Motivation

Synopsis: Motivation (continued)

My Father was a carpenter so I was exposed to wood my entire life. One of my earliest memories is the smell of freshly cut lumber at a construction site on a crisp fall morning.

I began woodcarving about the same time I started my professional career in in graphic design over twenty five years ago. Even though I've been told I'm a very good designer, I became disillusioned with the idea that I was only creating more junk mail. I kept coming back to wood as a material that felt real and honest to me. When I realized it was shapable and moldable, I remember being fascinated with the idea. Another strong motivating force is a need to use my talents to create something lasting much longer than I will.

The wine barrel head has become a perfect medium for my work. Although oak is not the most compatible wood to carve, a handcrafted wine barrel compliments the handcarving while the circular design of the head with it's metal hoop creates a ready-made frame.

Nothing manmade can even come close to wood's enduring qualities. It's warmth and durability make it a pleasure to work with and it's many unpredictable personalitlies are what makes the challenge worthwhile.

Synopsis: Philosophy

The major goal in my work is to create a one-of-a-kind, deeply personal statement exclusively for my patrons. I want an owner of my work to be able to say "This is the only one like this in the World!". I do not duplicate any of my work, once a piece is done, that's it....that's the only one there will ever be. Even though there was never a mold...the proverbial mold is broken!

Talent is a gift that I been given. People have to constantly remind me that, not everyone can do what I do. There's almost a sense of guilt that comes along with that because it's so easy for me, I find it hard to believe it's not possible for everyone.

The sense of design is intrinsic but the dicipline of graphic design taught me to respect the importance of the letterform and that has been translated to my woodcarving. The blending of images and text in a three dimensional format is, for me the passion of woodcarving.
Signature

From the 'early work' above, it's been a long strange trip to arrive at this.

By the looks of this 'early work', one could have never known.