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"Listening Stones" |
Granite river boulders, wood, flagstone. 1997. |
This sculpture uses a parabolic sound mirror carved into boulders to dramatically magnify the sound of a nearby stream for listeners. It is inspired by satellite dishes, the seating in choir lofts where curved walls reflect sound and the antique hand-held sound magnifiers used in the days before hearing aids. The concept of sound reflection has been known for centuries, such as at the Whispering Wall in China. A whole elliptical room was built around 1900 at a Chicago science exhibit to magnify people's whispers. Now, parabolic sound mirrors are found at children's playgrounds and in dish microphones at sporting events. The creative aspects of this sculpture are threefold: its application to nature to listen to the sound of water; its carving into two shapes (the main stone and a small stone to the right which is a fragment of the whole elliptical egg shape defined by the parabola); and its unique material of polished granite. The artist custom built a stone lathe to carve the shape to within 1/8 inch of the mathematical shape inside a river boulder 7 feet high. It is focused at a point in the river. Longmont Art in Public Places Program. |
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