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See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Kevin talks about his childhood in South Armagh, Northern Ireland, and how the experience of his teenage years coloured his life. He opens up about how his work explores family relationships - sons, fathers and toxic masculinity. He studied at art school in Dublin and Chicago, before doing a masters at Goldsmiths in London. During art school his work became more sculptural until, soon after graduating, he shifted from painting to sculpture. When he arrived in Pietrasanta he began by creating traditional classical sculptures with a contemporary twist. However soon he wanted to create something more personal and developed his own abstract, contemporary style of sculpture. He enjoys challenging the stone to do different things. His Family Series is a very personal look at his role as a father, husband and man. Son Dancing was inspired by a glimpse of one of his sons dancing freely, unaware of his body, and wearing his mother’s high-heeled shoes. In his studio we see a series called Fragile Heads which are portraits, but very flawed and damaged. This emotionally rich series arose from portraits he created of men he’d seen in passing. He sculpted them roughly, and energetically, and by leaving water inside the clay before firing ensured that the finished pieces cracked and evoked the fragility and tenderness of men. A large piece which caught my attention in his studio was Striding Youth. Kevin explained that his idea in this piece was to use gesture to indicate the confidence of youth, walking out of the block of stone. Currently, Kevin is working on a series called Ten Heroes. These are abstract portraits, this time of his lifelong heroes, and we had the chance to see some of them come alive in his studio. So far, this series includes Barbara Hepworth, Samuel Beckett, Charles Mingus and Bobby Sands. Kevin likes his plinths to be an extension of the sculptures themselves. They highlight the works in a way that simple white boxes can’t. He uses many types of contemporary materials for his plinths, especially to complement marble sculptures, which might be freighted by the history of the stone. Kevin and his wife, Tara, founded Marble Projects to give back to the artist community. As well as offering young local, or international, artists the chance to use cutting edge technology for affordable prices, he helps young artists with a space to work and the chance to learn from the artists in his studio. Pietrasanta has been kind to him, he says, and this is his way of giving back. Links kevinfrancisgray.com instagram.com/kevinfrancisgraystudio marbleprojects.com

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Yemisi currently lives in Stockholm but has worked in Pietrasanta since 1999. She lived here for 15 years and creates in marble, granite and bronze. Yemisi's love of animals started at a young age and they are a frequent theme in her work. Yemisi had four aquariums in her room as a child, and tells us why she finds the animals’ anatomy so fascinating. She studied the anatomy of elephants, hippos and rhinoceros in depth and finds in them a testament to ancient times. This interest really comes to life in the foundry, where we watch the final patinas being applied to her series of hippos, each piece brought to life through a distinct choice of colours. Yemisi talks through the process from when she brings her models into the foundry and explains the lost wax process. She also shows us her current series of female torsos and tells us about her grandmothers, and her passion for depicting strong independent women in her sculptures. Yemisi works with a range of stones including marble, Swedish granite, Indian granite, Swedish porphyry and Spanish alabaster, and explains how each of them needs different tools. Recently, she completed a public commission at Bleket bathing place in Tjörn, Sweden, carving directly into the existing granite. She reveals to us how she approached working with this community in another part of Sweden from her own, and giving them something memorable which also blended into their environment. Yemisi was attracted to the challenge of drawing monkeys when she saw how fast they moved. She created a series with a new angle on the old fable of the three monkeys, reversing the original moral this time to encourage listening, talking and expressing. She hopes that listening and speaking out can help resolve modern day issues in society. For this episode we met Yemisi at Fonderia Artistica Versiliese , founded in 1975 in the centre of Pietrasanta. This family-owned foundry is now run by the three brothers Tiberio, Franco and Gabriele Lucarini. Linksyemisiwilson.com instagram.com/yemisiwilson

