When Mas first collected this stone it was covered in baked mud. After cleaning it with soap and water he kept it in the garden as a landscape stone. After many years in the rain and sun the dirt had been cleaned off and the stone started to show the waterfall. Finally the crystals that form the waterfall had completely whitened. 
Mas says that he has been struggling to finish this stone for fifteen years because of its unbalanced proportions. It has a strong sculptural form, especially as seen from the sides where it evokes for him the work of Brancusi (especially Bird in Space). This stone is so beautiful as art, but is very difficult as suiseki. ( click here to see additional photos).
Recently, Mas has been enjoying working with the traditional daiza form, with its two-level rim, for natural stones such as this. The classic beauty and elegance of this form has been developed by artists and craftsmen over many centuries.
If you look back at The Struggle, Mas feels that he got lost by trying too hard to make the finished piece “fine art”, and it ended up not being good suiseki. The piece was caught between the two, neither fine art nor suiseki. This time he wanted to pay careful attention to the stone and its form. Pieta is a very fine waterfall and he finished it as a suiseki.
Posted by Janet Roth 
Suiseki Art 