Stonemasonry company stoneCIRCLE has completed its fourth project with artist Susanna Heron. The work called Esquina (which means outside corner in Spanish and Portuguese) is situated in the extension to Furness Lodge, Emmanuel College, Cambridge.

The work is roughly 2300mm long by 1700mm high and is made from Ancaster Hard White, a British limestone from Lincolnshire in 100mm thick blocks with the base stones in Cadeby, another British limestone. Susanna oversaw all stages of the project and the team worked with her 2D file with a list of depths that the stone has to be cut to. The work was then carved on the Omag machine before being taken to have the sharp corners chiselled by hand before being installed by stoneCIRCLE.

Susanna was commissioned to make the work by Emmanuel College, and worked with Stanton Williams, the site architects for the new college buildings to select a location for the work. She chose the external corner of the lodge as the sun traverses the area catching both faces, allowing her to create a shallow relief providing a light sensitive surface that is continually changing. This is one in a series of drawings carved in stone in negative relief that Susanna has been creating for over 30 years, and she is fascinated by the interplay of light and shadow, especially when making a site specific work. The contractor for the project was Gilbert Ash.

Steve Vanhinsbergh, director of stoneCIRCLE said: “We enjoy doing Susanna’s work because it’s unique, and we work very closely with her; she is very involved with the team.”  

Learn more about the project by watching this video by Ross Harrison.