My daily excursion included 10 students and 1 professor on a quest to find an abandoned Quarry that has become a type of local shrine to Lacostians (locals) and students. At one time, the site was excavated for limestone and granite in huge square blocks to build local houses and buildings in the area. Now, nearly 100+ years later, the leftover slick stone walls are covered top to bottom with graffiti, illustrations, sketches, and autographs. The earliest date we could manage to find was 1921. Some of the art even seems to defy gravity. There are no clues for viewers on how the artist managed to reach such high points on such smooth, step-free surfaces. Old statues have been dumped here by former students as well. It’s like a graveyard for former art that was just too heavy to get back to the States. Someone has even carved a sculpture out of the thick stone, and the female figurine is jetting out of the wall as if it were on the bow of a ship. The most bizarre icon of the Quarry can be found in a high, caved-in corner. In this corner rests an old, metal cage housing a headless bob cat. Brave students can navigate their way up to the point and take a closer look at the creature, but I just couldn’t manage to find the courage to do so. I was hoping there was some type of date or name associated with the taxidermied animal, but none could be found. While it is “forbidden” for SCAD students to sign their own autograph on the eclectic mural, I’m determined to leave my mark in the Quarry as my stamp in Lacoste.
~Peace & Cupcakes~