Guarda le immagini e leggi di più su materiallyspeaking.com. See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com including a full English transcript. Questa settimana incontriamo Franco Casoni, maestro intagliatore del legno, per scoprire come realizza le polene, ovvero le figure di prua delle navi. This week we are meeting Franco Casoni, a master wood carver, to find out how he creates ships’ figureheads — known as 'polene'. Per questa puntata ci siamo recati a Chiavari, in Liguria, a breve distanza in auto lungo la costa da Pietrasanta e dalle cave di marmo di Carrara. Qui, tra la costa rocciosa e le colline ricoperte da fitti boschi, il materiale locale è il legno. For this episode we travelled to Chiavari, Liguria, a short drive up the coast from Pietrasanta and the marble quarries of Carrara. Here, between rocky coastline and dense forested hillsides, the local material is wood. All'interno del suo laboratorio, Franco ci mostra una scarpa di ottima fattura e ci spiega che suo padre era un calzolaio. Aggiunge che, quando era giovane, era consuetudine fare l'apprendista presso il padre di qualcun altro, per evitare di litigare troppo con il proprio. Inside Franco’s workshop, he shows us a beautifully crafted shoe and explains that his father was a shoemaker. He adds that, when he was young, it was traditional to apprentice under someone else’s father, to avoid arguing too much with your own. Franco racconta la storia delle polene, spiegando come, al di là della loro funzione decorativa, un tempo si credesse che possedessero proprietà mistiche. Racconta inoltre come è arrivato a scolpirle, oltre a parlare dei tipi di legno e degli strumenti che utilizza nel suo lavoro. Franco shares the history of figureheads (‘polene’ in Italian), explaining how, beyond their decorative role, they were once believed to hold mystical properties. He also reflects on how he came to carve them, as well as the types of wood and tools he uses in his work. Franco parla di alcune delle superstizioni legate alle polene e racconta come Pablo Neruda, il celebre poeta cileno, abbia iniziato la sua collezione di fama mondiale di polene di navi del XIX secolo. Queste polene sono riemerse dai relitti affondati nel mare insidioso vicino alla sua casa in Cile e sono esposte nella casa-museo Isla Negra. Isla Negra Museum house Franco discusses some of the superstitions around polene, and tells how Pablo Neruda, the renowned Chilean poet, came to start his world-famous collection of 19th century ships’ figureheads. These figureheads floated up from shipwrecks that sank in the perilous sea near his home in Chile, and can be seen at the house museum Isla Negra Museum house Franco è noto anche per la realizzazione degli stampi utilizzati per preparare i corzetti, un tipo di pasta tradizionale ligure a forma di moneta che risale al Medioevo. Ci racconta come realizza questi intricati stampi e ci svela i suoi segreti per preparare il sugo.  Franco is also known for carving the stamps used to make corzetti pasta — a traditional Ligurian, coin-shaped pasta dating back to the Middle Ages. He tells how he carves the intricate stamps and gives us his recipe tips for the sauce.  Se vuoi vedere un bel video su Franco e sua moglie Alexandra mentre preparano i corzetti, clicca su “Play” qui sotto! If you want to see a cool video about Franco and his wife Alexandra making corzetti, click play below! Questo episodio continua anche il nostro desiderio di produrre un episodio per stagione in italiano. This episode is in keeping with our desire to produce one episode per season in Italian.  instagram.com/franco_casoni_intagliatore

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Widely recognised as the inventor of organic cubism, Pollès has created his own private laboratory for the creation of his singular sculptures. In this episode, we invite you to watch a special video interview with Pollès and enjoy a rare glimpse inside his home and workshops. Watch on YouTube: The World of Pollès

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Ko Yamazaki was born in Japan but at 17 he went to Paris to study before finding his second home in Italy, working with marble. Today Mike Axinn and I are back in Studio Pescarella, on the outskirts of Pietrasanta to chat with Ko Yamazaki. Originally from Kyoto, Japan, Ko has been coming to carve in Pietrasanta, Italy, since 1992. We find him working in the sunlight, polishing marble in his outside workspace under a hot tin roof. On his cavalletti are some rounded Yin and Yang forms which he is polishing. Born the child of teachers, Ko’s mother was an activist and supported many causes. At the age of 10, he was surprised to find that the summer camp he was sent away on, was for communists. This encouraged him to reflect on the impact of politics from a very young age. Ko’s early life was moulded by a rich blend of activism, creativity, and a sense of independence; he often spent time with his grandmother while his parents worked. At 17, Ko left Japan for Paris and, although young, he was