By Chris Hagan
Review Staff Writer
Art has always been a personal interpretation of one’s surroundings. Whether it’s a direct mirroring through acrylics, or bending the rules of realism through the abstract, artists can weave their imaginations through many mediums.
Although for one local artist, he doesn’t use brushes or spinning wheels, rather he uses electric grinders and pneumatic chisels to shape stones formed millions of years ago.
Lake Orion resident Al Brown, 54, has been shaping large blocks of marble into amazing sculptures for over a decade and he’s now preparing to create another masterpiece. His creation doesn’t begin with a trip to Michaels Arts and Crafts, instead it will consist of driving 1,500 miles through the Rocky Mountains to Marble, Colo.
The small town of Marble is located nearly 200 miles west of Denver and is home to some of the world’s most sought after marble. Brown began attending the annual summer symposium 10 years ago after reading an article in a sculpting magazine.
‘I always challenge myself as an artist and always thought marble was the primo medium to work in,? Brown said. ‘I took a trip out there and got hooked on it.?
Brown will be at an elevation of 8,000 feet with no cell-phone service in the company of nearly 50 other artists. He plans to walk through the historic Yule Marble Quarry in the coming weeks hunting for the perfect piece that will suite his needs. The Yule Quarry was discovered in the late 1800s and its marble has been used for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers as well as parts of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.
‘I’m not looking for anything specific, just something that catches my imagination,? he said. ‘You walk through and there are pieces the size of SUV’s and from there, they’re broken down to more manageable pieces.?
For the past 10 years Brown has taken his own arsenal of tools that include multiple Dremels, or rotary tools, drills, and grinding wheels. He calls it a working vacation as he wakes up at sunrise to begin his day with a hike through the mountains and proceeds to work for upwards of 16 hours on the large marble stones. This year his days will consist of feverishly shedding the unnecessary weight from the blocks that weigh upwards of 500-pounds, while his nights will be more detailed.
‘It’s nice to work at night because you don’t have many distractions to worry about as people are socializing or sleeping,? he said. ‘I can really get into some detailed work using the Dremel.?
Brown, who graduated from College of Creative Studies in 1984 with a degree in illustration, says he still has a lot to learn after getting such a late start in his career. His backyard is comprised of various sculptures in various stages of creation. They include a detailed carving of an elephant’s eye while another is a life-size aquatic lady with hair that transitions into a coy fish. She’s cast in a bronze cloak of carved leaves that Brown has carved and then aged the bronze to give it a green, weathered look.
The father of two works sees his position as a park ranger in Rochester as a direct connector to his work. He’s able to share his love of nature with others visiting the parks, while enjoying it’s solitude and peacefulness. He takes many of those same natural characteristics and weaves them into many of his carvings, seen most notably in a Native American carving which has a wolf emerging from behind its head.
‘I’m very appreciative of nature and I find it a worthy way to make a living trying to protect it and keep it pristine,? he said. ‘Nature just seems to make more sense to me in this world.?
The symposium, which is hosted by the Marble Institute of Colorado, runs every summer and attracts artists as far as India and Australia. It began in 1989 after Madeline Wiener recognized an opportunity to create marble workshops for sculptors. The now Director and Founder, Wiener dug into her own pockets and partnered with two other carvers to develop the funds to create an area where sculptors and carvers could work openly in a non-competitive environment.
The classes at the symposium range from tool carving techniques to safe moving procedures of large marble pieces and are taught by carvers with more than 40 years experience. Wiener says that despite Brown’s relatively short time sculpting and carving, he’s anything but a novice. She also added that his talents range far beyond great and his humble attitude make him a perfect participant in their symposium.
Wiener said that Brown’s name is making its away around the world as so many international travelers pass through the same symposium as him.
‘We watch him from a distance and don’t interrupt him and I hardly say he’s a student but a professional artist,? she said. ‘He has the talent to create the most exquisite feature of a man or a woman and he translates things into the stone through nature with such beauty.?
Brown was named Artist of the Year for 2012 by the Orion Art Center and that same year was named Employee of the Year in the City of Rochester Hills for his extraordinary work in Bloomer Park. He plans on displaying much of his sculptures at Dragon on the Lake this year and remains pure to his work. Although he’s done a few commission pieces for a high value, he aims to do his carvings out of passion and personal want.