In the fall of 2021 I traveled to the Smokey Mountains with a team of stoneworker-artists to help Thea Alvin build a giant stone labyrinth. Thea is a stone artist from Vermont that builds amazing things with stone. We built this dry stone sculpture, “Time for Love,” at Blackberry Mountain resort near Knoxville, Tennessee.

The labyrinth has multiple meanings/purposes. For visitors to Blackberry Mountain, it’s a quiet, meditative space for relaxation, contemplation, rest and wonder. And, an unexpected work of art. It’s huge. In six weeks ten of us moved over two million pounds of stone to build this labyrinth, mostly by hand, all of it harvested from the adjacent hillside. 

For the family of the resort, the labyrinth is a reminder of a life lived. To memorialize the loss of a family member, we included two windows in the labyrinth. On his birth day and death day the rising sun shines through the corresponding window onto a boulder/bench in the center of the labyrinth. It’s a really touching tribute. One I’m grateful to have been a part of.