accepted at the Sorbonne to study art. Initially drawn to painting, he soon realized he didn’t enjoy the solitary nature of painting. His father suggested he try Pietrasanta, a town renowned for its marble and artistic community. First Ko stayed with his father in his workspace, and took odd jobs helping out at the foundry and delivery jobs for the galleries. Ko was captivated by the energy and possibilities of working with stone, and decided to stay. He describes his first attempts at sculpture, including carving his own hand in marble, an artwork that was stolen. Established artists, and artisans, helped him shape his learning, and develop his approach in conceptual art. He works in wood while he is in Kyoto and stone when in Pietrasanta. He divides his working life between the two. He also sometimes creates in clay and plaster. An avid reader, Ko has always been influenced by his Japanese heritage of the creation of paper. Ko tells how he came to carve a black cardboard box in marble. He was pondering on how people often have that final cardboard box after they’ve moved house, which sits in a room, unopened. He always wonders why the owner never just opens it and empties it out. Ko wanted to create this box in the heavy material of marble to reflect the emotional weight of unopened boxes, and likes the contrast displayed by carving a paper object in stone. Ko’s Japanese heritage inspired his fascination with transforming hard stone into forms that resemble delicate paper or books. He expresses a desire to preserve the tactile and cultural experience of reading and writing, which he feels is fading in the digital age.  An avid reader Ko created a series on books. He works in wood while he is in Kyoto and stone when in Pietrasanta. He divides his working life between the two. koyamazaki.com instagram.com/ko.yamazaki

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Sculpture Vulture is a podcast which we love, and if you haven’t discovered it yet, we’re sure you’ll enjoy it. Produced and presented by bronze conservator and restorer Lucy Branch of Antique Bronze in the UK, it offers insights shaped by her specialist work in sculpture restoration, war memorial conservation and bronze maintenance. Lucy hosts conversations with contemporary sculptors, shares the stories behind historic statues, and explores the wider world of public sculpture. Her storytelling is shaped by her distinctive training: a degree in Art History with Material Studies from University College, followed by a Masters in Conservation from the Royal College of Art and the Victoria & Albert Museum. As well as caring for many much-loved UK monuments, including Nelson’s Column, Eros, Cleopatra’s Needle and the Albert Memorial. Lucy has also restored bronze sculptures by artists who worked in Pietrasanta, among them Henry Moore, Helaine Blumenfeld and Igor Mitoraj. Lucy invited Sarah to share how Materially Speaking began, and to reflect on the artistic community of Pietrasanta. As they exchange stories of their favourite sculptures, Lucy introduces the idea of “sculptural tourism”, even imagining a sculpture passport for travellers and together they draw out insights into how we encounter public art today. Lucy is also a writer and novelist, and you can support her work by exploring her books: Wax On Was Off: How to Care for Your Bronze Sculpture and Bronze Behaving Badly: The Principles of Bronze Conservation. We also highly recommend her excellent podcast series, Sculpture Vulture, available on Spotify, Google and Apple Podcasts. sculpturevulture.co.uk/sculpture-vulture-podcast antiquebronze.co.uk instagram.com/lucybranch_sculpturevulture

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Renowned sculptor Alex Seton tells us about his journey from a rural Australian upbringing to becoming a prominent artist known for politically charged marble works. He speaks about how he became fascinated with marble at a very early age, and how he was influenced by his unconventional upbringing near an historic quarry. His family spent his childhood in the Australian bush with no electricity, a sawdust toilet and no hot water. He and his three brothers studied in a small local Catholic school. Alex and Sarah met in the studios of Massimo Galleni, which has been his studio in Pietrasanta for the last 15 years, where he was finishing up The Tenderness Series. We learn how his passion for social change inspires his work and leads him to use his art to explore themes of social engagement, privacy, and identity.  Alex tells about a work he did for a sculpture competition in a hotel, which caused a visceral response from viewers - revealing those who had empathy for the homeless and those who reviled them. The piece is called Unsettled. Alex’s first shows included an installation where the gallery had their leather-topped benches replaced by marble versions, which all had bum prints in the marble. So when the visitor came into an empty gallery they would think “what am I looking at?”