For sculptor Isabel Catherine Kelley, granite is more than a hard stone. It is a material that allows her to explore emotions, relationships and the connections people share, one carefully carved piece at a time.
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| Windham sculptor Isabel Catherine Kelley works with granite to create sculptures exploring human connection, emotion and the experiences that shape her life. COURTESY PHOTO |
Her interest in sculpture began in high school, when she started working with clay. She later attended the Maine College of Art, where she experimented with plaster, building forms only to take them apart again. That attraction to removing material eventually led her to stone.
A turning point came when she received an internship with the Schoodic International Sculpture Symposium, where she spent a summer working alongside international artists.
“That was the summer where I figured out that I loved working with granite,” Kelley said.
She has continued working with the material ever since, drawn to its physical demands and the hands-on nature of carving. As a New England native, she also appreciates that granite is a familiar part of the landscape in the region.
Her creative process varies depending on the sculpture. Sometimes, she begins with a detailed drawing, often using exaggerated colors. She may create a drawing years before turning the idea into a finished piece. Other times, she begins with a piece of granite and carves directly into it, allowing the work to develop as she goes. Much of her inspiration comes from emotional connections with other people.
Working with granite requires patience, planning and specialized equipment. Kelley creates her sculptures in her garage and has a small gantry crane capable of lifting a ton. Moving larger pieces around her yard, however, can require renting a truck or finding people to help. The carbide-steel tools and diamond bits she uses in the process can also be expensive. Still, Kelley embraces the challenges.
“I like the challenge of working with granite and having to think a few steps ahead of the process,” she said.
Recently, she has been exploring ways to work with multiple pieces of granite rather than a single block. One example is a sculpture that has been installed outside the Ellsworth Public Library along its Riverwalk Trail. The piece combines different colors and grains of granite, with Kelley working to make the separate pieces appear seamless, as though they were one.
She is also developing a sculpture that draws on her own life experiences. The work begins with a butterfly form that she hopes to transform into an exaggerated, shield-like shape. She plans to engrave its surface with small scenes and stories reflecting her childhood, girlhood and motherhood.
The project has taken on additional significance since she became a mother to a 2-year-old, a change that has affected both her life and the time she can devote to her art.
Beyond the sculptures themselves, Kelley said that one of the most rewarding parts of her career has been the community she has found through stoneworking. She has been involved with the Maine Stoneworkers Guild for more than 10 years and currently serves as its chair. The organization brings together masons and artists across the state who share an interest in working with stone.
Kelley began working seriously with granite around 2011, and the relationships she has built through the community have remained an important part of her artistic journey. She hopes more people will consider trying granite sculpture themselves, saying that while the work requires particular tools, it is not as impossible as it might appear.
Next summer, Kelley plans to participate in a two-week sculpture symposium with seven other artists at the Boothbay Region Land Trust. Visitors will be able to watch artists transform raw granite blocks into finished sculptures, with the event concluding in an auction benefiting the land trust.
She also shares her work on Instagram under the handle @callmeickshmael. Although she does not have an immediate project planned for Windham, Kelley said she would welcome the opportunity to create something for the community.
For an artist who finds meaning in the connections between people, that possibility offers another chance to turn a solid piece of granite into something that brings people together. <
