The Principles We Follow When Building Artificial Rocks

In nature, every rock formation tells a story. When building an artificial rock, we always make sure the story is realistic, convincing and intuitive.

Boulders move, erode and change color over time. The average viewer should be able to see the consequence: that one formation fell onto another, causing a third to crack.

The first step toward mastering the design and construction of artificial rock formations is the ability to account for scale properly.

Formations should be large enough to imitate nature without overwhelming the space. They should be built as a group of boulders or a cliff wall where a story is being told. We always try to work with larger elements instead of stacking smaller ones, because the latter creates the impression that the formation was placed there deliberately, reducing realism. It is also important to avoid creating one massive structure that rises from the ground in an unrealistic dome-like way.

In nature, fragments of rock crack and separate over time. To recreate such details, we use hand-sculpting techniques. We try to form separate artificial rocks from one monolithic piece of concrete so that they look like individually created rocks.

To achieve this effect, we place a gap of at least a few centimetres between individual stones. Adjacent rocks should not be flush with one another; some should protrude 3, 4 or even 5 cm from neighboring sections.

The split between stones must also be deep so that the bottom of the gap is not visible. This means that instead of trying to save on the amount of concrete used, we have to spray even more material to make it possible to sculpt all the cracks correctly.

Perhaps the most important aspect of creating realistic artificial rock formations is mastering the way they are shaped.In nature, smaller pieces of rock that have eroded over time crack and fall below a larger formation. Rock erosion is usually easiest to observe where two significant cracks intersect, leaving a weakened section.

To emphasize this phenomenon, it is important to show cracks caused by air or water erosion. The cracks and accompanying fissures should have almost identical surface types, so that one can imagine them fitting together like puzzle pieces.