In the Company of Stone: The Art of the Stone Wall

By Daniel Snow

Book Overview

"Finding stone, choosing it, and letting go of it are the three things a waller does. I'd miss any one of them too much if I asked someone else to do them for me. I may work by myself, but I'm not alone. I'm in the company of stone." Daniel Snow is a waller, an artisan who builds walls, terraces, caverns, and the occasional sphere or pool out of dry stone. It's an ancient skill--building with only what the earth provides. No mortar, no nails, nothing to hold his creations together except gravity, an invisible glue he can sense in the stones' "conversations" of squeaks and rumbles. A hollow sound means a void needs to be filled; a solid fit is secured with the sound of a bolt being thrown. Snow's evocative prose and Peter Mauss's richly textured photographs of Snow's work reveal the nuance and beauty of walling--and of one man's relationship with nature. The result is by turns poetic and practical.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1579651844
• ISBN13: 9781579651848
• Release Date: September 2001
• Publisher: Artisan
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 1.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 12.0" x 0.4" x 10.3"

Customer Reviews

Words and Walls

Over a decade ago, Dan Snow repaired the hundred-year-old dry stone walls that wander across our property in Vermont. The tumbled stone had been evocative, but the symmetry of the reassembled walls has been an irresistible delight. I do not know Snow--he worked while we were away--but I have thanked him a million times for his art. In this book, he has somehow captured with words the sensory pleasure of organizing and reorganizing stones. The art of walling, as evidenced by Peter Mauss's photographs, and the skill of walling, as described by Snow, are compulsively fascinating, an adventure for the armchair dreamer. The text and illustrations blend carefully, and the color photographs sparkle. The reproduction of the black and white photographs varies in quality, alas. This is a charming book. An excellent companion book is Gordon Hayward's "Stone in the Garden."

Not a "how-to"

This is not a "how-to" book - it's better than that. It's a "why" book. The author expresses in his understated manner the "why's" of working with stone and for anyone who feels about stone the way he does (and I do)it is a delight to read - and look at. This book is absolutely inspirational and a joy.

In the Company of Stone: Wonderful Coffee Table Book

Being a native resident of Vermont this book is very precious to me. I lived on a dairy farm with dry stone walls that were very plain. Dan Snow made the process into an art form as well as for practical use. The back of the book gives locations of some of his work here in VT and NH and I look forward to seeing some of it next summer. This book is one that should sit on a coffee table to be picked up and scanned by your guests rather than sitting on a bookcase shelf. The book is not only about the work of Dan Snow but a showcase of the photos by Peter Mauss, in color as well as black & white. It is a book you will treasure.

The Art of the Stone Wall

Want to learn how to make a stone wall a piece of art instead of construction? Dan Snow will guide you in this book. A book very strong in artistic expression, not construction technique. One excellent resource is the detail in the back which provides important information on how long each project took, stone sources, and construction methods. Photographer understands the art of stone because he uses his art well to express the art of the stone. You may not learn a whole lot, but you will be inspired, and thats the strength of his work!Its not construction, its truely ART!

Inspiring

Many books explain the "how-to" of stonework; in this book Dan Snow explains the "why". The reader gets a glimpse of the creative possibilities of stone. Excellent photography; inspiring. This book is a "must-have" for anyone interested in stonework.