What approach do you take?

[woodenleg]

I know many of the fine artists paint the same type of painting over and over. Think of Monet and his water lillies, or many of the others. Most of the really great carvers I know do the same type of carvings repeatedly: duck decoys, or caricatures, or chip carvings, or animals, etc.

What type of carvings do most of you do? Do you carve more of the same items or do you like to switch types of carvings? Which do you think builds a better carver?

I personally carve the same thing all the time probably because I havent perfected it yet. I would like to be more diversified in what I carve but I think it is a security thing you stick with what you know. I might liken it to a policeman and a firefighter I am not sure how well I would do at fighting a fire. Although they are both emergeny jobs they are so much different. As you know I enter that competition carving on the beach on the west coast every year. Last year I changed completly from what was familier to me and I didnt even place so this year I am going back to what I know.
Colin

well i carve a diffirent things,birds,caracatures,whales,hicking stick toppers,woodspirits,and right now i'm working on my first duck. i am hoping that the duck carving will teach me some patience and not expect immediate results.i am doing diff.things and i might settle on one type in the futur.i have only been carving for a few yrs,and not alot of time because of travel commitments.
so which type builds a better carver? i'll let you know if i ever get to be a better carver.

James and I do the same thing! whatever comes to mind! lol...I guess I am a jack of all trades, too many things are interesting to me and and I want to try them all...but never get to be a master at anything.....oh well...fun tho!! :-/ : 8)

With only two years of carving under my belt, I'm really still learning everyday, with this in mind, I want to carve something in each discipline, have done relief, in the round, humans, animals, characters, chip carving, etc., etc., and boy do I need work, learning more about hair, feathers, eyes, demenisions, layers, painting, staining, etc., etc.......But to tell the truth, I love it all and can't wait till the chips are flying. I hope that I don't trend to follow just one discipline. Coffeeman

Well I do mostly canes and walking sticks. I usualy put a wood spirit on them. I have not yet done any 2 wood spirits alike. Cannot explain it, they just all seem to be different. I have done a little relief carving and some carving in the round, but I prefer the wood spirits. I still want to do an old west style pistol sometime this year. had hoped to have started it by now but have other problems and not able to do much carving. Right not I need to get some sticks finished and sell them.

[Callynne]

I enjoy carving anything and everything. I can see though, if you carved the same thing everytime you would become better and faster at doing it, don't know how long the enjoyment would last though.
I find I like carving whatever I'm carving at the moment the best and the next piece sounds even better to me! Guess I'm just one happy carver! : Callynne

Callynne
just saw your web page
some very nice carvings

[Randy48]

I've only been carving a few months and have done 2 reliefs (1-oak, 1-pine), a caracature (tulip poplar), and am working on an Indian head bust now (Elm). I've got an large Elm log in the shop waiting to be attacked next to get me prepped for a totem pole I'm going to start around March or April.

I have been carving for 7 years and find my wood in the woods and the piece lets me know what it will be : I have to look sometimes for porportions for a figur or animal and I look then into newspapers or magazines until I find some kind of thing with the porportions I need and then I just finish it
below is a link of some of my carvings
Alice in Wonderland



http://groups.msn.com/WorldofWoodtur...veforwood.msnw