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| Tivoli II, statuary marble, 2014. Thirteen inches tall. |
Matthew Simmonds is an English artist, now based in Denmark, who sculpts in marble and other stone to create small scale works that bring the due proportions and just correspondences of classical design to your tabletop.
Imagine what he could craft for use in your lodge. Columns, arches, stairways, and more abound in his work, where he shows historic structures—with sacred architecture a favorite theme. Surely he could provide your lodge with a variety of highly useful artworks that could serve in candidate instruction. Or maybe just to adorn your lodge room. (And a perfect gift for your favorite blogger!)
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| Chapter House, limestone, 2007. |
His website offers many photos of his past creations. Their sizes vary. At right, is “Chapter House,” which is described as standing a little less than 4.75 inches tall. I concede that is too small for use in candidate education during a degree but, if his intricacies can be rendered in paperweight size, he also could fashion something large enough.
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| Colonnade II, carrara marble, 2013. |
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| Exedra, carrara marble, 2018. Sixteen inches tall. |
Simmonds has been exhibiting all over the world, and collecting awards, for decades. In biography:
Matthew Simmonds graduated from university with a degree in history of art in 1984, specializing in the art and architecture of the medieval period. In 1991 he trained as an architectural stone carver, and in this capacity he participated in the restoration of several important historic monuments in England, most particularly Westminster Abbey and Ely Cathedral. In 1996 he transferred to Italy, where he specialized in the carving of fine classical sculpture in marble.
This kind of artistry does not come inexpensively. Poke around the web, and you’ll find his pieces trading in the thousands of dollars, but the buyer gains something beautiful that will last practically forever.
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| The Undiscovered Country, statuary marble, 2018. Twelve inches tall. |
Put that guy to work in every tin-shed-in-a-cornfield lodge building in America. If a lodge can't be anything but anonymous on the outside, at least make it magnificent INSIDE.
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