. Alex became well known for his series of cross-legged, hooded figures with hollowed out faces from 2012, which he presented at the Hong Kong Fair, just before it became Art Basel. The hoodie seemed to him an egalitarian garment - worn as readily by billionaire Mark Zuckerberg and by Martin Trayvon, the young man shot dead in Florida. Alex explains he can get obsessed with fashion items. Alex did a series of works during the pandemic, one of which one touched Sarah deeply. Proposal for a Humble Monument was inspired by how, in a place called Bathurst, convicts used to hack away and pull out big blocks of lime. Alex considered all the monuments around the world being pulled down because they reflect our shameful colonial past, and wondered what we might replace them with. He decided something more humble would be appropriate, and so the Proposal For a Humble Monument was named to honour the pain of those miners. Alex tells us how he came to name the piece Someone Died Trying To Have a Life Like Mine (2014) which pays respects to the many refugees whose lives were lost at sea trying to reach a better life. alexseton.com instagram.com/alexseton_ Massimo Galleni Studios, gallenimassimo.it Sullivan + Strumpf Gallery, sullivanstrumpf.com

Guarda le immagini e leggi di più su materiallyspeaking.com See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Questo episodio continua anche il nostro desiderio di produrre un episodio per stagione in italiano. In keeping with our desire to produce one episode per season in Italian. Inoltre, ora avete la possibilità di guardare questo episodio come video o semplicemente ascoltare l'audio. In addition, you now have the option to watch this episode as a video below or on YouTube, with English subtitles, or simply listen to the audio, in Italian only. Nato a Roma, ma ora residente in Versilia, Giannelli è probabilmente famoso soprattutto per la sua gigantesca scultura Mr Arbitrium, alta oltre cinque metri, che sembra spingere via o sostenere gli edifici contro cui è appoggiata, a seconda del punto di vista dello spettatore.   Born in Rome, but now living in Versilia, Giannelli is probably best known for his giant sculpture, Mr Arbitrium, over five metres tall, which appears to be either pushing away or supporting the buildings it stands against - depending on the viewers’ point of view.   Questa ambiguità trasforma noi spettatori in protagonisti, mettendo in discussione le nostre convinzioni sul significato di queste strutture e sul nostro legame con esse. Diverse versioni di Mr Arbitrium sono state installate su edifici e chiese a Milano, Firenze, Lucca, Servezza, Carrara, Pietrasanta e persino in Ucraina. This ambiguity turns us as viewers into the protagonists, challenging our beliefs about the meaning of these structures and our connection to them. Versions of Mister Arbitrium have been installed against buildings and churches in Milan, Florence, Lucca, Servezza, Carrara, Pietrasanta and even Ukraine. Giannelli accoglie Mike sul prato della tenuta di famiglia, dove la sua serie di sculture in bronzo I Sospesi è appesa agli alberi e un simpatico labrador nero giace sull'erba.   Giannelli welcomes Mike on the lawn of the family estate, where his series of bronze sculptures I Sospesi hang from the trees, and a friendly black labrador lies on the grass. Emanuele è arrivato a Carrara a diciannove anni per studiare scultura all'Accademia di Belle Arti di Carrara, stabilendosi qui in Versilia, dove la sua famiglia aveva vissuto nelle generazioni precedenti. All'Accademia ha scelto di lavorare l'argilla piuttosto che il marmo, per la flessibilità che offre e per la natura più concettuale del suo lavoro.  Emanuele came to Carrara at nineteen to study sculpture at the Carrara Academy of Fine Arts, settling here in Versilia, where his family had lived in previous generations. At the Academy he chose to work in clay rather than marble, due to the flexibility it offers and the nature of his work being more conceptual. Giannelli racconta a Mike di come, in gioventù, abbia trascorso del tempo a New York, Londra e Berlino, subendo l'influenza della fantascienza, del cinema, dei graffiti, della musica elettronica e del punk rock. Alla fine è tornato a Pietrasanta, luogo più adatto per crescere una famiglia. Giannelli tells Mike how in his youth he spent time in New York, London and Berlin and was influenced by science fiction, cinema, graffiti, electronic music, and punk rock. Eventually he returned to Pietrasanta which was more conducive to raising a family. Ricorda la gioia di incontrare artigiani e visitare i laboratori che allora si trovavano nel centro di Pietrasanta. E gli piacevano anche le feste e la vita sociale con tanti giovani, soprattutto stranieri, tedeschi, francesi e americani. He recalls the joy of meeting artisans and visiting the workshops which were then in the centre of Pietrasanta. And he also enjoyed the parties and social life with lots of young people, especially foreigners, Germans, French, and Americans. The Watcher è una scultura che osserva il cielo con binocoli, cosa che gli esseri umani hanno sempre fatto. Tuttavia, ora, grazie alla tecnologia, sta cercando di guardare oltre. Emanuele afferma che “oltre” gli fa pensare anche alla spiritualità.  