lifesize figure carving

hello
firstly i haven't carved a piece of wood in my life but am at home with large sculpture having just completed a art project casting and welding 250 life size sculptures. I am now looking to carve a lifesize model of a person simplified with smooth curves but want to drill many holes into the form. i want to use local eucalyptus or pine is this good wood? and after do i have to treat it with oil? or anything to stop it splitting.

cheers

[AlArchie]

Shawn, that sounds like you have had quite a project! If you are going to be doing life-size sculpture in wood, and plan on doing it from one piece logs, just PLAN on splitting! There was an article in WCI on carving large pieces; a monkey in a suit, if I recall correctly, and the artist showed how he handled the splitting by placing matching wood wedges in the cracks after carving the piece. He then cut them off nearly flush with the surface and recarved all the detail around the cracks. His finished carving was spectacular and the cracking and checking seems to have been halted. That would be problematic if you plan on finishing the wood with stain and either oil or varnish, as the wedges would definitely show.

The other option is to do the carving and have the cracks ENHANCE the finished piece....kinda adding character to it.

Pine is (can be) a good choice. I've only done some work with white pine and it carves well. It does tend to split, though. If you have a large, seasoned piece, with no checks, you can seal it immediately after carving, either with oil or sealer, and it is not likely to crack. Don't place a finished piece in pine in diret sunlight, though. The heat of the sun can vaporize the aromatic oils in the pitch and it will blister the finish.

Al

shawn,
with your experience in sculpting and casting, I think you would be very dissapointed working with one solid log. Check out the integrity of gluing up as in full size carousel ponies. If you are planning to paint the sculpture, I would recommend the ever faithful basswood. If you want to show the beauty of the wood, choose by color , grain patterns stability, etc.
my choice would be Walnut (don't tell the bark guy) or another hardwood.
take a lot of time, pictures and patience.........
good luck
Art