DSWAC Comments

John,
Thanks for the workshop in Richmond Ca, you and Dean were great. It was a rewarding couple of days...on many levels-community, exercise, creativity. I have a new respect for rocks just as they are, no chisels, drills or sledgehammers.
Hope to see you at the SF Garden Show. And wall the best to you too,
David

Dear John and Mary and Dean;
The workshop last weekend (Jan 17-19, 2008) exceeded my expectations in unimaginable ways. Not only did we learn about the art and craft of 'dry-walling' but, in the congenial company of the group, had great fun in the process. This opportunity to work with master artisans-cum gifted teachers in the warmth of the Grafton barn, then, at the end of the day enjoy the hospitality of the Shaw-Rimmingtons, cumulatively produced an unforgettable experience. Beyond learning the 'mechanics' of building stone walls, there dividends galore ....all unanticipated. There was immense satisfaction that came from working with these organic materials, from participating in a collective act of creation, from realizing there were universal truths to be gleaned in the areas of problem solving, philosophy , ecology, history and art. And at the end of the day the amazement that all of this was provoked by the simple handling of the stone! In fact, I've concluded that building a dry-stone wall is a fitting metaphor for life: take a pile of old rock and rubble, decide it has the potential to be something beautiful and useful, then set about build it. Whatever the toil of the process, the enjoyment and pleasure the end product will generate for many lifetimes is priceless
.
So thank you Mary John and Dean for your passion and commitment to this art form and for dedicating yourselves to passing it on.

Dianne G.

I wanted to thank you for the dry stone wall course on Jan 17 and 18 in Grafton. It was a challenge for me but I learned a lot.
John and Dean, you have different styles and I am glad to see the variety. Both of you are encouraging and I appreciate that.
I quite enjoyed the Nova video about the trebuchet because I am interested that stuff. I also would have enjoyed just an evening chatting with class mates over dessert. That would promote relationships which could perhaps lead to other stone wall events.

Thanks again

Mark

Do you offer talks to teach people about the walls and how they can be looked after? I know you have your two day ones but what about one that is only 2 or 3 hours long? We are thinking of organizing a seminar that would include a number of topics for the homeowners and I thought dry walling might be one.
One last point - Loved the website! I have visited it 3 times in the last month and each time it was different. Very nice.

Cherri Hurst, Weston Heritage Conservation District

I live in the Weston, Ontario area. This is now a part of Toronto but at
one time it was a village on it's own. It has a rich history to it and
part of that history is the ubiquitous river stone walls that are now an
integral part of the area. These walls were originally done in the dry
stone technique by a Scottish immigrant named James Gilbert Gove. He used
stones brought up from the Humber River and painstakingly (as you would
know) worked for 40 years in the area. Many of the walls are now slathered
in mortar and every once in a while someone tears one down and throws the
stones away, much to our chagrin. The City of Toronto being the biggest
culprit. We are trying to raise awareness of the history, workmanship and
beauty of these creations in the neighbourhood. The grandson of Mr. Gove
is getting a plaque put in to commemorate the walls, plus a cenotaph and a
house (not dry stone I believe). I am trying to find some information on
the building, preservation and restoration of dry stone walls to further
this objective.
Can you help me?

John Shaw-Rimmington:

Thank you for the review on the web site. Your comments are all very well taken.

As I said in my note on the insert to the DVD, I started with the idea of making a loosely "how to" and ended up learning more about myself and what I thought of it all, and the idea of sharing this fascination and source of joy is a lot of what it's about. As you can tell, the music is also very important to me, both to help the work flow along, and in its own right. I have learned a couple hundred old songs now, and a good day for me (yesterday for example) is about six hours of walling in the cold sunny air, followed by a couple hours of playing the guitar and a hot meal. That's low cost value added entertainment. . . . :-)

I had a wonderful time making the film, partly because it put me on an intense binge of building, for every hour we spent filming I spend forty or fifty just working on the wall. Same with deciding what songs to put in the film, and recording a bunch of them.

Don't worry about not having had a chance to meet, I think we will meet, I may come up for some formal training, and you may be down here for a project or travel. Let me know, I will always be here working on my walls.

Best regards and thank you again for your kindness and your comments.

Bob

Hi Charlie

What a wonderful letter.
I feel like you and i could become good friends
The work you are doing in Finland sounds challenging
As you probably have surmised i HATE veneers
and crushing stone seems like a crime

And yes i can see why it is a struggle to do real structural dry stone work
when you are so limited by the stone selection available there after the commercial vultures have finished with it

I dig a 6 in deep footprint for my walls, the width of the wall , where i in put 3/4" clear sharp stone aggregate in the trench , not to stop the frost but allow drainage and proper bedding of the base stones

i like to think that no matter how severe the frost the a well built dry stone wall will accommodate the movement rather than fight it and break apart

I must look up the Croation Kazun you mention.
I wonder if any of our members have heard of this specific name for the beehive structure you have described

yes you can become a member no matter where you live.
thank you for your kind words about our web site and the association
please do try to visit some time and join one of our workshops or demonstration events
wall the best!

john

Thanks Jim Wesolowski for sending this email. Your blog site is well worth our members having a look at and reading your thoughtful musings about the attractiveness of dry stone walling.

Hello, I have enjoyed looking at your site and thought you might enjoy
another web page on working with stone at:
http://theruminativestonemason.blogspot.com
It has to do with a stonemason's philosophy of working with stone and his
stone creations. If you would like to link this web page that would be fine
with me, the page's stonemason/writer.
Thanks,
Jim Wesolowski
Lebanon, CT.
In Southern New England, USA

Thank you for your inquiry Dave

The dry stone arch is just north of Mt Pleasant, Ontario, on the west side of Emily Park Rd, ( the main north south road that runs through the small town of Mt Pleasant)
It stands at the crest, high on the hill and overlooks rolling pasture hills and the road to the east

John Shaw;Rimmington

John, just a short note to let you know how much we appreciate the artistry and creativity displayed in our beautiful dry stone wall. It is certainly the centre of attention on the street. The wonderfull collection of photographs in the book of your work, including your most recent project, is a pleasing addition to our coffee table collection.
We are certain that the upcoming house tour will focus local attention on your highly regarded wall building skills.

Our sincere thanks,
M & B Anglin