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The Evolving Floating Stones Since childhood I have lived by the sea always out walking - pockets full of stones - captivated by the tides and its movements - washing clean the sands - other times leaving strange objects - making shapes and patterns in the sand. At times the sea is wild and forbidding - at times calm and tranquil. Walking timeless hours - anytime of year - day or night - any weather - picking up bits and pieces - rolling, kicking stones along - throwing things in the sea, watching its movement. The first ceramic stone just happened - more followed - they went into the fish tank - one stone happened to float - magic - more were made to accompany it - went to the beach with one floating stone in my pocket - next night with three - then a bucket with nine - spent much time of the winter with buckets of floating stones on the beach - observing the mood and movements of the tide - finding the spring tide at full moon and new moon moving faster as it has further to go than at neap tides - working out where the best part of the beach to launch a large stone circle. A day was planned. Full moon at low ebb on May 17th - am - 333 floating stones were placed in a large circle, on newly washed sand, just as the sun rose over the sand dunes- waiting for the tide to come in - to disperse and transform the stone circle into new shapes and patterns - never resting long - floating , settling, rolling floating - constantly forming new patterns as the sea moved them back and forth - getting closer to the shoreline. By 10 am on the last wave - scattered along the seashore on clean sand and seaweed, the tide retreating towards the horizon taking a few floating stones with it - to reach other strange shore lines. the remaining floating stones were gathered - placed in a newly built pond - to circle round the fountain - jostling together making murmuring sounds - creating constantly changing patterns of form, colour and texture - the fountains gentle water cascading over the multi - coloured stones. New moon at low ebb, 29th August 1992 - 2pm on a clear sunny afternoon - 333 floating stones were placed again on the sand - this time in a long line - like a string of pearls - 416 feet long, following the curve of the beach. At 5.30pm the sky turned black - a downpour broke loose, turning sea and sky into one - just as the flood of the tide dispersed the string of pearls - an exceptionally fast tide. Some stones heading out to sea. A flying stone performance started - standing in the sea to my waist ion the pouring summer rain. I hurled the floating stones through the air toward the shoreline - some floating in with the tide, others heading for the horizon. By 9.30pm the remaining stones were gathered and returned home to their breeding pond. The Scottish Highlands is an abundance of lochans, large and small, in all shapes and sizes - located in magic places low and high- reflecting the mood of the sky - echoing the clouds and patterns of the hills- the wind and the light ceaselessly playing on the water's surface- at times calm and serene, mirroring the landscape - at other times wild and frantic - some lochans deep and bottomless- other shallow and weedy - no wonder many legends of monsters witches and water horses have evolved and flourished over the years. I spend much time by these lochans, contemplating, reflecting - three floating stones went in my pocket on the way to such a loch, 2772 feet high in the hills - Wednesday, 31st August 1994. As a gift three floating stones were launched - just as the sun was setting over the mirror black lochan - a magic moment in my life. Since then 110 more lochans scattered around the hills of the Highlands - somehow connected with invisible lines - a network of floating stones developing - extending to other parts of the globe. August 1997 - the first one leaving the North Coast in a rucksack heading for a distant loch in Mexico - 332 more are to leave with the collaboration of kindred spirits. |
