Good Work: Masters of the Building Arts

Stone mason Joe Alonso has worked at Washington National Cathedral for more than thirty years, first as a stone mason helping to construct this 14th century Gothic-style building and now as the head mason. Watch GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS beginning October 2018 on PBS. Photo by Colin Winterbottom, courtesy Washington National Cathedral

Earl Barthé (1922 - 2010) was a fifth-generation Creole of Color plasterer from New Orleans, Louisiana. Watch GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS on PBS beginning October 2018 (check local listings). Photo by Nick Spitzer

A third generation stone carver and letterer, Nick Benson specializes in hand-carved gravestones and elegant architectural lettering for public buildings, memorials, and monuments across the country. Watch GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS on PBS beginning October 2018 (check local listings). Photo by Tom Pich.

John Canning, one of the great masters of the decorative painting tradition, has taught his trade to many talented young craftspeople, including his daughter Jacqueline Canning-Riccio, who has worked with him on such landmarks as the Trinity Church in Copley Square, Boston. Watch GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS on PBS beginning October 2018. Photo courtesy John Canning & Company

Albert Parra has been working with adobe since he was nine years old. Raised by his great-grandmother in Old Town Albuquerque, New Mexico, he learned his trade from old-time Hispanic craftsmen. Watch GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS on PBS beginning October 2018 (check local listings). Photo by Paul Wagner

For 135 years, skilled artisans at Gladding, McBean & Company in Lincoln, California, have been crafting architectural terra cotta. Meet modeler Jesus Cardenas and moldmaker Humberto Miranda in this web-exclusive clip from GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS, premiering October 2018 on PBS (check local listings).

Celebrate American craftsmanship and the unsung artisans (stone carvers, stained glass artisans, metalsmiths, plasterers, stone masons, decorative painters, and adobe workers) who create and preserve America's iconic buildings in Good Work, coming to PBS October 2018. Meet the men and women working behind the scenes to bring enduring beauty to the built environment.

Born into a family of glass tradesmen in northern Germany, Dieter Goldkuhle (1938 - 2011) created and restored exquisite stained glass windows for over 50 years, including more than one hundred windows for Washington National Cathedral. Watch GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS beginning October 2018. Photo by Donovan Marks, courtesy Washington National Cathedral

Italian-American blacksmith Patrick Cardine from Bealeton, Virginia, specializes in designing and crafting hand-forged architectural ironwork. Watch GOOD WORK: MASTERS OF THE BUILDING ARTS beginning October 2018 on PBS. Photo by Paul Wagner.