Now “nitty” and “gritty” take over—geometry, color and texture arrest our attention to study, evaluate and find their place in our lexicon and design ideas. And for this we need to take a different direction so as to have a rich resource from which to choose when we make design decisions. Makes it that much easier to know how a piece will settle into the concept we want to create. So how about a table of Australian rocks that addresses these characteristics in a way that might suggest some ideas for insertion into a landscape that’s that much better off with echoes of one or more of these precious jewels scattered all over the continent? Shall we begin then?
Geometry
Formed with the effects of weather and pressure.
Color
Depends on the minerals deposited
• Sandstone
Feldspar
plasticlonic
(From left to right)
• Volcanic magma makes it all the way to the surfacebefore ‘Loop Walk’. The geology of the area is fascinating, being able to see the multiple layers in the sandstone rock formations as the Murchison River wends it’sits way through the gorges. The Murchison River generally only flows during storm events – the last major flood was in 2006 when a cyclone passed over the MR catchment area many kms upstream.cooling.
• Kaliedoscope clay
• Banded iron rock, with bright coloured mineral layers compressed in vibrant colours are found in the Hammersley Range.
• Rainbow Falls flow from a spring in the dune limestone, forming colorful orange, red, and brown limestone deposits as it flows over the rocks directly into the tideline of the Indian Ocean (or Southern Ocean according to Australian geographers).
Texture
(From left to right)
• The range was formed as molten lava cooled to form hard rock in the cores of volcanoes between 26-27 million years ago
• Wind-sculpted sandstone rock
• With huge rock mounds that look curiously like beehives, orange and black markings and an outer coating of algae and silica, this is one natural rock formation that seems to defy all the conventional trappings of other mountainous or rock formation locations.
• Wave-like shape was formed by subsurface chemical weathering followed by removal of the soft weathered granite by fluvial erosion; weathering occurred below ground level before it was exposed
• Murphy’s Hay Stacks were weathered and sculpted into their present form about 100,000 years ago. Geologists say the Hay Stacks are composed of pink granite from the Hiltaba suite of rocks which were laid down some 1500 million years ago. Amazingly these beautiful pink granites were formed at a depth of 7 to 10 kilometres below the earth’s surface. Today when we look at Murphy’s Hay Stacks we see these Hiltaba granites exposed on the surface. Clearly a very great deal of erosion has occurred since the granite’s formation.
• Called “Nature’s Window,” the sedimentary rock formation found in the gorge and on the coast is called the Tumblagooda sandstone.
With many thanks to Google “Images” we have a few examples from the rich collection of rocks that inhabit Australia giving the country its extraordinary unique beauty. Understand as well that many trips are available that either offers a variety of representative rock types or if you’ve fallen in love with a particular type, arrange a tour to see all the locations and don’t forget your camera. Recording shape, color and texture is the smart thing to do if you’re going to design with rocks.
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