Ready for sanding

This piece, Mandala 2, is almost ready for final sanding. I've got a few more details to refine and a crevice to fill and then it can go into the sink. It will be mounted on a trapezoidal piece of concrete, just like its predecessor, but that concrete will probably be gray because this alabaster has some color. I used a wet paper towel on the stone in order to simulate its final coloration after oiling.

2nd side gets some attention

Finally, I've gotten around to seeing what the stone wants to show on the other side! It's also manifesting some machine-like forms. This one is going to be a challenge to bring to the proper level of finish, and it looks like that phase will begin pretty soon.

Large forms near completion

Over the past few days, I've made significant progress toward getting this stone to the tipping point  -that is, it's now about to the spot where I can see how the finished piece will look, and it's just a matter of refinement of existing forms. This refinement process is a bit of a grind because of all the details that a piece like this has - surfaces, edges, corners, curves - but is IS a bit less mentally taxing. There's just one crude area left.
As far as what this piece is about, I'm seeing some very strong ties to a machine or part(s) of a machine that has some arcane purpose. In my mind, I can see it rotating at a moderate speed, spring-loaded parts moving up and down as needed, cam-like surfaces pushing against unseen forces. These images, for me at least, cast a piece like this one firmly in the machine age, with the "information age" seeming a distant castle in the air.

Rough top is getting resolved

I worked on several different parts of this piece today, but the most noticeable is the top (it is sitting in what will be its final orientation) that was completely unworked as of yesterday. It began to bother me because it was making the whole piece look awkward. This is probably not its finished shape on top, but is is better!

Back to the stone . . .

I know, it's been a while since my last post. All I can say is, I've been busy with other things, leaf clean-up for one, a weekend trip to our gallery in Iowa for another. Anyway, the photo shows the current state of the piece I'm calling "Mandala 2" for now. This stone has more color than "Mandala 1", and I'm anxious to spend some time on it this Thanksgiving weekend.

Acquiring final profile

The piece is now nearly resolved in terms of its overall shape. Some significant details remain to be worked out, but its profile is clear. Like the last piece of stone, this one has some flaws. I filled in the flaws in that one, but I'm thinking of letting this one show its natural character. If I think the problem areas are getting too much attention when its done, I can still fill them in at that time. Most of the fissures are at or near what will be the bottom of the mounted piece. The photo above shows it in that orientation.

More work . . .

Above is a photo of the newest stone after a few more days work. A theme is beginning to show itself and I'm enhancing it whenever a decision comes up. What do you think so far?