Pics of First and Most Current Pieces?

[Ashbys]

I did not say all carvers who are paid for their work ever lost the desire, nor the intent to produce quality workmanship. I did say I have seen many carvings which were done by quality professional carvers which were not in my opinion the quality of which gave them their fame.
I also stated that I have not been restricted in my carving due to monetary restrictions , which allows me the freedom to try different things to push the learning curve to push me to the limits of my skills.
I said money or the desire for money changes carving. It does.
I personally think too many carvers become professional before they are ready, and the desire to make more money often pushes the reason for doing what they are doing into the shadows to become driven by the desire for more money at the cost of quality .

Mark I think your work is very good. You love it and it shows. I hope if God gives me the time that I will be able to acheive the skill which you have achieved.

You take exception to my statements about money, resulting in poorer quality work. I did not say it happens to all, but for many it does happen. Yet you say that you produced work, that you were not happy with, but sold it anyway , because of money.

I honor those which make their living at something they love. For it does show in the work. And as long as the desire to make each piece better than the last exist, then the quality and the skills will only improve. But when that desire is replaced with a desire for money, over the dsesire to produce work of a better standard than the last, then the work , and the maker both lose.

These are only my opinion. And for someone who has only been carving for a bit over a year .. I can live with them.

Garry

[mark yundt]

Thank you Hugh, seeing your work I'm sure you understand.What really bothered me was that as paid carvers our work was inferior to others , and being "paid " carvers our work hasn't progressed because of it.What also got me was the blatant contradiction within the post itself. " I am not restricted as MANY are to making a living" and then finishes it with " don't enter a world of one style or discipline...it only becomes work". Well , when you have clients asking you to do furniture, plaques, birds,statues, that in itself automatically forces you to do different types and styles of work.. Hey, they might not all be my style, but it forces you by default to learn DIFFERENT STYLES. If you choose to do only one type of carving ,,, GREAT... be the best of that type of carving you can be, but TRY at least to be the best. Don't look at the other carvings equal to yours.... look at the best you can find and try to emulate theirs. When I started I only wanted to carve birds. At shows I didn't ask others in my club what they thought I asked the pros. Godin, Brunet, Galatas, what they thought . After the worlds one year, and these guys critiqued one of my birds, I came home and poured laquer thinner over, and cut the head off a gadwall I did. The dealer who handled some of my pieces said, are you nuts,,, I could have gotten you 3 grand ( prices 15 yrs ago) for that piece as it was. I didn't care,, to me it was no good.I didn't want that piece out there.I WAS NOT HAPPY WITH IT. It's body turned out to make some very nice songbirds.So don't tell me from some high horse that people who get paid for their carvings produce sub quality work..B.S..I like to think my work has improved over the years. Yes , I am proud of the contributions I have made to carving,,, are they great... NO... believe me they are going to get better , and I am not going to be sanctimonious about how I get there... hard work, study, seeing and doing what I love most,,,CARVING.

[mark yundt]

Ahhh, should have read the posts before putting up mine. At times many of us are asked to do carvings which may not be up to the standards or style of what we are capable of. If that is what the customer want's , give them what they want to your best ability, they're willing to pay for that.The customer is always right,,, right? As far as selling pieces that I'm not happy with, " just for money" is NOT the intent. Has anyone out there ever sold a piece , and looking back thought,,, man, I can't believe someone bought that,, I ( now ) can do so much better? Was it sold at the time just for the $ or because you thought it was good and it was a fair trade? If it was just for the money it was a mistake... it's for the chance to do something again only better than the last. You should never be happy with ANYTHING you make. There is always room for improvement.Yes, though you are right, many carvers start prematurely , I acknowledged this in my post.And if they go "pro" only to think they'll make a bunch of $ is a big mistake,,, as I said there are easier ways to make money than carving,,,, let's face it , no-one needs the stuff I do , it's not like I'm making bread which everyone can use.I'm doing it 'cause I love it, if someone wants to buy it fine. Then again,"somewhere along the line it only becomes work" ....Have you, carving a year , probably as a hobby, gotten down to your last $175.00, spent every last $ you have, a wife who doesn't work outside the home, 2 kids, one in private school, one entering a private H.S. , mortgage, bills etc. decide to make carving your new career to support your family?????How many nights have you spent in your shop till 5-6 A.M , for some jobs 24 hrs straight , to do the best work you can for a client???? And the work is going to suffer because of desire??? Walk the talk THEN tell me what you think.When I used to visit shows as a hobbyist I thought it would be cool to be on the other side....An old indian proverb,,, walk a mile in my shoes.Also , I have NEVER been restricted in my work because of money.Again , reffering to my post I feel I have been liberated by it. If it weren't for patrons willing to pay me for what I do , I couldn't do what I do,,, not that I'm in the same league, but neither could the likes of Michaelangelo,Brunet, Godin,Hall,Norbury etc.Their work didn't suffer,,,, IT GOT BETTER, 'cause someone paid them to continue learning and plying their trade.Were they constrained.. or did they lack the " restrictions" you imply not working for money implies... NO, it gave them the freedom to follow their hearts desire to do the work they love.I've met plenty of people who carve. Some love taking a 2x4 and turning it into a toothpick,,, I think that's GREAT as long as they love doing that and it's the greatest toothpick they can make. I've also met some who take a 2x4 and try to pass it off as a work of art. That's not good..But to those, who out of a love of carving, do the best they can, want to learn more, find someone who is willing to pay them for their craft, acknowledge they'll be able to do better and actually try to that end, consider the lost money they could have made as a price and payment to their education in the art of woodcarving,,,, Well my friend ,my hat's off to them all, and I love them for it.

