connect-able. I made a smallish one to try out the idea and I think it is working pretty well, and now I am carving one of the pieces with a take off on a very old design from one of my cherished ancient Celtic scabbard pieces.  I have a whole book of this sort of design, primarily from metal work, that inspires some interesting carving for stone. It's called Celtic Designs from the British Museum. 

These designs were created to embellish sword sheaths, many of them were found with the rotted bits of iron of the sword inside.

The round metal mallet is very handy for work on a harder piece
of stone or for removing material in a firm but controlled way.
I balanced the edge of the piece with sandbags and some extra stone

I had been fiddling with these two pieces of stone for months now, separately. One of them is featured in my NetWorks video; I am chopping away on it and the hammer is drowning out what I am talking about. The other used to be part of some sort of bench or step, and features a sweep of the edge of the old architectural carving that I wanted to preserve, and use to best effect.


With a bit more heaving the pieces off and on the table, I decided that there was a good way to work it out to have them fit together as per my plan. They were fairly heavy, being thick, so I thought I would try something different. The 'elbow' cut I made allowed for the large piece to weigh down the smaller one that supports it, and I was pleased at how stable the set up was.

Now to decide whether or what to carve on it!

The turn of the year

Brigid's Well in Kildare

The year turns for me on Brigid's Day. The beginning of it is of course a bit earlier, but it is at that first bit of February when you get an inkling of how long the winter will be, what the prospects are for the seasons to come; it is the deep part of winter when you can hear yourself think, and make a plan. 

It is, as traditionally celebrated, the very first stirring of a new season. 

This year, I'm making lots of Brigid Crosses for my Etsy site and for friends, and I'm sharing how to make them in a workshop at the Irish Ceili Club of RI on January 26. Another  workshop is slated in Providence for February 2.  

Irish harpist and singer Aine Minogue has some wonderful stories of the mighty Saint and her goddess ancestor- and last year, she presented some of these along with her matchless music at a concert at the Blackstone River Theatre where I was pleased to be able to offer my Brigid Crosses for sale.  Remembering that fine evening, I sought out Aine's excellent web site, a whole section of which is devoted to Brigid of Ireland. 

Writes Aine:

 "To me Brigid's Day is simply bursting with significance as the start of the year, the opening of nature's door to new growth, new life - possibility. Rituals linked to Brigid seem to connect us to this, to force us to notice nature's cycle, to engage us in the magic of wishing for what we desire, while at the same time seeking protection during a time of change. Brigid had the right idea when she developed the ritual of cross making. It connects us in a very simple way with the earth, with life, with spirit. I smell the new growth as I walk down by the Blackwater river here in Lismore. I move out amongst the deep green-coloured reeds, bend my head to the land to gather clumps of them and again smell the earth's sap rising. "

New Matics

Under the general headline of "tooling up", this summer I decided to invest in a pneumatic hammer, something of a specialty item, in an effort to speed up some of my process a wee bit. The hammer, for those who might not realize what they are, uses compressed air to drive a chisel and, if handled properly, hits the chisel an awful lot faster and more often than I can. 

I am a long way from handling it properly. But I am trying to practice, and the tool itself is a thing of beauty. It is made by Trow and Holden of Barre, Vermont, where the old factory still stands. The granite workers of Vermont swear by the tools they make there, and so do I. The tools are tough beyond belief and  the people who make them will discuss your needs in detail with you, and I have ordered custom tooth chisels and special small flats from them in the past and been delighted with the results. 

A bit of work in the studio was indicated to prepare for the new set up.

I have a big workbench, so I cleared the end closest to the door, screwed some shelves into the wall. The new compressor sits off the end of this, and the hose can reach outside so I can work there. The shelves hold the hammer and chisels, fittings and the wrench that fits! 

It's taken awhile to get warmed up with this tool, and I am far from confident with it so far, but I am hoping for nice clear weekends, crisp Fall weather and a chance to get some work done! 

