By Megan Sprague

Pieces of stone are spread out in Dean Reganess’ yard, but it’s not part of his garden or for decoration. Reganess is a sculptor and his home is where his inspirations come to life.

Dean Reganess poses with his latest sculpture, a dragon’s head that is made out of soapstone.

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“I’m a third generation stone mason, and I trained on the west coast of Ireland for three days with John Goggin,” he said. “After that, I was self-taught, and I’ve been doing this for seven or eight years now.”

Reganess bases many of his works of art on history, which he loves.

“I’ve read a lot of history, and I thought I was going to be a professor for a while,” he said. “Some of my themes have been the French and Celtic resistance, as well as English war chieftains. I like the idea of them fighting to free their countries.”

Much of his work with his company, Coralatavii Stone, Inc., is residential or for architects, but Reganess did have a brush with NASCAR last year.

“I created the Jimmie Johnson NASCAR trophy for Atlanta,” he said. His stonework is featured at the Ballantyne Country Club as well.

“My favorite themes are old world, though,” he added. “I’m not really into the modern look.”

Reganess mainly works with limestone, marble and granite, but his newest design is made out of soapstone, a material he had never worked with before.

“It’s for an architect in South Carolina and it’ll be the main piece in his garden,” he said about the dragon head he has nearly completed. “It’s a 120 by 80 foot space, and the dragon will be the water spout into the main pond.”

The soapstone, which Reganess said was nice, but a bit soft, was used because of its green hue.

“The garden it’s going to be placed in is nicknamed ‘The Green Dragon,’ so it’s appropriate,” he said. “When it’s done, the dust will be blown off and you can see its color. It’ll end up with a nice polish, like a glossy countertop.”

The head started out as an 840 pound solid block and has taken approximately four weeks to complete. Three to four days of work will put the finishing touches on it and then it will be shipped to its final destination in Rock Hill.

His next piece is currently being designed for friends in Italy.

“It’ll be a tree with two people sitting beside a lake,” he said. “There’s going to be a lot of grain, since I’m using brownstone, so the contrast of light and dark will really be showcased.“

Reganess said the hardest part of his work is having people realize his efforts.

“People don’t see it for what it is and often think it’s a cast or it’s made out of clay,” he said. “It’s hard to convey how much work actually goes into the pieces.”

He might soon be able to by demonstrating his craft at a proposed school and gallery he and some friends are looking to open.

“It’s really just in the feedback stage, but I’d like to have a place where people can learn trades like blacksmithing, glassblowing, that kind of thing,” Reganess said. “I think this area has the people for it and the interest, so we’ll see. I’d also like to have it open at night for those who work 9-5.“

For more on Reganess’s work, visit http://coralataviistone.com.

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