essent�rving�26

E S S E N T I A I. W o O I) c A R V 1 N G T K C H X I Q U E S

FlG 11.22 Right rear view: caruing finisbed except for left foreleg.

FlG 11.23 Base sbaped out of tbe holding błock and the sur plus removed. Caruing finished witb Briwax.

Having learnt the way forms fit together in early pieces you can develop your own style when you know what forms you are simplifying or exaggerating. This is all part of che process of educating your powers of observation. You may have a well-dcveloped sense of design, buc without a true knowlcdgc of che forms you are manipulating the design may havc no conviction or authority.

The Finish

The deer was left showing chisel cuts. Their texrurc docs not prctend to represent fur but does have some of che same lighc-holding properties.

Howard experimenced with various finishes on scrap wood and chose Briwax (Fig 11.23).

The Carving*s Weaknesses

AND STRENGTHS

The photographs show how hc gradually worked in towards che form. There are errors, some probably resulcing from concentrating on separace anacomical details. The eycs are too close together - at one time chey were facing even morę dramatically upwards (sec Fig 11.16) - the lcgs seem a fraction too short and the head too long. However, despice, or perhaps aidcd by these failings, the carving has a marve!lous vitality.

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