Artist: B.J. Stevenson
Website: http://www.bjstevenson.com/public.shtml
Commentary: I discovered B.J. Stevenson’s work while searching out stone sculptors who worked in the Feather Rock medium. There are not many who work in Feather Rock due to its coarse and potentially flawed nature. The rock is often filled with pockets of air which could prove to be a hindrance to an artist working to create a specific shape. Many stone sculptors thus choose to work in either limestone, marble, alabaster or some other traditional rock medium. The benefits of feather rock however should be considered before outweighing it as a potential medium. Its weight to volume is easily half that of denser rocks. It can be carved without dulling tools and once a rough shape has been formed it can further be enhanced through sanding with an orbital or palm sander.
B.J. Stevenson forms large boulders of feather rock into delicate and inticrate seashell like designs. They are abstract in nature however they have rhythmic elements which unite the sculptures. The viewer’s eye is thus forced around the object being drawn into the view of alternating negative and positive forms. His works are left unpainted and are not polished, thus there is an earthy quality that the feather rock sculptures convey.
