Since the dawn of time, stone has left its indelible mark upon the face of the Earth. Withstanding the forces of nature as no other natural material could, indigenous rock endured the ravages of wind, water and sand in its endeavor to preserve. From the great pyramids of Egypt to the stone giants of Easter Island, it has bowed, but never broken. You need only look around to notice what material the world´s greatest masters have chosen to create their monuments or in what medium history´s most renowned artisans elected to carve their works.
Whether it was to build their cities or for protection, the ancients used indestructible walls of stone as their foundation. From the ancient civilizations of Peru to the Mayan ruins of Mexico, these antediluvian cities will forever remain upon the landscape as testimonials to the immortal endurance of stone. Perhaps, it is this fundamental determination to persist against all odds that has been the catalyst behind our fascination, or it may be possible that somewhere, buried deep within the human psyche, exists an unwavering instinct for survival that leaves us all mesmerized by this unrelenting material.
After all, early men relied on stone for nearly all of his rudimentary needs, including shelter, primitive weapons, tools and even the ability to ignite fire. For thousands of years our ancestors used stone for basic survival, communication, artistic expression and the building of their architectural edifices.
Throughout the ages, stone has been used not only for its accessibility and practicality but for its aesthetic beauty as well.The Greeks erected the marble–clad Parthenon high above Athens to pay homage to their gods and the Romans dotted the landscape with monuments of stone, from towering porticos and public bathhouses to massive fountains and intricately chiseled statuaries. As the Romanesque and Gothic periods emerged, stone became the central building blocks for imposing castles set high above medieval villages. Stone remained the prominent building material right down through the Renaissance, Baroque and neoclassical periods.
It was not until the onset of contemporary design that for the first time in history a less expensive man-made material superceded stone in popularity. With the advent of less expensive– to –produce and easy-to-install products came the downfall of stone as the primary building block of construction. With time, it soon faded from widespread prominence to semi-obscurity, found only in public spaces and the opulent homes of the wealthy. Gone was the era of permanence and the stability, and its place emerged the age of the disposable society.
Now, let us begin our journey down the pathway of discovery, in search of the ultimate GEMEKS´s architectural products, utilizing nature´s most prized element – stone.
