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CHAPTER 5

FOLIAGE:

COPYING A NATURAL LEAF IN WOOD

The usc of foliage as a subjcct for carving goes back to earliest times. The religious significance of somc Ieaves is elear, as with the vine and the trefoil in Christian art. The lotus too has a distinguished history, but the palm, the acanthus and many others have less obvious origins. At various periods, however, the leaf s function was purely decorative.

Studying Leaves

Although it may seem casicst to make a simplified leaf to start with, it is always best to consult naturÄ™ first. As an exercise takc a number of oak leaves and skctch them carefully from various angles (Fig 5.1). Dried leaves are interesting from a carvers point of view as they curl up morÄ™ and have interesting thrcc-dimensional forms. Even though you may think that you ‘cannot draw’, drawing forces us to look and, most important, to see. Concentrate on the looking and seeing aspect and practisc to improve your skill. It does not matter if you make a mess. You are trying to learn and rccord the shapes, not make pretty pictures.

Choice of Approach

The next siage is to consider how your leaf is to be carved in wood, whether as shallow or deep relief or in the round. You may, of course, start by incising the pattern on the surface with a V chisel, and as you model the surface gradually produce a leaf with fuli depth. This, however, is very time-consuming, and particularly so is the incised relief which reads from a distance as a work in the round. This demands enormous skill and understandingof the play oflight and perspective. It is well worth aiming at buc it is wisest to start with a literaÅ‚ represenration.

Choosing the Wood

There is nothing to stop you making the leaf larger rhan life. The forms are less likely to be

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