STONE MASONRY & ROCK SCULPTURE
The Artist
Watch a master stonemason at work and see behind the scenes of a stone sculptors design philosophy.
A native of central Pennsylvania and resident of Lemont, Phil began working as a stonemason in 1978 and formed his company, Philip Hawk & Co., in 1985.
Among his many high-profile local projects are the Nittany Lion Shrine renovation and The Penn State Landmark Sign near Beaver Stadium on the corner of Park Avenue and Porter Road. Phil's passion for craftsmanship is evident in The Arboretum at Penn State's Ridge and Valley watershed sculpture at the Overlook Pavilion.
Phil works from a scale drawing of the map sculpture to shape the stones and ensure that they were positioned to make water flow across the surface in the same pattern it follows in the real Spring Creek watershed.
Another significant work of Mr.Hawk's, the Time Spiral in the Fossil Gap section of the children's garden represents a walk through geologic periods. Embedded in the stone are medallions, created by Jeanne Stevens-Solman, bearing the images of creatures and plants of central Pennsylvania at intervals throughout our history.
STONE WORKS
About.
Phil Hawk is a Master Stonemason living in the village of Lemont in Centre County, Pennsylvania.
"My delight with stone began as a boy vacationing with my family in state and national parks, spending hours playing
amongst rocks and boulders in the mountains and on shorelines. Through rock collections and breaking rocks to see inside, I explored a fascination with the essential stuff of the earthstones telling their primordial tales to a boy exploring."
Phil's career spans 40 years and he continues to thrive on the craft of masonry and design of stone.
"Stonework is both a labor of love and a love of labor. A seventy-pound sandstone “beauty” is easier to lift than a sixty-pound concrete block: It’s love that makes the difference, eh?
To this day that light still shines brightly and I see an endless field of engaging, compelling works in stone
to fill my days using my heart, my mind, and my hands.
Stone is, by far, the oldest substance we can possibly lay our hands on and creating artistic works with 200-million-year-old stone holds forth as a profound practice."
Mr.Hawk actively advises on stone masonry projects & creates stone sculptures.
Press
Phil Hawk has been featured in a variety of stone publications and press regarding his body of work.
