Hallowell granite
Hallowell granite was prized for being light in color and fine grained, with a high percentage of feldspar which made it easily worked in the quarry and particularly beautiful for sculptural work. When dressed it was almost as white as marble, and when polished its surface glittered like diamonds.
The mural features a large granite circle or ring. I did this knowing the mural was going to have a lot of various detail and I wanted a large element to design or organize parts of the mural. The granite ring and the river are central to the overall design.
artist, Chris Cart
the natural world
I used the granite circle to represent the natural world which surrounds us and what we do. I “carved” into the granite ring suggestions of the roots and trees and animals to give a feeling of the natural world that holds us together.
For the early settlers and citizens of Hallowell the natural world was crucial to their survival and livelihood. They literally carved and cut their lives from the granite quarries, the trees of the forest and the ice and food from the rivers and lakes of the area.
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