Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Longdistance Walling




At our walling festivals there is always a competitive stone related element where we run events presenting new challenges for the participating stone artists and masons. Things like wheel barrow obstacle races, lithobolos (stone bocce), single stone arch making and even fire rock balancing so that even if you're not competing there are always fun events to watch . 

For a possible litholympic activity at our next festival I'd even thought of doing a long distance hearting competition - a skill test requiring the tossing of stones from 20 paces into a wall needing to be properly filled . 

However this Remote Material Deposit video takes everything to a new level, literally. I mean really ? Long distance wall building?

With cylinders of uncured cement and high tech calculating/catapulting machines, these videos show ruin-like rubble walls and crude circular 'dwellings' being made by a group out of Germany called Gramazio Kohler Research.

Has dry stone walling met its most formidable challenge? 

I think not.

We make more beautiful walls, (and certainly more accurate walls ) without any mortar, and, as it turns out, without using lime 'mortar shells' either !






Remote Material Deposition Sitterwerk Timelapse