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Indiana Stone Carver Adds Unique Artistry to Central Library Transformation
September 7, 2005
Maintaining the architectural beauty of the existing Cret Building is one of the originally-prescribed standards of construction during the Central Library Transformation Project downtown. A large part of the project has involved the restoration and preservation of limestone comprising the exterior of the 1917 building.
When it came to recreating the intricate design of acanthus leaves and acorns on a piece of stone 40-feet high on the northeast corner of the building, Library officials turned to an individual from Heltonville, Indiana whose life work is viewed as a valued art form.
Ted Sowders, a 29-year-old stone carver with Angelo Stone Company of Bedford, Indiana, recently spent 10 hours at the library construction site performing specialty work. With rare skills and in constant demand, Sowders' work has led him throughout the country for public and private projects, including the creation of an eagle stone statue at the federal office building in Montgomery, Alabama.
Sowders' task at the Central Library site was to extend the limestone cornice molding on the Cret Building by approximately five feet. This will allow the finished edge to appear as original when a four-story Atrium connects the 1917 building with a new six-story glass and steel-framed tower to the north. The work was necessitated when the Central Library annex was demolished in late 2003, exposing an unfinished extended section.
Following his family's tradition in southern Indiana stone mills, Sowders is a self-taught craftsman who began stone carving 11 years ago when he completed high school. He creates in freehand by using nothing more than an air hammer. Most of his work is done within the mill and shipped out. It's a special occasion that takes him outdoors to work at a construction site.
The Cret Building is among the oldest structures on which Sowders has worked. But it's that very aspect he most appreciates.
"Indianapolis has many beautiful limestone buildings. I hope more people would take the time to restore them," says Sowders.
With his work now complete, Sowders becomes part of Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library history.