The Watcher is a sculpture who looks up with binoculars at the sky, which is something humans have always done. However now, through technology, he is trying to look beyond. Emanuele says that ‘beyond’ also makes him think of spirituality. Un'altra opera che cita con un tema visionario è Korf, un uomo che sta in piedi davanti al suo monitor, con le braccia incrociate, lo sguardo rivolto verso l'alto, alla ricerca della sua visione e del suo futuro. Another work he mentions with a visionary theme is Korf, a man who stands watching on his monitor, arms crossed, gaze turned upwards, searching for his vision and his future. Emanuele afferma che, pur non credendo in un codice chiamato religione, crede molto negli esseri umani. Dice che, sebbene siamo animali e abbiamo un senso di autodistruzione, siamo animali straordinari. Le sue opere si collocano tra il figurativo e il concettuale, riflettendo sul periodo contemporaneo caratterizzato da cambiamenti incredibilmente rapidi.  Emanuele says although he doesn't believe in a code called religion, he believes very much in human beings. He says that although we are animals, and have a sense of self-destruction, we are extraordinary animals. His works are pitched between figurative and conceptual, reflecting on the contemporary period of incredibly fast-moving change. emanuelegiannelli.it instagram.com/emanuele.giannelli

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Originally from Zurich, Maja was always keen to leave Switzerland and with an Italian grandmother perhaps Italy was always going to be her destination. She moved to Italy in 1991. She speaks to us about how her approach to work has changed. When she was young she liked seeing the impression her hands made on the work, while now she seeks smoothness and perfection. We meet Maja at her home - Artists Hill - an old farmhouse, surrounded by olive groves and a huge vegetable garden, which she has renovated into a home, studios, and a part that she rents out. First Maja shows us the room where she draws, and then we move over to her new modelling studio, opposite the house. In the middle of this room, towering above her, is a spiral column. It’s a plastercast - soon to be realised in acrylic resin and earth. Maja tells us about a bas relief project in 16 panels called dressing. The question she originally posed was, “Can we change religion like clothes or is religion something inherent to us, you know, is it like part of us?" One of Maja’s first pieces was Extension of Ego and now it takes pride of place in her studio. Maja still loves it and it represents the theme she still develops of externalising human traits in her work. Labrynth is another of Maja’s pieces that follows the theme of a body’s outside reflecting what is inside. majathommen.ch instagram.com/thommenmaja

Guarda le foto e leggi di più su materiallyspeaking.com Ursula è nata a Seravezza e vive e lavora ancora nella zona di Pietrasanta e ha anche trascorso un periodo di apprendimento delle tecniche speciali di mosaico di Ravenna e Spilimbergo. Facciamo un giro nel suo studio e tra le sue numerose scatole di tessere. Quando le chiediamo quanto sia importante la luce nella composizione di un mosaico, Ursula ci spiega che una delle prime cose che fa quando accetta un incarico è vedere dove verrà collocato il mosaico. Le sue commissioni la portano in tutto il mondo e, quando l'abbiamo incontrata, era appena tornata da un lavoro a Filadelfia, negli Stati Uniti. Ursula ci racconta della sua formazione e di alcuni dei progetti speciali a cui ha lavorato, compreso il primo, per una sinagoga. Vedere i suoi lavori su Facebook “mosaici Ursula Corsi” facebook.com/mosaiciursulacorsi instagram.com/mosaiciursulacorsi English translationSee pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Ursula was born in Seravezza and still lives and works in the Pietrasanta area and also spent a period learning the special mosaic techniques of Ravenna and Spilimbergo. However, her commissions take her all over the world and when we met her, she had just returned from a job in Philadelphia, USA. Ursula tells us about her education and some of the special projects she has worked on, including her first one, for a synagogue. Let's take a tour of his studio and his many boxes of tiles. When we ask her how important light is in the composition of a mosaic, Ursula explains that one of the first things she does when she accepts a commission is to see where the mosaic will be placed.

