Now that the final drawings are complete, it’s time to mark the access holes for the scroll saw blade and temporarily affix the pattern to the wood blank. I’ve discovered a few tricks that make this multistage process go smoothly. … [Read more...]
Final Cut Drawings for Seaweed Trees
The final draft drawings are complete and I’m ready to scale them to actual size to fit the pre-cut wood blanks.I like drawing drafts that are smaller than the actual piece. Keeping the size so all of the art is within my field of vision helps me focus on the details in relation to the whole. … [Read more...]
These Two Branches Have to Go
There are two branches in this drawing that just bug me.When one or two elements that aren’t part of the focal point of the carving grab all the attention, then they just have to go. … [Read more...]
Drawing Seaweed Trees
Trees are wild things. Their branches grow out in all manner of odd ways that are a balance of supple sun seeking and stable strength stretching. Drawing trees for art’s sake misses most of that wildness. It was only when I began to make drawings from pictures of the trees in my neighborhood that I began to realize just how inaccurate my … [Read more...]