14/12/18 | ۩ |





Well, more precisely on what lays over the main door. In fact, the lintel will be crowned by a relieving arch that, differently from the ones built on the warehouse doors, will be a pointed arch. It will be made alternating marble and slate, playing this way a decorative role besides its main structural function.

The lunette inside the arch will present further decorations, but we'll talk about it in due time. Once the assembly of the mezzanine wooden frame has finished , I resume the construction on the other side of the Domus, working again on the main door Well, more precisely on what laysthe main door. In fact, the lintel will be crowned by a relieving arch that, differently from the ones built on the warehouse doors, will be a pointed arch. It will be made alternating marble and slate, playing this way a decorative role besides its main structural function.The lunette inside the arch will present further decorations, but we'll talk about it in due time.





As on previous occasions, the assembly of the voussairs takes place over a real-size print of the project. Cutting the stones, approximately trapezoidal, I pay special attention to get flat surfaces on both sides and straight lines pointing at the center of the arch. The extrados and intrados will be polished at a later time with all the pieces already glued together.

The only part that gets me some trouble is the keystone, but I got lucky at a second try.













After a further reinforcement with glue on the back side of the arch, I can proceed with the finishing touch with files and the Dremel sanding drum.





Now I can work on the lunette background, made of thin slate slabs. It will be the base for the fresco.

There, I've told it: the lunette will be decorated with a fresco, showing off the richness of the master to the guests.

Anyway, the subject of the fresco it's not the one you can see in the picture above. In that case it was just a try, converted to the Domus project's logo at a later time.

But back to the lunette:









After putting the slabs in their right place, I apply a few strips of adhesive tape on the front side to glue them (on the back side) without smears. When the glue has dried I can remove the tape and the lunette is ready.







Despite appearances, the cutting of stones has not finished yet. Actually, now comes the tricky bit, because it's something new and not previously studied. I'll be working on my best guess.

What I need to make are the inner frames of the lunette, which follow the curve giving the arch a richer look. They're very common elements in genoese medieval buildings, not only on churches but also on residential or military structures (for example the main door of the town).

My problem is (as always) the small size, but this time the work is harder due to the round cut. I think it will be impossible to achieve it without breaking the pieces.









Once again the round cut gives me some issues, but that false stone is really strong and I couldn't break it with my fingers even if I wanted to.



Slowly I cut away from the slat one of the segments using the diamond wheel. The stone is just 4mm thick, but I can cut it longways obtaining both frames directly on the slab.





It would not be necessary, but I cut the pieces in half to give the lunette a more realistic look. In real buildings the arch is never made with a single piece and the frames consist of three or more segments put together.



I need to slightly carve the inner surface of the arch to make the frames perfectly fit inside the lunette.





The final effect is not as regular as I'd like, but at first I don't mind it that much.



The inspiration fades the day after, when I come to the conclusion that, all things considered, I preferred it smooth. Once again the hardness of the material allows me to go on despite my mood swings and the cuts are soon removed.

I still can't show you the final look without revealing too much about the content of the next post. You know how this works, you need to maintain a high level of attention to avoid reader's disaffection...

So this is all for now. I leave you with the first "final version" of the lunette. Soon we'll see it fully painted...





MATERIALS:

slate, white marble, artificial stone, vinyl glue

TOOLS:

tweezers, pincers, files, sandstone, Dremel tool with diamond wheel and sanding drum, adhesive tape, clamp

SIZE (in cm):

arch: 0,55 (depth); 5 / 3,6 (width); 3,2 / 2,4 (height)

frames cut: 0,3 x 0,2 Despite appearances, the cutting of stones has not finished yet. Actually, now comes the tricky bit, because it's something new and not previously studied. I'll be working on my best guess.What I need to make are the inner frames of the lunette, which follow the curve giving the arch a richer look. They're very common elements in genoese medieval buildings, not only on churches but also on residential or military structures (for example the main door of the town).My problem is (as always) the small size, but this time the work is harder due to the round cut. I think it will be impossible to achieve it without breaking the pieces.I make the first try with white marble, the same used for the original buildings. It's not a convinced try because I know that this stone can't handle a detailed work at this size, but I just wanted to say "Ok, I've tried!".The second attempt is made using some artificial stone slats that I found years ago for another project on which I was working on (a mosaic).Once again the round cut gives me some issues, but that false stone is really strong and I couldn't break it with my fingers even if I wanted to.Slowly I cut away from the slat one of the segments using the diamond wheel. The stone is just 4mm thick, but I can cut it longways obtaining both frames directly on the slab.It would not be necessary, but I cut the pieces in half to give the lunette a more realistic look. In real buildings the arch is never made with a single piece and the frames consist of three or more segments put together.I need to slightly carve the inner surface of the arch to make the frames perfectly fit inside the lunette.Then, suddenly feeling inspired, I make some oblique cuts on the edges, imitating a decoration that I couldn't reproduce at this scale.The final effect is not as regular as I'd like, but at first I don't mind it that much.The inspiration fades the day after, when I come to the conclusion that, all things considered, I preferred it smooth. Once again the hardness of the material allows me to go on despite my mood swings and the cuts are soon removed.I still can't show you the final look without revealing too much about the content of the next post. You know how this works, you need to maintain a high level of attention to avoid reader's disaffection...So this is all for now. I leave you with the first "final version" of the lunette. Soon we'll see it fully painted...MATERIALS:slate, white marble, artificial stone, vinyl glueTOOLS:tweezers, pincers, files, sandstone, Dremel tool with diamond wheel and sanding drum, adhesive tape, clampSIZE (in cm):arch:(depth);(width);(height)frames cut:

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