Students unveil hand-carved bench
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West Rutland town officials and Carving Studio instructors and students gather at Town Hall Monday afternoon for the dedication of a stone bench created last summer by area teenagers. Cassandra Hotaling / Rutland Herald |
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By STEPHANIE M. PETERS STAFF WRITER - Published: May 11, 2010
WEST RUTLAND – Zachary Lenser proudly circled the limestone bench that newly decorates the Town Hall grounds Monday afternoon, pointing out his handiwork to his mother and grandmother.
Lenser, an eighth-grade student at Barstow Memorial School, was one of seven area teenagers who carved the 6,000-pound bench last summer as part of the Stone Bench Project sponsored by the Carving Studio & Sculpture Center last summer.
On Monday, six of the students, their families, town officials and other artists from the Carving Studio gathered on the Town Hall green to dedicate the bench, which was installed Wednesday under a tree near the Main Street side of the lawn.
"It's really wonderful to see everyone come together," said Carol Driscoll, executive director of the Carving Studio, as she watched the young carvers' families survey the bench.
Last summer was the Carving Studio's test run for bringing the Stone Bench Project, which gives a small group of local teenagers a hands-on education in the basic tenets of carving – lettering, architectural and sculptural stone working and the Marble Valley's history. Since 2004, the studio has sent an artist to Peru to teach the same skills to youngsters in the mountain villages surrounding Ayacucho.
"We thought, if we can send someone all the way to Peru … we can do this here," Driscoll said.
The first run was a success, she said. The students worked for a week on the bench, about eight hours each day, under the direction of Argentinean sculptor Nora Valdez. They put their heads together to land on a tree theme for the detailed design on the legs and sides of the structure, according to student Kenny Brewer.
"We came up with the idea of two trees growing side by side and touching in the center," he said during the dedication.
"We decided it would be the simplest thing we could do," said Emily Chism, who also collaborated on the bench. "None of us were skilled carvers."
Asking West Rutland town officials if they'd like the bench seemed logical, given the Carving Studio is just down the road from Town Hall.
"I think we want to enhance the marble history of the town and this is just another way of showcasing how important the marble industry is to the town and the Carving Studio," said Town Manager Mary Ann Goulette. "We welcome the opportunity to include more sculpture-like projects in town."
The Carving Studio is seeking another crop of local teenagers who'd like to try their hand at the Stone Bench Project this summer. The studio has received funding from the Vermont Arts Council and Vermont Electric Power Company, and plans to run a two-week course, again with about 10 students between the ages of 14 and 18. The final product from this run of the program will be placed in Rutland's Giorgetti Park.
The Carving Studio works closely with Rutland's Recreation and Parks Department and Boys & Girls Club of Rutland County, which encouraged several of the students, including Lenser, to give stone carving a try.
"It was a tough project for him," said Carol Lenser, Zachary's mother.
"Some days I came home after using a chiseler and my hands were still vibrating," her son said, by way of explanation.
"But I think it gave him a lot of self-confidence," Carol Lenser said.
In addition to Lenser, Brewer and Chism, the group that helped craft the bench included Sabrina Benge, Ashley Carroll, James MacDonald and Max O'Rourke.
For more information or an application for the program, call the Carving Studio at 438-2097 or e-mail info@carvingstudio.org.
stephanie.peters@rutlandherald.com
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