Mobius Strip Sculpture

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

Many different ideas come together to form a single idea for a work of art. That is the case with Möbius Mouth. I bought this particular piece of creme Rattlesnake Limestone from another Texas carver that I know. This stone is named after the shape of the fossil shells embedded in the limestone - they resemble the rattle on the tail of that well-known snake. When I have a busy patterned stone, I want to carve a simple shape to show off the personality of the stone. Mathematics, in one form or another, never seems to be far from my mind, so I decided to sculpt a Möbius Strip in the shape of an open mouth as part of my Lips Series.

”Möbius Mouth” by Kelly Borsheim

Take a long strip of paper or a ribbon, such as 1” wide by 10” long. As you pick up one end, give it a half twist before attaching it to the other end to form a ring. You will now have a Möbius Strip, which means that you may "travel" from one side of the ring to the other without crossing an edge. [Take your pencil and mark a point on the flat surface of the paper; anywhere, just not on the edge, but in the center makes for a better demonstration. Draw a line with your pencil in one direction along the length of the surface. Keep on until you reach your starting point. You will discover that your pencil has traveled on “both” sides of the paper without breaking your line! THAT is the genius of the half twist.]

Named for German mathematician and astronomer August Ferdinand Möbius (1790-1868), a Möbius Strip only has one side and one edge. I understand that engineers have used a Möbius Strip in the belt of a car engine, for example. The twist allows the belt to wear out evenly and have a longer, more effective life.

My 2-part stone sculpture Möbius Mouth is part of my "Lips Series." The mouth has a heart shape in the negative space inside the lips. He is carved from a Rattlesnake Limestone from Texas, named after the shape of the shell fossils in the stone. The triangular base enhances the idea of the mathematics of the Möbius lips and is carved from Henna Limestone from Canada. This rich brick red colored stone is saturated with golden fossil patterns in which I find I can lose myself for hours while staring at them. I hope you enjoy this original artwork. He is absolutely one of a kind!

Limestone sculpture may be displayed indoors or out. The top piece rests on a stainless steel pin (so no rust) that is permanently mounted into the red stone base. This also allows you to turn the top stone for a different view each day, if you like. Both stones have been sealed for protection from finger oils and the environment, so please – touch and enjoy!

The price of this sculpture is not listed below. While prices of my available works are posted on my Web site pricelist, in this case, I wanted to encourage you to take a look at my anniversary celebration that is happening now. If you add this or many other sculptures to your art collection (or start one!), check out how much more art you may acquire…thank you for reading and for your art appreciation.

"Möbius Mouth"

Rattlesnake Limestone (Texas)
with Henna Limestone (Canada)
one-of-a-kind
17" h x 22" w x 8.5" d
by Kelly Borsheim

Limestone and a Big Moth

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

Today (yesterday now) I went to the Boneyard of Continental Cut Stone in Florence, Texas, to pick up a specifically cut piece of Cordova Crème limestone for my latest commission. It was unusually cold and windy. I guess the Fall Equinox did not wish to arrive unnoticed. And it was raining most of the morning, which is wonderful. Since sculpting was not likely to happen, it was a good day for me to run this errand and hope for a less-wet tomorrow.

The stone quarry is actually several hours away from Florence. The Boneyard is where the stone is cut for use by sculptors, but mostly contractors and builders. It is not unusual for natural stone to either not meet the specs of certain construction projects (holes/embedded shells/distracting grain lines) or get broken or cut wrong. In these cases, the less-than-perfect stone is set out in the Boneyard for people like me. I love searching there for unusual shapes and architectural treasures that I can use as a starting point for a stone carving.

I wanted to share a few images I snapped off today as I walked around the Boneyard. The last time I was here was when I met my friend Vasily Fedorouk on the access road of the IH-35 turnoff to Florence. He had just driven down from Chicago to teach a workshop at my place. We went “shopping” together to pick out the limestone we would supply our students. It was a fun day.

The purple thistle that you see here is an unusual variety (to me anyway). I found the purple and grey combination to be a bit irresistible today.


And to my delight, I saw this large yellow moth on a pile of cut stone tiles. Their bodies are bigger than locusts! Because I tend to leave open all the doors and windows of my home and studio for as long as I can every day, I often see a brown moth enter my kitchen and studio this time of year. But I had yet to see an obviously yellow one. I included my hand in the image so that you can clearly make out his size. Cool huh?



I also saw some pink limestone. It reminded me of someone’s strawberry poundcake. I was tempted to bite into it, but I generally do not prefer the taste of limestone. Too bad all I saw were these tiles and blocks too large for me to carry home on this day. But, hmmmm, it was a curious and yummy sight!

Creating a Bronze and Stone Sculpture

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

I spent part of my day today with Philip Hoggatt of Carved Stone in Dripping Springs, Texas. Phil not only supplies stone to carvers, but his primary business is creating stone products, from plaques and furniture (lamps, park benches, planters, and clocks) to sculptures large and small.

Phil took my specs for the base of my newest bronze figure sculpture “Against the Dying of the Light” and found a piece of limestone that fit the size requirements. He used a chainsaw to cut the basic shape and when I arrived at his studio this morning, he refined the shape of the stone and added a really cool texture.

He used a bush hammer for texturing the surface of the rock. I had never seen this type of bush hammer and nicknamed it a horseshoe crab because of its shape. It is quite cool, leaving a much larger textured pattern than the texture tools I use with my pneumatic hammer. I love the look and I loved the time savings.


I share this close-up image with you of the blades of this bush hammer. When the power is turned off, as in this image, you may see the triangular arrangement of the three blades.

Afterwards, Philip used his forklift to load my new stone sculpture base into the trunk of my car. After I took the image below, I needed to stop playing tourist so that I could guide the stone into the trunk as Phil lowered the forklift. We set the stone inside the trunk over two 6 x 6 cedar posts that I had placed there to aid in removal back at my studio. I have a dolly with a hydraulic lift. She is fantastic! And she is much cheaper and healthier than back surgery!

Once unloaded, I will lighten the weight of the stone a little bit, wash it, dry it, add holes so that the bronze figure can be attached to its base, and then seal the stone for protection.