The Art of Carving

Art of Carving I: June 1-7, 2025, 9am - 5pm (with midday lunch break)
Art of Carving II: June 8-14, 2025, 9am - 5pm (with midday lunch break)
Instructor/s: June 1-7 Session: Berndt Savig, June 8-14 Session: Matt Johnson
Price:
$895 per session
<!-- $895 per session Early Bird Special: $845 until March 15 --> Note: These are standalone courses that are independent of each other.
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Each full session consists of seven days of immersive instruction in the art of carving limestone, including design, moving stone, splitting blocks, roughing out, using hand and pneumatic tools, and much more. Different instructors are featured each session. An introduction to using basic tools, roughing out, and working from a maquette or drawing is given on the first day. The week continues with techniques for carving and basic principles of sculpting. Instruction is geared toward each participant’s skills, needs and level of proficiency. Tools are not provided.

Included in each session: Up to 8 cubic feet of limestone per session (approximately 1,200 pounds), compressed air, electricity, water, forklift, snacks, beverages, official Symposium t-shirt.

*The team has over 100 years combined carving experience. The participant will be able to access the advice that best suits their needs. We offer guidance in technical matters, carving the human figure, abstractions and concepts, and representation of nature. The team will be carving a monumental piece, working directly in the stone.

You must contact our site manager, Steve Tourney, to request your stone dimensions at steventourney@gmail.com. Not everyone knows what they want to carve when they register. If you are not ready to send dimensions for your stone with your registration you have until mid-May to send them. If your dimensions are not received by the due date there will be insufficient time to cut your block. If you are really not sure what to order, specify either a cube, i.e. 2’ x 2’ x 2’ or a rectangle, i.e. 4’ x 2’ x 1’, and sketch ideas within this format. You must tell us in advance which side of the stone should rest on the banker.

Regular price includes one extra work-on-your-own day (a value of $65.00).

Berndt Savig

Trained in Italy, Berndt Savig is a visiting artist from Colorado with nearly 20 years of teaching experience. See Berndt’s bio ›

Matthew Johnson

A native of Andice, Texas, Matthew Johnson has over thirty years experience in the craft and business of stone carving. He is the owner and principal designer and carver of Bartlett Stone Company.

In 1991 while at Southwestern University, he apprenticed with Bob Ragan, a master stone carver based in Florence, Texas. During the course of his training, Matthew learned the intricacies of designing, cutting, and carving stone architectural elements, using a combination of both modern and ancient tools and techniques.

In 2004, he struck out on his own forming Bartlett Stone Carving. For the past 20 years he has undertaken commissions for clients across the country. He is currently a co-host of the Stone Carvers Guild Podcast.