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Dutch artist Anne-Claire trained and worked as a lawyer until she followed her heart to become an artist. She moved to Pietrasanta, where she lived, and worked, for 15 years. Now she divides her time between the Hague and Pietrasanta. After the pandemic she was looking for a way to capture peoples’ thoughts and emotions in order to make a three-dimensional sculpture of them in clay. Having discovered that a traditional scanner was unable to grab the emotion she saw in a split second, Anne-Claire was happy to meet Claudio Giustiniani of ArtaxLab in Pietrasanta, who showed her how he used 30 Nikon cameras in conjunction with a 3-D printer. Working with Claudio she could get what she wanted and began her project to capture the emotions around the experience of COVID-19 called My Collection of Souls. To create her My Collection of Souls Anne-Claire talked to the person about COVID-19 and, at the exact moment she saw their strongest expression, she pressed the button on the cameras. Claudio and she discuss in this episode how they created the work - from taking the photograph through to the finished collection. Another collaboration Anne-Claire made was with photographer Gail Skoff. Gail came to this part of Italy in 2017 to photograph the quarries of Carrara but soon became fascinated by the artists working in marble. When she met Anne-Claire they instantly clicked, and embarked on a collaboration with Gail’s photographic collage technique. Gail likes to enter the world of the artist and elaborate on their process, creating more of an impression of the artist's work rather than its ultimate reality. Anne-Claire tells us how it was working with Gail and how happy she was to have Icarus flying. From her childhood, Anne-Claire was inspired by how Michelangelo expressed such soft emotions in hard marble. Below is a piece in tribute to him. Anne-Claire thought David’s victory over Goliath was an excellent metaphor for our battle and the optimism needed to succeed during COVID-19. anneclaire.nl instagram.com/anneclairevandenelshout ArtAxlab aims to build a bridge between the artisan world and digital technologies artaxlab.com instagram.com/artaxlab

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com A sculptor and painter born in Damascus, Usama tells of the impact of being brought up in Syria and of continuously dealing with people from different religions with diverse ways of looking at things.  Usama’s studio space, and home, is tucked away in the shadow of the statuario marble quarries. Usama bought the space in this historic marble area because he felt an urgency to build a stone amphitheatre there. Initially he dismissed the land because he feared flooding. But he worked non-stop his first winter to build his theatre.  He tells us about his childhood and how it informed the person he’s become. His uncles are both sculptors and their books on marble, in his grandmother’s library, inspired him from a young age. First he studied art in Damascus, where he carved in wood, and then he came to Carrara to study sculpting in marble.  Usama talks about his relationship with nature and his love of plants. He grew up in Syria with a family garden of fruit and vegetables, and always loved working in nature. He has planted many trees and plants in his Carrara home. Many of Usama’s pieces are inspired by immigration There’s a wall of marble blocks sculpted with luggage handles, straps and zips. He tells how immigrants who used to carry lots of luggage now find their luggage has become much smaller, sometimes even just a mobile phone. Usama created a series of sculptures of women depicting the life of women in the Middle East and their freedom to travel around. His sculptures explore how women have sometimes been transformed by religion into more of an icon than a person, and how this can also become a prison. However, they often find virtual freedom through the internet. This piece is a woman on one side and on the other side a horse, her hair represents an extension of her thoughts. Usama loves teaching and sharing his skills whilst allowing his students to develop their own personalities in their work. alnassar.it instagram.com/alnassarsculpture

