overview

My first introduction to wood was from a book called "How to Carve Wildfowl" by Roger Schroeder. It featured nine champion bird carvers and their techniques with color photos of their award-winning carvings. The pieces were stunning and the information invaluable. I immediately went out and purchased some of the tools like the Foredom (a flexible shaft moto tool) and a few bits. Although I wasn't that interested in carving ducks, I saw the potential of using wood to create what I was interested in, like wildlife and horses.

advantages of working with wood

Wood has all the working properties I couldn't find in other sculptural mediums—it is strong for delicate parts but very light in weight to allow the support of the main body without armatures.

By carving with a chainsaw, angle grinders, flexible shaft moto tools, and micro motors (dental engines), I can use a variety of different woods—both domestic (walnut, maple, cherry, mulberry, holly, butternut, cedar, basswood, tupelo, etc.) and exotic (cocobolo, ebony, mahogany, paduak, bubinga, etc.). With power tools, I can also carve bone, stone, and rubber composites (golf balls) without regard to their hardness, imperfections, or figured grain, incorporating these into the sculptures.

My carvings are of powerful creatures of the wild—like wolves, deer, eagles, and bison—some of which are creatures of fantasy—like dragons and gargoyles—but most of my carvings are of horses.

capturing reality

In all my carvings, whether based on reality or imagination, I try to capture the undulations of muscles under scales, feathers, or fur in a believable way, as well as the texture of the feathers and fur itself. If the wood is interesting, the carving is left natural with only a clear finish to bring out the character of the wood. This can be an oil finish or shellac, lacquer, or urethane—with or without a wax for the final coat. Carvings I intend to paint or stain are carved out of basswood (Linden) or tupelo (black gum). These woods are softer and hold fine detail well but are rather plain in their natural state.

Sometimes the size and shape of the piece of wood will dictate what creature I sculpt into it. Other times, I decide what I want to carve and then find a suitable piece of wood. When the wood is not large enough or the strength of parts like legs or tails are a consideration, it’s necessary to glue up several pieces of wood to make a blank the right size or to have the grain going in its strongest direction. Most of the time when this is done, the piece is painted because the change of grain direction is distracting.

getting started

I make a pattern (usually a profile of the animal) and check its proportions against a reference for accuracy. When satisfied, I transfer the pattern to the wood, making sure that the most fragile parts are cut out with the grain direction. A bandsaw is used to cut the profile. Then, using a drill press, I remove some waste, like extra legs and trapped openings. Referring again to my photo reference, I begin rounding the form, using the appropriate-sized carving tools and bits to remove the waste wood on the whole figure. At a certain point, I have removed all that I can with the bigger and more aggressive tools and bits and move on to fine-tuning the creature. I will start at one point and, working out from there, will continue to get one area done before moving on to the next. After sanding, the final finish is applied.

putting it all together

The base and/or habitat is created either before, during, or after the carving is nearly done. Some of the elements on the carvings or bases/habitats incorporate other materials like brass for leaves and branches, epoxy putties for shells and bugs, or glass for eyes and sand.

Using a mat acrylic paint, I airbrush in the basic colors and transitions, then use a number of different brushes to add the markings and details.

the challenge

Wood is natural product. Knots and checks are common in the larger carvings because most were carved while they were still green (wet). In cases like this, I use a product called Pentacryl, a wood stabilizer, to minimize the wood movement as the wood dries. Care needs to be taken with any wood piece not to place it in high humidity or in hot or direct sun situations. Even finished wood absorbs (expands) and releases (contracts) moisture throughout the seasons. The finish only slows this moisture exchange but never stops it.

Wood is a challenging medium that will keep me busy exploring all of its possibilities for a long time.