profile carving

[<artisti@zzzzzzzzzzzz>]

 Charles,

When I face my block the edge where the stone meets the sky is the profile.
If I want to carve anything and know it's profile, then I hold my chisel on that profile and strike the stone. This is one of the reasons drawing is so important to the sculptor as through the line one learns the profiles of all things. Road signs images such as children at play or deer crossing are always drawn in profile. The eye is adapted at seeing the profile in order to pick the fruit out from the leaves, or recgonize a friend at a distance. I often have the sensation of chasing or pushing my profiles. My chisel slips off behind my block. I can stand there and carve until I see the profile I want or sky.

The exception to this is when you have to enter the block in a hole or deep cut. But here again profile carving and looking behind the chisel helps immensely. If you look at the front of your chisel not only will you get stone in your face but there is more risk of setting up a fracture.

I never would council one to work without safty goggles!!!!  However they should not be nessessary while working with either hand or air hammers. Now that my eye sight is going I find I have to wear glasses and I find that I will slip into caving the stone in front of me. But by now it just feel wrong and I return to my profiles.

When I speak of carving I am refering to the stages of creation in which the major stone removal is done. Once finishing begins, the need to look above the work, (in front of the chisel), to gently carve away bruises to the stone, means the profile have all been determined and there are only surface decisions to be made.

Giovanni