Getting close to finishing stage

The photos above show some recent stages of the stone as it gets closer to the sanding phase. I did the large piercing by chiseling through from the bottom and I believe I'll leave the inside "wall" surfaces roughly chiseled. In a few days sanding can begin, and I'll have to start thinking of how to mount this unusual piece.

Decision time

In the photos above you can see that I've partially hollowed out the inside of this piece. My intention was to go clear through to create a very large piercing. After getting about half way through, it became difficult to get the proper angle on the chisel to effectively continue. Now, I have to decide whether to smooth off the bottom of the hollowed out part, or carve through from the other side. Stay tuned. . .

Moving on to the next stone

Last week I got the stone finished that I started in mid-June, and it's a good thing too, because I have to deliver it to Chicago in 2 weeks. A friend bought it
for his wife as a birthday present! I named it "Headstone for the Paleozoic" because the Colorado alabasters were formed during the Paleozoic Era, roughly 300 million years ago. Just for context, this was after the breakup of Pangea and what is now Africa was located in the area of the north pole. In addition, the end of that era saw the Permian/Triassic event, the largest mass extinction of life the Earth has ever experienced. Hence, the name.
Since then, I've started a new stone - one that builds on the main theme of "Headstone", but will be somewhat simpler due to the nature of the boulder. Both stones are shown in the photos above, which can be seen larger by clicking on them.

Ready for sanding

Well, after 5-1/2 hrs. of work refining forms today, the piece is about ready for sanding. This phase is usually pretty quick on alabaster (especially compared to marble!), and I may be able to get if done tomorrow - if not, then Monday. In the photo, you can see that it will sit right on the granite base without the necessity of a steel pin. So, after sanding it'll get oiled and then it's done! Remember to click on the photo to get a better look.

Nearing the sanding phase

As you can see in the photo above, there are just a few more rough spots to work out before I can start sanding this piece. My best guess is that I'll have it done in about a week. At this point, I'm planning to have it just sit on the granite base that I've prepared for it - no steel pin necessary and no laborious drilling through the granite either.

Refinement takes time . . .

I haven't posted lately because at this point it's hard to see day-to-day changes. The photos above show the stone as it is right now. I've been working on refining all the forms to the point where wet sanding can begin. It is slow going, but I hope to finish this stone in a couple of weeks.

Final problem

Today's work involved resolving the final rough side of the boulder, seeking to make coherent forms that relate to the rest of the composition. This work is not yet finished, as you can see above. Perhaps tomorrow will be the day that I begin to refine the existing forms, after deciding which ones to eliminate. The heat index reached 104˚ today, far cooler than the 110˚ to 115˚ that was predicted. I'm quite acclimated to the heat now, but an actual temperature very much over 100˚ is definitely going to curtail my effectiveness. Fortunately, nothing like that seems to be imminent.