I've been given the honour of designing and carving the memorial stone to boy sailors killed in World War 2 which is destined for the west end floor of Portsmouth cathedral
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My original scale sketch produced after the initial meeting with the client at Portsmouth cathedral. Each commission starts with a hand drawn design for approval. I work as closely as possible to the final version |
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| The Naval Crest set out in pencil onto the stone prior to carving |
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| Working from the scale sketch the inscription is laid out directly onto the stone. All this is done freehand & by eye. A lot of drawing and re-drawing at this stage is necessary to ensure a well balanced and evenly spaced layout. The human eye is the only reliable guide! This stage of the process took about two days. |
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| When I am happy with the final layout, carving can begin. I work from the bottom up, left to right. This photo shows the tip of the tungsten carbide chisel in my left hand. |
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And here I am with the zinc alloy dummy slowly and carefully carving each letter. Note how my index finger and thumb rest on the head of the dummy for better control with fine carving. Carving continues, carefully and slowly with Radio 3 for company!    Carving progresses on the badge.  The inscription is painted with enamel paint to aid legibility as the plaque will be laid in the floor of Portsmouth cathedral. I've chosen a battleship grey colour.  For more details about the project see the BBC news link below |
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