Читать книгу Whittling Flat-Plane Animals - James Miller - Страница 5

As a child, I always wanted to become an author. In preschool, I began creating books of my own that told stories of imaginary creatures having crazy adventures. Most conclusions dealt with the characters returning home and relaxing. I must have known, even then, that all the toil and excitement of daily life needs some balancing out. My creative attention soon turned to woodcarving, and as I entered middle school, I discovered that woodcarving could provide my life with the balance it needed.

Countless woodchips later, I am being presented with one of the most exciting opportunities of my life: constructing an actual book for Fox Chapel. Although I have previously made and distributed a book on Scandinavian-style figure carving, the copies were black and white, stapled together, and not professionally designed. After all, it started as a collection of pamphlets to be used in classes I taught. With the help of Fox Chapel, this book will be able to provide an even more lucrative experience for seasoned carvers, beginner carvers, and those who have never carved before but would like to.

I know from numerous public carving demonstrations that there are plenty of people who are interested in taking up a handcraft. Even in today’s technological world, word is spreading that directing your eyes to your hands rather than glowing devices can be calming and healthy for the soul.

Previous books on flat-plane carving have done a great job promoting the style as something that is accessible and inviting to all, regardless of skill level. This book does not aim to waver from that, nor does it aim to twist the flat-plane tradition in a direction it has not already historically frequented. Rather, this book aims to shine a spotlight on another major area of flat-plane carving: representing animals in wood. While many flat-plane carvers today like to carve European immigrants from the past, the flat-plane tradition originally focused on carving people and animals the carvers saw in their daily lives.

I specifically chose a selection of animals that would be, for the most part, familiar to much of the Western world. Many Scandinavian animals are nearly equivalent to those in the northern regions of North America. Carving familiar subjects ensures that you have some frame of reference from the start, and it also allows an artist to focus on features they think are important in order to create a proper representation. If one had never seen a rooster, but heard it had a red comb, one could easily miss important details and end up creating a sparrow-chicken hybrid. That could make for an interesting piece, but this book intends to encourage thoughtful and appreciative reflections of the natural world. Animals are amazing, and they have provided endless inspiration and direct utility to humanity since the beginning of human history. A sparrow-chicken hybrid would, however, be a great subject for a future book! For now, I will focus on hybridizing three of the things I love most in this world: animals, woodcarving, and Scandinavian culture. In doing so, I hope to encourage you to explore your passions as well.

My first animal carvings, a pig and an owl.