Courses in Stone Workmanship

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The workmanship of stone, to which the CCIC has dedicated one of its cultural courses, is, in Casentino, an art of millenary tradition.

CENTRO DI CULTURA
ITALIANA CASENTINO
Scuola di Italiano
per stranieri

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It is, as ever, a rigorous, manual craft making use of the same tools of the trade and techniques passed down from father to son for generations in the stone-cutter families.

The art of stone-cutting is practised in the entire valley of Casentino, but the most significant centre is Strada in Casentino, home to one of the most important shows in this sector "La Mostra Internazionale della Pietra Lavorata" (The International Exhibition of Chiselled Stone). At this event artisans and artists come from all over the world to exhibit their craftsmanship and to chisel their works in the main square of the town while discussing their own personal experience with that of their fellow artisans.

Maestro Alessandro Rialti lives and works in Strada in Casentino and is a descendant of one of the three important family names who have continually practised the art of stone-cutting in Alto Casentino. Generations of artisan-artists who have maintained their particular knowledge and conserved their ability and technique of chiselling stone for centuries.

The Course

The Course comprises the theoretic study and the practical techniques of manual stone workmanship.
It has been prepared for those who wish to learn and deepen their knowledge of this important and expressive form of traditional Casentino culture.

The Course begins with an illustration of the different types of stone and their relative characteristics. Among these is the "pietra forte" which resembles the colour of iron widely used in medieval Florence, and the "pietra macigno" a variety of which is the "pietra serena" a pale sky-blue in colour, and the "pietra bigia" a brownish soil-grey tinged stone; both used by Brunelleschi in Florence in 1400 because of their softer consistency and therefore more easily chiselled.

We then come to the tools for the manual working of the stone. These are simply hammers, mallets, chisels or scalpels and the stone-cutter's chisel; all of various types and sizes which, in the hands of the expert Maestro, create ornamental articles, bas-relief, decorative objects and sculptures.

The Course continues with an illustration of the techniques used when actually working with the tools and subsequently the application of such techniques when sculpting the nude stone.
Finally, the students under the guidance of their Maestro will be put to the test by trying out their skill in creating a work of their own, as from the moment the subject has been sketched, and which will develop progressively until the final stage of applying the finishing touches has been reached.

The Course lasts for two weeks, including four lessons each of three hours, making a total of twelve hours.
The lessons will be held on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons in Maestro Alessandro Rialtis laboratory.

Prices

Calendar of the Courses (please click here)

Booking and Information

For information and booking it is advisable to contact the school secretary's office:
Telephone: 0039 0575 529774
Fax: 0039 0575 529559
E-mail

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