The Middlebridge Group

A few years back I decided that I should host some weekend workshops in stone carving at my own studio here in South Kingstown. I was inspired by the utter lack of interest that was shown the classes when I signed up to teach- several years running-  with the South County Neighborhood Guild. The Guild hosts literally hundreds of classes in everything from youth camps to senior yoga, and are about as busy and as active as an outfit can be. I suppose the specialty nature of what I have to offer had a way of just getting lost in the shuffle, despite whatever publicity I could assemble on my own.

So, one summer a few years back I decided to host in my own yard. I soon had two classes full to capacity, and because if the incredible convenience of strolling out my door to work, I was able to offer these at a good discount.

We also potlucked out lunches together, having a fantastic time as a result. I laid on the ice tea and sodas, and we stayed cool under my awning. Some of the work produced has been great, even though everyone was essentially a beginner. I've decided to call us The Middlebridge Group.

I've been doing it every summer since.  Sometimes the class runs, sometimes not quite enough people sign up and we have to skip it, but whenever we do get to have the class, we all agree it to be quite worthwhile.

This year, the classes will be July 23-24 and August 20-21. 10 am to 4 pm- Middlebridge, RI (my studio near the Narrow River, in South Kingstown) Students can choose between using limestone to do a relief carving or soapstone to work in the round. The price for the weekend, $90, includes two days instruction, access to all the tools you need and one piece of stone, as well as cold drinks all day, and the fun or sharing it all! More info and to enroll, laura@as220.org

Brigid's Reeds

Right about this time every year, I am just getting recovered from the school year, and starting to break into my summer routine. I am looking forward to a patch of days a little more relaxed, and a little less hectic, than when I am racing to and from Providence and keeping up with all that school and a large art room packed full of kids and supplies entails. I closed the door to that room on Friday night with a large sigh of relief, most things clean and put away, mostly organized for the Fall...and went immediately home to sleep for 12 hours.

This is typical.

The renewal started, quite magically,  this weekend.

Sunday morning found me and Steve out by the side of the highway cutting reeds from the drainage ditches where they flourish for all my summer Brigid Cross making.  Steve snapped these photos, and I just love them.  I am soaked in gorgeous green.

It was a perfect June morning, soft and cool. and, as we pulled away from the gathering spot, a big red-tail hawk swooped right in front of the car, delighting us with her power, offering a great show of her beautiful tail. It was like receiving a blessing. 

These reeds are actually called 'soft rushes' and are a smaller relative of bullrushes. They are an invasive species in southern Rhode Island. In a week or two, the highway grass cutter-types (in Ireland, the 'hedgers' would be out) will trim these reeds right down to nothing and I would have lost my chance to cut them with their dear little blossoms still intact.

 These particular plants get nice and fat in this sunny roadside location.

In Ireland, the rushes grow in all sorts of boggy areas nearly everywhere, are a bit stouter- and would have grown up and bloomed before now!  Traditionally they would be used for bedding, sometimes to thatch the old-style cottages, and of course for Brigid Crosses; the very first rushes up in the earliest stirring of Spring would be used to make them on Feb. 1. The only place I've seen soft rushes grow the same way is in some boggy spots out on Block Island.  Last March, out for a St. Patricks' Day ceili, Sorrel Devine and I cut some while on a morning walk on the west side of the island. The rushes were well grown, even that early in the Spring.

The little blossoms, usually trimmed away,  I include with my crosses, my own signature touch.  I'll be hosting a couple of walk-in classes in Brigid Cross making at the Catskills Irish Arts Week and at Goderich, Ontario's Celtic College this summer. You can find my Brigid Crosses at LauraTravisCarving on Etsy.com.

soaking rushes in hot water to make Brigid Crosses

Technology and Stone Carving

In my efforts to up my game these days, I have taken on a RISD CE certificate course in Digital Video and am wending my way through the second class of the trajectory- The Art of Making Movies.

It's an enthusiastic and younger teacher and group. I'm only worried I can't really drive back and forth to Providence to spend days and hours collaborating on projects. Fortunately, I have been given permission to use my own camera, a Canon ZR 800, as long as I can set it manually- possible, but only up to a point.  I'm bringing it to class tonight, but not after having to shoot the first assignment! It's a one minute story edited in camera.

I decided to shoot based on getting up in the morning and going to my studio.

Here's the rough take: