Organised in conjunction with the exhibition 30 HEADS, the event will focus on stone sculpture, and will aim to study the thirty objects in the show not only from a stylistic perspective but also by understanding the production of a sculpted head from start to finish. The event will bring together scholars, restorers, sculptors and collectors, inviting discussions about the processes of production, iconoclasm and revolutionary destruction, the medieval body, and the restoration and survival of medieval sculptures today.
The day will include a demonstration and presentation by Dr. Stephen L'Normand, master mason of the Stonemasons' Guild of St Stephen and St George, featuring the types of techniques and tools that would have been used to carve stone in the Middle Ages. Stephen is in the process of carving one of our heads this week in order to show us photographs of the process of carving it as well as the finished product.
Rough schedule:
2:00 Introduction to the exhibition
2:15 – 4:00 The process of sculpting a head (Dr Stephen L’Normand)
4:00 – 4:30 Tea / coffee
4:30 – 5:30 Discussions with restorers, scholars and collectors about the destruction, survival, and restoration of stone sculpture