[mark yundt]

My apologies to everyone. I'm sorry I " went off" like I did. I believe I over-reacted to what was I'm sure an innocent comment. We are all here to have fun and enjoy carving , and help each other when we can. My intentions were not to degrade another but only to support those of us who take carving , as an occupation, seriously.Was not all that long ago I too was a hobbiest who aspired to greater heights, and through a bit of struggle achieved a level of comfort, both financially and artistically through carving.Not everyone will approach the art of woodcarving with the same neurotic approach that I do,but with love , passions run deep. I only hope you are not infected the same way, it's a direct road to psychotic behaviour.My only wish is for all to experience the joy I think you can find in expressing yourself through the art,companionship, and creativity which is carving in itself.

[Nancy-G]

Mark - I could listen to you for a l-o-o-o-ong time and appreciate every word.

[Krum]

Mark, I am not a great carver like you and others on here but I do understand the passion one can have when it comes to creating with wood. Each person has their own reason for carving. Myself, I do like to create on my own ideas. I don't become bored. I love the challenges that come within myself and the wood. I don't do it to make a living but I do make sure when I do carve it's not a job. I admire anyone who carves and it doesn't matter the why of it. I just wish I had started when I was younger as there's so much to learn for improvement. But then again it's something within myself to make it to that next step. Happy Holidays!
Krum

[Thor]

I have enjoyed reading the recent posts for an odd reason. As we all may agree, Mark is one of the finest carvers on the board. He also wears his passion well, and his soul is bare and exposed with each piece that he presents to the world. I feel fortunate to hear the ramblings of fine artists as they give a perspective of their work that not everyone can see. Thank you for letting us see a glipse of how your passion drives you and of how even at your level of artistry a firey defense of who you are is evident.
Ashe is a dear man, and I'm sure he meant no disrespect. Mark, however, you are in a league that few of us may ever see. I do enjoy the masterly works you have on your web site, but the voice behind them brings them to life.
Thor / Christina (who is married to a very passionate working artist)

[Ashbys]

Perhaps , I should have been less general , in my statements. And to those who know me , you know it was not meant with disrespect to the many outstanding professionals that put love and desire into their work and always strive to make each piece the finest work which they can acheive.

Without those like Mark , many of us would never strive to reach beyond a simple sign. But to see the beauty of the art developed from the passions of years of professionalism does indeed give us desires to reach above ourselves and strive to be better than we are.

But not all professionals strive for the excellence of their profession, not just in carving but in many fields. Some become professional , only for the monentarty gain, they hope to acheive. These carvers are the ones which I was infering to. And more often than not, the quality of there work does indeed fall short of the quality they became know for. Sadly in carving these are often the carvers people become aware of and not the real professionals like Mark.

If I offened anyone with my statements , accept my appoligies, there was no intent to discredit the quality professionals that give so much in beauty and art to this world.

Garry

[Hugh]

Garry, you have NOT offended me, on the contrary, I was concerned with having offended you. Sometimes words are destructive, well meant but, offensive. This is a great site, and sometimes I ramble on. A preacher I once accosted about his sermon, told me, HUGH, its impossible to preach the entire Bible in one sermon. Grin. Good forum, good people, much appreciated.