A book by Ernie Muehlmatt describing how to carve a hawk and its perch from one piece of wood caught my imagination a couple years ago. His process was similar to that used by stone carvers who chip away at a hunk of rock until they find something beautiful inside. Could I find a peregrine falcon perched atop a tree stump inside a hunk of wood? Muehlmatt's book provided pictures of key points in the process and minimal written description. I kept getting stuck and had to think, sometimes for months, about how to accomplish the next step of exposing the falcon. Then, I had to summon the courage to try once I came up with a plan. It was the most difficult carving I have tackled so far. I finished the carving, wood burning, and texturing segments of the project yesterday and the falcon is ready for the final stage - painting. Normally when I reach this stage, I am aware of the mistakes in my carvings and it robs me of some of the pleasure of creating. This time, I am aware of mistakes, but instead robbing me of some of the pleasure of creating and all I care about is what I accomplished. I found a falcon, a tree stump, and even some fungus in a hunk of wood. More importantly, I discovered a previously hidden part of me! |
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
ABOUT AUTHORJanice has been a bird carver since 2002. She carves basswood with knives and tupelo with power tools. Her favorite is which ever wood she has in her hands at the moment. Archives
April 2020
|