Gerald J. Croteau III has always been a fan of New England’s stone walls.
But it bothered him to see so many of them disappearing – sold by farmers who needed the extra income. So Croteau decided to do something about it.
He started buying freshly unearthed fieldstone from farmers, hoping that the extra income he paid them might help preserve some of the walls, or at least give people a greater appreciation for them. Croteau and his staff of six artisans at American Stonecraft studio in Lowell, Massachusetts, use diamond tools to hand cut and polish the stones, transforming them into farm-to-table serving ware such as food slabs, coasters and “bowlders.”
So far Croteau has partnered with about 60 farms, including three in Maine – Red Tractor Farm in Limington, Pie Tree Orchard in Sweden and the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in New Gloucester. He visits each farm to hand pick the stones to take back to the studio.
“It’s kind of like the artisanship of being a butcher,” Croteau said. “You have to look at a hog and know what can be what. Our (artisan) has the same eye for a stone that a talented butcher would have for an animal.”
After a piece is finished, it’s labeled with the name of the farm where the stone originated.
The pieces American Stonecraft creates are food safe – the polishing not only brings out the colors in the stones, it closes pores, Croteau said. The slabs are most often used as cheese plates, vegetable platters and charcuterie boards.
“A lot of people just use it as a surface for sauces or hot things that come out of the oven because the stone isn’t going to crack if you put a hot casserole dish on it,” Croteau said. “You can also chill the stone in the fridge or the freezer. It has feet on the bottom, so we don’t recommend putting it in the oven.”
The coasters are absorbent, and the bowlders can be used to display foods or for general household use, such as holding keys.
Prices vary, depending on the size of the piece. Food slabs from the Shaker village, for example, run anywhere from $49 to $84. Coasters from the same site cost $24. Shipping is a flat rate of $10 if you order online, or check out a list of Maine stores on the company website that carry the stones.
In Portland, they are sold at Abacus Gallery, the Cabot Farmers’ Annex, EcoHome Studio and the Portland Museum of Art.
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