Coming from a Midwest background where the boundaries of male familiarity extend to a handshake or a pat on the shoulder, not even the group hugs at Camp Brotherhood prepared me for the bear hug embrace and repeated cheek kissing of an impressively sized male speaking rapidly in Spanish my first day at De Stenen Poort, a stone carving symposium in the Netherlands. This expression of appreciation on Sergio’s part was sparked by my pantomimed offer to give him one of two adapters I had machined in order to make my tools compatible with the #14 metric spindle, standard in that part of Europe.

This trip to participate in De Stenen Poort, held biennially at Borkel en Schaft, a small pastoral village near Eindhoven in the Netherlands, in some ways was a result of the very positive experience I had at Camp Brotherhood several years earlier. The sense of support and camaraderie, the exchange of ideas and information, fed an interest to see what other carvers around the country were doing. The following year, I loaded up the pickup for every contingency I could foresee and headed across four states into the Colorado Rockies to attend Marble/ Marble.

Setting up my carving site, I noticed another participant smoking a lonely cigarette, huddled under a tree, trying to keep dry. I introduced myself and asked if I could offer any assistance.  Fortunately, his English was better than my Dutch and we managed to construct two shelters with some spare material I had packed along (the planning had paid off). In the days that followed, Jan and I got to know each other and he suggested I should apply for a symposium held near his home in the Netherlands. The idea intrigued me and when I returned home, Jan and I exchanged e-mails and information. Just short of a year later, I found myself driving a rental car from Brussels, looking for the small village of Borkel en Schaft.

Participation in De Stenen Poort, like most international symposia, is juried and provides no formal training. The participants are expected to produce at least one finished piece by the end of the 10-day carving session to sell in the week long show that follows.  Attendance for the show attracts 15,000 to 20,000 people and usually 75 to 80 percent of the sculptures are sold. Volunteers guide visitors through the carving sight, answering any questions. Media coverage and advertising are broad and well coordinated. Sales are handled by the symposium: 20% of the sale price is retained by the sponsors to cover costs, 80% goes to the artist. Food, lodging, stone, electricity and water are provided to participants. Travel expenses are not covered.

I was able to finish two pieces during my stay, one in a warm Spanish marble, the other in Belgium black marble, both of which sold.

Attending the symposium is certainly rewarding from a carving standpoint. In a concentrated period one has the opportunity to broaden artistic and technical skills, and the chance to carve under positive pressure. Sharing ideas and witnessing the creativity of my fellow carvers was amazing. But it is the intangible qualities that drive me to seek out other international symposia: the friendships made across cultural lines, the friendship and warmth of the volunteers, the opportunity to experience viewpoints beyond my own, and to gain more than a superficial insight into another country.  

As I reclined in the chair of an outdoor cafe on a gray cobbled boulevard one late spring afternoon, mug of beer in hand, listening to old men swap stories in another language, I felt completely at home. Carving here had brought me one step closer to the realization that, maybe, we are not so different after all.

Some points to remember:

 

• United States power is 110 volts, 60 cycles. Europe is 220 volts, 50 cycles.
• All measurements and threads are metric.
• Carefully read the terms of the symposium for which you are applying, i.e. is money for travel expenses supplied?
• Who retains ownership of the finished product if a city or local municipality is the sponsoring entity?
• Often a sketch or maquette of your proposed project is required.

 

Web sites

www.Traces.ws/symposia/symposia.html

www.Stenenpoort.nl