Artistic Use Of Masonry At The Matco Ranch

Photo 1- All the stone was harvested from the clients ranch. The stones encrusted with lichen were harvested from other areas of the ranch. The client wanted the posts to look like they were very old. So I kept it to a minimal amount of cutting and dressing. In a few years the lichens will totally cover any bruises.
Photo 2- This post isn’t finished. What I’m showing here is how the shape of the cap blends naturally with the foothills in the background and the
surrounding landscape. Instead of having a square or a rectangular cap.
Photo 3- Mason working on finishing touches.
Photo 4- Ranch hands, installing gates . Gates, were made of Ironwood from Argentina they were unbelievably heavy. A machine had to lift them in place. The client had the base engineered. There was a pile that went several feet into the ground and there was a 1 inch thick plate, welded to it. The stone sat on the plate. The pile came 5 feet above grade, and the hinges for the gate were welded to it. When I did my rough in, masonry was kept back from the pile. To allow for cantilever movement of the gates.
Photo 5- Beautiful fall day !
Photo 6- Snow on the cap mimics snow on the mountain. Complementing each other in perfect harmony.