LOBSTERMAN CAPTAIN

 My design for this sea captain was similar to that of Mike Shipley's, but I modified it to make it my own.  The blank I cut was very simple and gave me flexibility to make him look any way I wanted.  The first photo is before I carved the pupils. In the second, this guy looks like he's spotted a pretty girl off to his left. Note the smile!

Unexpected Guest

Sometimes I just sit down with a carving knife and a piece of wood and see who emerges. The other day I just wanted to relax, and carving is one of the best means for me. This little guy, just 3 1/4 inches tall came out of the wood to keep me company! I call him "The English Professor".

Fisherman and Dog

The Sea Captain or Commercial Fisherman is one of the most popular subjects for woodcarving. He represents what most of us consider an adventurous life. I based this carving on Mike Shipley's "Sea Captain," but I gave him a different face and expression. I thought the dog added some warmth to the scene, a bit of companionship.

"Frog" by the Book

After stumbling upon an accidental "Frogman" last year from a cut-out scrap, I decided to design and carve the character "Frog" from Arnold Lobel's famous children's books. Here is what I came up with:

Toys Made With Love

The other day I decided to box up my carvings of "Little guys" which had been decorating nearly every horizontal surface in the house. When I looked at the figures lying in that box, it struck me how that box would look to a little kid: It's a box of toys! One of the greatest joys I've had since I started carving the miniature figures has been watching my youngest grandson play with them. That was the original idea behind the carvings of horses, goats and people that Scandinavian loggers carved during their months at the logging camps.

One of the most famous Norwegian figure carvers was Axel Petersson, known also as "Doderhultarn" after his hometown. His figures today sell for well over $1,000. Yet a photo from 1913 shows two young boys playing with wooden figures of horses and people, and at least one of the figures has been identified as a Petersson piece!

When my oldest grandson, now 27, saw my "Frogman" carving, he immediately asked, "Where's Toad?" He remembered fondly the Frog and Toad books of his childhood. So my next project is Toad!

Wouldn't it be nice if we could get back to the days before manufactured "action figures," when fathers and mothers, grandfathers and grandmothers made toys for the little ones -- toys that sparked their imagination, toys made with love!

The Whole Family in front of the Barn

Human figures inspired by Mike Shipley

Growing Family of Hill Folks

Master caricature carver Mike Shipley introduced me to the hill people, and I love them! Who doesn't long for a simpler life? And these folk epitomize it. My oldest grandson came to visit recently and we were talking about how kids used to play with carved wooden figures of people, animals, and little vehicles. My youngest grandson still does. He is thrilled to see the latest figure I have carved and gets the other figures interacting in a little make-believe drama. Kids used to employ their imaginations more in times past -- and that was good. And those handmade wooden figures will gain in value as time goes on. I saw some figures by the legendary Axel Petersson priced at over $2700! (Of course, the best career move for an artist is to die!)  Here are some of my recent hill folk carvings. the human characters and "Beau" are miniature versions of Mike Shipley designs. The bears were inspired by Gene Messer. The brown dog, "Chrysler," is my design.

"Benny"

"Odie"

Growing Family

"Beau"

Chrysler