Feature Arts & Craft Medium — “Wood Carving”
In this issue, we sent out one of our team, Heather Yuen, to interview a fascinating Vancouver Island artisan about the world of “Wood Carving”…
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Terran Ambrosone has been involved in a variety of art forms for 20 years and began wood carving in 1996. She works out of her studio in Nanaimo, hand carving and painting uniquely original staffs, canes, “talking” sticks, sculpture and relief carvings. Terran's work has sold to the Alberta Provincial Museum, as well as many individuals throughout Canada and the US. Her work is currently displayed in the Nanaimo Arts Council Gallery and Oakleaf Gallery in Chemainus. You can view her work at www.expressions-in-wood.com. |
HY:
How long have you been carving wood? Tell us about your start in wood carving. Why you were interested in learning it, how you got started, etc.
TA:
I have painted in a variety of mediums since high school, and have always had an interest in 3-dimensional work. I love the outdoors and nature, and would often find a stick to walk with when I was hiking. One day in 1996, I was looking at a stick I had picked up, and decided to try carving it and keeping it as my own personal staff. I had a set of Exacto blades and a dremel drill, so I drew my design on the staff and began carving in relief. Though I knew nothing of technique, I soon found the best and most effective ways to hold the knife and felt a real affinity and connection to the wood. Though that first piece was very primitive, I got a lot of positive comments on it, which inspired me to continue carving. Since that time, I have read many books on carving, as well as connecting with other carvers to share ideas, and have studied the various forms of carving, such as relief, chip carving, and carving in the round. Though I still paint, and now work also in stone, wood is my preferred medium. The wood is warm and alive, and because of the various directions of the grains and knots, you must respect it and understand it in order to work with it successfully.
HY:
Tell us a bit about the history of carving wood, walking sticks & canes.
TA:
I read somewhere that staffs were humankind’s first invention. Some argue that the first invention was stone as a tool, while others argue that a stick was used to turn the stone. They have a rich history, and throughout the ages have been used to denote a person’s status in society, as a shepherd, an official, a monarch, etc. Tutankhamen was entombed with 132 walking sticks. Walking sticks began being used in 11th century France as a fashion accessory, with many women in high society using canes made from apple wood. In the 15th century, they were seen as a masculine fashion accessory, and between 1700-1800 London, it was necessary to procure a licence in order to carry a cane. In Victorian England, there were over 60 shops devoted to canes in London. Walking sticks have been made with secret compartments and were used to smuggle silkworm eggs into Europe. Allegedly, the first tulip bulb was introduced to Holland in a hollowed out staff. A one-of-a-kind walking stick can cost as much as $200,000, and a folk art stick owned by PT Barnum sold for $250,000. Famous collectors include Henry III, Louis XIII, Napoleon, Frederick the Great, President Washington and Queen Victoria. Today many people use walking sticks for the physical benefits while hiking. They can reduce foot-felt body weight by as much as 20% and help hikers to maintain a pace. Also, I’m seeing increasing interest among people to have staffs and canes custom carved to reflect their own individuality or family history. I have carved many staffs for people who want family members and their achievements represented on a staff so they can pass it on to future generations as an heirloom. It is wonderful to see the rich history of walking sticks surviving in our modern age.
HY:
Tell us how you create your wood pieces, describe the process a bit.
TA:
I collect the wood I use myself, so this usually involves a hand saw, a few litres of gas for my car, and a packed lunch. I’ll drive through a wooded area and look for previously downed trees that are still fresh enough to work with. Wood that has been down too long becomes rotten and loses its strength. I look for pieces that have a certain “personality”. It is hard to describe, but some pieces have interesting shapes or knotholes, or the grain has an interesting curve or swirl.
I then take the wood home and store it in a dark place for a minimum of six months. It is then ready to work on. Live trees are about 50% water, and each part dries and shrinks at a different rate after it is cut. Given the diameter of the sticks I cut, and also given the fact that they have been previously downed and partly dried already, six months is ample time for the wood to dry. If it is going to crack or check, as sometimes happens if it dries too quickly, it will usually happen within that time. One trick I use to prevent the sticks from drying too quickly is to leave the bark on. It is far more difficult to remove the bark after it has dried, but well worth it to prevent splitting. Some carvers seal the ends with wax or paint to slow the drying process, but I’ve found the above method works well.
I work mainly using exacto blades and a few chisels and gouges. I strip the bark using a straight blade, and then sand the piece down. I will then draw on my design and begin carving. I don’t work from patterns and seldom measure anything. 99% of my work is “eyeballed”. My designs are all original, and I use reference material from books and personal photographs. With relief, I do a lot of undercutting to give a more 3-dimensional feel to it.
Once the carving is completed, it is sanded with a fine grit sandpaper then stained with acrylic or oil based stain and/or painted with artist quality acrylic paint. For an indoor carving, I will add a coat of finishing wax and buff it with a cotton cloth. For a staff or cane that will be used outdoors, I will use several coats of spar urethane for a durable, weatherproof finish.
HY:
What do you love about making them?
TA:
It is hard to describe, but as I am working on a piece, and the images begin to take shape, the piece develops a certain “power”. It is something tangible, and I know I’m not alone in feeling it, because the people I carve them for report feeling it when they hold them for the first time. Maybe it has something to do with latent “ancestral” memories, or because many of the images I carve are animals, which represent their own power in our subconscious minds. I love the “feel” of working with wood, and it is a huge personal accomplishment to have others appreciate and value the work that I do.
