Historic Architecture Emerges from Stone in Matthew Simmonds Ethereal Sculptures

From unassuming hunks of Carrara marble and limestone, Matthew Simmonds carves realistic, miniature gothic cathedral arches, stairwells, and colonnades. Often based on architectural details of real places, such as cities around Tuscany and Germany’s Bamberg Cathedral, the sculptures portray intimate details of corners, vaulted ceilings, arcades, and stairwells that can sometimes be peeked through additional apertures. The artist’s meticulously carved marble and limestone forms reveal smooth, ornate interiors while highlighting the natural quality of the stone.

Lately, Simmonds has been working consistently on a range of commissions, and he’s taking advantage of a current quiet period to return to experimentation in the studio. He tells Colossal, “I am interested in clarifying what I want to say with various themes in the work, in particular the role space and light play and how this can express a sense of the sacred in the inner world of the sculpture.”

Architectural columns meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of limestone — “Proscænium: Faxe” (2025), limestone, 39 x 39 x 45 centimeters

Architectural cathedral ceiling details meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of limestone — “Remnant of Kings” (2025), limestone, 15 centimeters tall

Architectural columns and arches meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of marble — “Cities of Tuscany: Pisa” (2025), Carrara marble, 37 centimeters tall

Architectural columns and arches meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of limestone — “A Light in Dark Places” (2025), limestone, 42 centimeters tall

An architectural floorplan of a cathedral carved in miniature in a hunk of limestone — “Reverse Plan: Bamberg Cathedral” (2024), limestone, 51 centimeters tall

Architectural columns, arches, and stairs meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of limestone — “Gothic Passage with Sedilia” (2025), limestone, 17 x 15 x 20 centimeters

Architectural columns meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of marble — “Essay in Baroque Space IV” (2024), Carrara marble, 37.5 centimeters tall

Architectural features, trains, and other objects meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of limestone — “Windows 26” (2026), limestone, 50 x 10 x 50 centimeters

A detail of architectural features, trains, and other objects meticulously carved in miniature in a hunk of limestone — Detail of “Windows 26”

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