Isamu Noguchi’s “Water Stone” presents a series of contrasting faces.

Once of my favorite pieces at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is Isamu Noguchi’s “Water Stone.” It’s a study in contrasts, and not just the polished faces juxtaposed with rough edges of the basalt boulder. Set against a bed of pale stones, the dark rock exudes a delightful tranquility even as it disrupts the space of the gallery.

And it’s a bit of that tranquility we hope to replicate with our fountain in our own small way. Having acquired a small basalt boulder at Morrison Gravel, I’m going to see how effective an angle grinder at random orbital sander are at polishing stone . . .