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Originally from Oregon, John moved around America a lot as a child. Although he was not formally schooled as an artist, he received his education at a young age while travelling with his family through Europe and the Middle East. There he took in many of the great works of antiquity. John came to sculpture in his thirties from a background in painting, and very quickly began carving monumental pieces which he was able to sell. It was at this time that he experienced a revelation when he began to imagine how stone carvers worked in the past. Although this technique is much less practised nowadays, he believes that for thousands of years sculptors worked without eye protection. They discovered what John refers to as profile carving. John describes himself as a direct, flexible, profile carver. The first piece John mentions is a big reclining figure which earned John enough money to allow him to come back to Pietrasanta and work. Recently the owner of that piece died and John was able to buy it back in an auction. John also tells of the gravestone he carved which is in the cemetery of Querceta, near Pietrasanta which is a Pieta of 5 life-size figures. Another piece, a pair of lovers, John carved from a special piece of marble he had kept for 16 years. As he was carving the embrace he had a moving experience as he felt them pushing themselves into each other, as though they couldn’t get close enough. Now John divides his time between the Redwood forests of California and Pietrasanta - drawing inspiration from the world around. He acknowledges a great debt to the cavatore, the quarrymen. Without quarrymen, artists don’t have the material to work with. johnfishersculpture.com instagram.com/giovannipescatore51

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com Sandy first came to Italy to be with her partner, the sculptor John Fisher, and enjoyed the influences of the Italian Renaissance, and the detailed work of the Baroque. From observing the sculptors she learned about shadow and light, negative shape and profile lines. However, she was offered a three month artist residency in a paper making village in Japan where she discovered an economy of stroke and a muted palette which inspired her to develop her work with paper. Gail and I met Sandy at Pescarella studios, in Vallechia, on the road from Pietrasanta towards Carrara. As we entered the large studio space, Sandy was calmly taping collages onto the wall, for a pop-up exhibition she was staging. Her beautiful collages feature fruits, wine bottles and inviting cups of cappuccino - with froth you can almost taste. There’s a three dimensional effect on wooden spoons that she has created with papers of different shades. On another work a tower of coffee cups leans so precariously I want to reach out and save them. Beside Sandy there’s a table heaped with fine, plain and patterned, papers carefully arranged by colour. She shows us some samples of the paper and talks about how they are made and tells us about her techniques. Sandy speaks about an ongoing series of womens’ portraits called Women in the World. In this project she aims to honour and recognise struggles and successes of notable women who have made a special contribution to the world. This life-long series includes visual artists, actors, musicians, scientists and political activists. On her birthday Sandy does a collage self-portrait to reflect on the year behind and the one ahead. She talks about her childhood and the words of wisdom she took from her father who escaped Germany in WW2 and came to America. sandyoppenheimercollage.com instagram.com/sandyoppenheimer

See pictures and read more on materiallyspeaking.com On 15th April, 2019 a catastrophic fire broke out in Notre Dame Cathedral. Parisians watched in horror as the spire fell and most of the roof was destroyed. In the aftermath it became clear that a large area was contaminated with toxic dust and lead. The iconic building, which has dominated the Île de la Cité island in Paris since the Middle Ages, is a national symbol not only for the French but for people all over the world.  President Macron pledged to build back the cathedral as it was before, and as the planned reopening in December 2024 looms, a huge office structure has mushroomed around it and 500 workers are on site daily as the team race to rebuild it. The eyes of the world are watching, but Materially Speaking has a story for our ears - the story of its sound. As a sound specialist himself, Mike Axinn was fascinated when he discovered there is a group exploring the restoration of the acoustics at Notre Dame. He approached Brian F.G. Katz and David Poirier-Quinot at the Sorbonne, and their colleague, sound archeologist Mylène Pardoen, who is co-coordinator with Brian of the scientific acoustics team assisting the reconstruction of Notre Dame, and soon we were off to Paris to hear their stories. We first met Brian and David at a restaurant and then visited their simulator inside the Sorbonne to discover more. Notre Dame has a special role in western European music’s