Marble Carving: An Art Form through the Centuries

Marble Carving: An Art Form through the Centuries

This semester, I had the amazing opportunity to take a marble carving class at a workshop near CYA. It is one of the few left in Athens that works on marble using ancient techniques! I was so excited to learn about how the magnificent sculptures and carved decorations were produced and try it out for myself.

            At our first class, we were warmly welcomed by Dimitris and his son Yiannis who run the workshop. Dimitris explained how this art form has persisted for thousands of years and walked us through the general process. He told us that in order for us to produce good art, we needed to make something that was meaningful to us so we each got a piece of paper and set out drawing out our designs. By the end of the first class, we were already transferring our designs onto marble to be carved!

In the next class, we jumped right into it. Yiannis demonstrated how to hold the chisel and angle it to create smooth lines when we strike it with the hammer. Then before we knew what was happened, we were each holding a hammer and chisel and were told to just have a go at it. Not 10 minutes later, everyone was hunched over their worktables hammering away. We quickly realized how difficult it was; Dimitri and Yiannis just made it look easy. The chisel either got embedded in the marble too deeply or slid across the surface, not making a dent. The hammer was so heavy we had to take breaks every 5 minutes.

Carving! Marble! What!??

Carving away!

            Every Tuesday we all spent three hours in the workshop hammering away with our hammer and chisel. When we took a break, we would walk around the workshop checking in on everyone else and their designs. Slowly, everyone’s design started to come into shape. Although it was a difficult process and it progressed at a snail’s speed, there was also something therapeutic and satisfying about creating something with your own two hands and watching it take form. How life-size statues and intricately carved ornaments were made, I will never understand.

            We always ended the night with food and wine that Dimitri prepared. That last 20 minutes of the class were often the best part. While we ate traditional Greek food and wine that Dimitri made himself, we would sit at a table together talking. When it was Dimitri’s birthday, he brought in cake and celebrated with us! He also invited his friend (who coincidentally was also named Dimitri and was also turning 71) and we all sang happy birthday in English and Greek. Huge drums were brought out and Dimitri taught us some beats that we clapped to.

Dimitri's Birthday!

            When the semester abruptly ended, I was determined to finish my block of marble. I stopped by the workshop to say thank Dimitri and Yiannis and pick up my marble. It now sits on the table in my back yard where I continue to hammer away for a couple hours a week. It is incredible to me what you can make with two simple tools and a slab of marble. This art form has been such an important part of Greek history and culture and I am so grateful to have been able to take part in this tradition.

My block of marble at the end of our last class

Quarantine Project: My block of marble as of now.