essentÊrving°70

Essential Woodcaryinc Techn^tiques

Fig 5.11 The top surface of the leaffinished, with the ueins carued and the sides oertical to the ground. NotÄ™ the shape of the leafstalk.

srraight through ic helps to twist the tool so that the edge rotates, slicing the wood. This gives a much clcancr cur. The tops of the ridges are rounded using a gouge flute-down (Fig 5.10).

Oncc a ridge is roughed out it will need tidying. This will involve carving both from the edge of che leaf towards the ccntrc and from the centre towards the edge in order to cut cleanly. This may mean using a bent gouge if the hollow of the leaf is deep. If you do not have one then a gouge sharpened with a steep underneath bevel and therefore needing no inside bevcl may suffice. Altcrnativcly, the edges of che leaf could be reduced to make the leaf less hollow. A narrow bent gouge was used to elear out the bottom of the veins in the example illustraccd.

The carvcr herc was making his first piece in relief and so was inclined to use smaller gouges than necessary. This can produce an interrupted surface rather like beaten metal. Whilc this may bc attractive or even appropriate, as in the case of a bumpy leaf, it is a good idea to practise making chiscl cuts as large as possible - most carved objects are scen from a disrancc, and a heavily worked surface can look fussy or even be hard to rcad.

FlG 5.12 Beginning the undercutting. NotÄ™ the angle of the gouge and how it fits the curue of the edge of the leaf

SHAPING THE GROOYES

It is tempting to shape the details of the veins by making simplc grooves with a vciner or a V tool. One sometimes sees crcases on a forehead carved in this way and they look somehow separate from the form they are on. This may be done in stylized work but when atcempting to copy naturÄ™ it is best to notÄ™ that a groovc is generally the bottom between the cwo ridges and therefore has convex sides which curve gradually down. A V tool was used herc and the sides of the tool were used to crcatc the rounded effect. A flattish backbent tool would also work very well. If the veins run righc up to the leaf edges they tend to separate the leaf into compartmcnts so it is best to fade them out ai the tips.

Undercutting

Where rhe edge of the leaf rolls inwards, the outside must be shaped before the inside is undercut. Likewise, the rest of the leaf may not be safely undercut until the top surface is quite finished. This is an important principle in carving which only experienccd carvcrs can afford to

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