Caitlin Jones, founder of Mermaid Farm in Chilmark, MA, said, “See that section of the wall over there? The one that is falling over? That is where I repaired the wall but was not strong enough to lift the stones up high.”
Gerald Croteau, Artist and Founder of American Stonecraft, discovered the farm while on a tour of the island on May 3, 2015. Caitlin takes great pride in her stonewalls, as do her neighbors in Chilmark, a community whose roads are lined with stonewalls on both sides. Gerald collected stones from Mermaid Farm to take back to the Lowell studio. They have since been crafted into food slabs and coasters by the American Stonecraft artisans.
“I was skeptical at first, but I admire the creativity to use some of the freshly unearthed rocks to make something that works so well with our cheese,” Caitlin said.
“I like to add that no stonewalls were harmed in the making of our artwork,” Gerald said. “Stonewalls are something I cherish, and although not all of this year’s crop of rocks went into stonewalls, our work brings a lot of awareness to how beautiful and important fieldstones are to New England.”
You can see more photos and learn more about the farm here!