Its very interesting to see how you create movement in the carving. You have through years of experience developed at least a reasonable idea of the forms you want to create. This is the tough part for aspiring carvers, at least for me. Pictures in books, etc.,are two dimensional and do not help as much as your videos. I agree after reading your comment about patiently watching the master with whom you studied to see things that occurred without words. I will keep that in mind as I watch later segments. Patience and repetition are the words to keep in mind!
One other suggestion is getting something 3-dimensional in front of you to copy while you carve. It's tremendously helpful to be able to view all the "un-knowables" such as depth, subtle cuts, etc. That is why I have the plaster castings available for some of the videos. Also what I do is go to garage sales and get anything that is either resin cast or plaster cast that I could use as a reference. Picture frames, carved shelves, little decorative wall hangings - great to be able to see what the physical shapes are. Photos are not always able to show depth, and quite often shadows create a false illusion of shape.
I use the DMT diamond stones - 1200 grit and 8000 grit. Whatever stones you have, make sure they are the finest grit for that finished sharpening. Water stones, Arkansas stones, Washita stones, Ceramic stones are all good - just make sure it is very fine grit. Not all numbers are equal - such as 8000 grit diamond stone and 8000 grit water stone are not necessarily equal. Some don't even refer to grit, such as Arkansas stones (referred to as hard arkansas, surgical black, translucent, etc). So because no 2 stones are alike, I just recommend getting the finest possible stone for that finishing edge - where you can almost get a mirror surface to the bevel. I do sell the DMT stones on my site store if interested...
Mary do you agree that it helps to draw often so you can hopefully develope your hand eye exactness when it comes to accuracy such as you demonstrated carving your hand? Im afraid if I tried that right now my carving would look more like garden rake!
Dave Richardson
Dave,
Garden rakes are good too! Yes, it definitely helps to draw, but it is not absolutely necessary to be able to carve. However, I so often re-draw a design on the wood as I carve away my guidelines - that is where it really helps to be able to draw. And yes, it helps with the eye-hand coordination. There are often times that my chisels know a lot more than my pencil lines do, so the lines I draw are quite often just as a guideline, and not exact.
Great question David. I was thinking the same thing as Mary pounded through the walnut. I find myself stropping about every fifteen minutes, but I feel a little more confident to go longer after watching these lessons. I'm also looking forward to buying a Dastra from Mary.
From Gerry Mayberry on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/04/24 at 10:17 pm
From Mary May on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/04/29 at 12:47 pm
From robert cook on Sharpening a V-Chisel - Beginner Lesson #5
Go to comment2013/04/23 at 11:55 pm
From Mary May on Sharpening a V-Chisel - Beginner Lesson #5
Go to comment2013/04/29 at 12:52 pm
From dave richardson sr on Carving a 3-D Hand - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/04/23 at 1:09 am
From Mary May on Carving a 3-D Hand - Episode 1
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From Frederick Quenzer on What videos would you like to see?
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From Mary May on What videos would you like to see?
Go to comment2013/04/20 at 11:50 pm
From Steve Cofield on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/04/11 at 11:02 pm