history and is generally thought of as the cradle of polyphony. Sarah was attracted to this angle as her father, Christopher Monk, was part of the Early Music movement which restored the use of the Renaissance cornett, a woodwind instrument well known in Monteverdi’s music. He also made and played serpents, long snake-shaped instruments that had a central role in music that was performed in Notre Dame many centuries ago. So she approached Volny Hostiou, one of France’s leading serpent players, and we were delighted when he and singer Thomas Van Essen agreed to join us in Paris for some experiments with Brian and David. We then jumped on a train to Lyon to meet with Mylène Pardoen and learn more about her work as one of the world’s foremost sound archaeologists, tasked with recording the sounds made by stone masons and other artisans in their work, and re-imagining the church’s soundscape at various points in its history. A key person driving the physical restoration is Pascal Prunet, Chief architect of historic monuments in France and part of the team in charge of restoring Notre-Dame. Prunet explains that their work in restoring the church has revealed many secrets about its construction and the work done by artisans. We were fortunate to hear how his team was able to discover things they never would have learned had it not been for the fire. As we obviously could not go inside Notre-Dame, Volny and Thomas then kindly arranged for us to hear them play in the Abbey of Rouen, built on a similar scale to nearby Rouen Cathedral, the abbey is famous for both its architecture and its large, unaltered Cavaillé-Coll organ. Here they talked to us about the serpent and their group Les Meslanges, showed us a serpent fresco on the ceiling of the Abbey and played in three different locations. Finally Mike takes us back to Brian and David’s simulator to compare and contrast the sound of the musicians live in the Abbey of Rouen, and their simulated version of how the music would sound at different historical periods of Notre-Dame’s history. Thanks also to Frédéric Ménissier who made a great video recording of our visit to the Abbaye of Rouen. You will be able to watch the result on YouTube @materiallyspeakingpodcast nearer the scheduled reopening of Notre Dame, in December 2024. Thanks and links We are very grateful to Brian, David, Mylène, Pascal, Volny and Thomas for giving so generously of their time and sharing their expertise and passion. You can learn more about their projects in the following links. Brian F.G. Katz & David Poirier-QuinotBrian Katz, originally from the U.S., is an acoustics specialist and leads the Sound Spaces research team. David Poirier-Quinot works with Brian and is a researcher, presently focused on sound spatialisation, perception, and room acoustics simulation for virtual and augmented realities. Beginning mid April 2024, The Past Has Ears project is launching Whispers of Notre Dame, ‘Ekko of Notre-Dame de Paris’, an immersive audio guide that transports listeners through time and space to the heart of Paris's most treasured landmark. Free on Google Play, Android and iOS. It can be listened to anywhere, but is best with GPS onsite at Notre Dame. ndwhispers.pasthasears.eu Mylène PardoenMusicologist and soundscape archaeologist Mylène records and recreates the sounds of the past. She is a scientific expert for the restoration of Notre-Dame - Co-coordinator of the Acoustics group. She is also designer, coordinator and manager of the Bretez and ESPHAISTOSS projects. Pascal PrunetChief architect of Historic Monuments responsible for the restoration of Notre-Dame de Paris is noted for his work in the restoration of the Cathedrals of Paris, Nantes, Limoges, Nîmes, Arras and Cambrai, as well as the Opéra Garnier in Paris , Le Corbusier 's Villa Savoye and the Citadel of Lille.  prunet-architecture.com Volny Hostiou & Thomas Van EssenMusicians specialising in performing compositions that were written for, and often performed for the first time in, Notre-Dame. Volny teaches tuba and serpent at the Rouen Conservatoire and creates projects in collaboration with the Musée de la Musique de Paris. Thomas is a musicologist, flautist and singer, dedicated to early music and founded Les Meslanges, one of the early music ensembles Volny plays in. Les Meslanges is supported by the French Ministry of Culture, the Regional Arts Council of Normandy, the Normandy Regional Government and the Rouen City Council. The ensemble is a member of FEVIS – the Federation of Specialised Vocal and Instrumental Ensembles. Credits Producer: Sarah Monk Producer/Editor: Mike Axinn Music: courtesy of Les Meslanges - Thomas van Essen & Volny Hostiou