TomAllen - Sculpsit 2008
Macedonian marble on diorite plinth entitled 'FAMILY MANTEL'
It was our original idea to sponsor a further 'Open Space' sculpture colony entitled Prostor 2007. With the sad passing of Zoran Matic immediately following Prostor 2004 and my health, rather than a regular organised Colony this developed into an ad hoc programme which is how it has since remained.
Unloading the stone slab
Meanwhile we had remained in close contact with Tom Allen and in 2007 approached him for a commission. He produced various maquettes in his Glasgow studio, the most robust in alabaster and presented it to us for comment needless to say we were smitten. The rest became history and is presented as a series of images taken by Tom allowing each picture to replace a thousand words. Nevertheless some captioning and an introduction is imperative.
Unloading the plinth
The Mantel family can be traced back many centuries with the name thought to have been Manel originating in Spain before the the pogroms culminating in the late 15th century resulted in their expulsion and migration to Central Europe. Whilst some branches of the family were typically large, the current three and past four generations were quite small.
Power tools on the slab
Discussion between Tom, myself, Tija and the immediate family quickly established a suitable format. After several decades of written communication with a myriad of Swiss financial institutions, mostly done by my late father, I took over and a small legacy was forthcoming. We chose as a mark of respect to use this entirely for what became the Mantel family tree.
Ready to mount the tree
The team hoisting the tree
Tom Allen enjoyed working in marble and continued to take courses in Carrara Italy in sculpting a similar marble to the one he used on the hill. Our monolithic idea also prevailed and in the early summer of 2008 Tom made the first of his 2 visits to the hilltop. Meanwhile we again contacted Novice and his father, the monumental stonemasons from nearby, as a result of which a further slab of North Macedonian marble from Prilep was agreed on and delivered.
A large piece of Diorite to be used as the plinth, ostensibly from a Bosnian quarry was also delivered by the stonemasons. The captioned images tell the story of a rather impromtu but delightful 'Prostor 2008', on this occasion a single artist venture, which has subsequently been the way the hilltop sculpture park has evolved and continues to do so.
Outline of the family tree
Male torso
Female figure
Upright in the sun
