Bob Parrillo - The Village Common of RI

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Village Voices is the showcase of creativity by the members and volunteers of The Village Common of Rhode Island. We welcome submissions in all media: 2- and 3-dimensional art, creative writing, transformative ideas, crafting, and art collections. As important is the personal stories that accompany each submission.

See the guidelines for submission.

Bob Parrillo

Bob Parrillo: I am the product of a public school education in RI from first grade through college. Although I was in the Army, in a non-combat role, stateside, I am a conscientious objector. After discharge, I become a plumb’s helper.

Thereafter, I went to law school. I loved everything about it. How could things be better? I was in Boston, an exciting city for a single guy; plus, it was filled with single women. I was an editor of the law review, which helped smooth the way for me socially — and academically. In a thousand years I never could have imagined what lay ahead for me. "Oh, the places you'll go!" said Dr. Suess.

Here are a few highlights of my career as a courtroom lawyer:

Law clerk to Thomas H. Roberts, Chief Justice, RI Supreme Court.
Member of the US District Court Bar Examiners.
Fellow in the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, an invitation-only group limited to 500 lawyers.
Frequent lecturer on trial ethics and trial practice.
Board member of the RI Affiliate of the ACLU.

Please forgive me for adding this one, and only one, “war story,” a highlight of my career: Justice William J. Brennan, Jr, US Supreme Court Justice, recognized me at a restaurant and called me by name, even though our only prior contact being years earlier when I argued before the US Supreme Court. After that episode I needed to close the jaw of my companion.

Since my retirement 12 years ago at the age of 62, I have spent most of my time, in addition to stone carving, traveling. My last pre-pandemic journey was sailing in the Ionian Sea, swing dancing at every little port town square of the islands we would visit.

Artist’s statement: My passion for carving stone comes naturally. I incise letters into slate; you see these on headstones in church graveyards in England. I do everything in the old-fashioned way, which is important to me. No computer is used to draw out the letters and words. No power tools are used. I use just my hands and eyes. My tools consist of chisels, mostly made in Italy or the UK, a mallet, rulers and a magnifying glass. Precise carving of letters is challenging. Literally thousands of strikes are required to create even small projects. And, as you see, my tool kit does not include an eraser. Every strike of a chisel into stone can result in quality which ranges from exquisite to landfill material. Thankful, the RI landfill contains only three stones from my studio. My stones are all created for a specific person. I have that person in mind when I carve. Carving, for me, is a very Zen-like experience.

An essential for anyone who creates one-off pieces is a muse. In addition to my wife, Alice B. Gibney, Presiding Justice of the RI Superior Court, I have a fashion model (no known name) who helps inspire me. A photo of a drawing of this 1940s woman hangs above my workbench. I crank up music on the box while our Golden Retriever, Scout, sleeps at my feet.

Bob's Heritage: My grandfather Andrea Triangolo, stone carver, was born in Italy, lived in a small village in the mountains about half way between Rome and Naples, Venafro in the Province of Isernia. (I hope to visit that village one day, particularly since Andrea worked on the fountain in the town square.) His father and grandfather were also stone carvers. While in Italy Andrea was an apprentice, ultimately becoming a master stone carver. That was his status when he immigrated to this country. The other Italian stone carvers in Rhode Island that he worked with were journeymen or lower-level stone workers. Andrea was the only master stone carver in his area of RI.

His coworkers would address him as "Maestro Andrea" or just "Maestro." This formality was used to demonstrate their respect for the master — and was not abused. The Italian culture in those days was far more formal and respectful than we have seen in this country for a long, long time, as you know.

After coming to this country, Andrea worked in Providence. The one project here that I know of is the fountain across from the post office which is next to the US Courthouse. He also was hired to work at West Point. Exactly what on projects he worked there, I don't know. He was there quite a while. When he finished at the Military Academy, he returned to RI.

When my father was a boy, he helped Andrea by working as what we would now call a go-for. My dad was given only limited access to handling the chisels and mallets. And then, of course, never went near any stone which was part of a project. Still, Andrea would demonstrate how to use those tools. For example, Andrea could take a stone, say the size of a melon, and ask my father to try to split it. Of course, that was virtually impossible without years of apprenticeship and experience. Andrea, however, would turn the stone in his left hand until he determined just where the stone could be split. He would then place the chisel in just the right spot and, with a strike of the mallet that did not have to be particularly forceful when done by a master, the stone would split exactly as he said it would. My father, age 97 now, was always skilled using tools. Still, notwithstanding many attempts, he was unable to find the precise spot and angles at which to hold the chisel to split a stone as he wanted it to be split.