[mfrench]

Greetings to all. I am new to the carving community. 1 year ago I purchased my first "hand/mallet" carving tools and have been addicted every since. My passion is in relief carving primarily, however I will most likely expand my interests in other areas of carving as I learn more about them. I do not have a strong background in Art...and it takes alot of hands on practice for me to learn now skills. Any insight you can provide me on developing my skills to achieve quality carvings would be appreciated. Thanks, Mark

[Irishman]

Hello Mark,

Welcome. I don't do many reliefs but I enjoyed the few I did. I mostly do faces and characters in logs. Hope you enjoy the site.
Patrick

[jillsy]

Hi Mark,

Congratulations on finding your passion! You'll find alot of people on this board with that same feeling. My advice? Just feel comfortable on the board to ask lots of questions; I've learned so much that way. Also, go with what feels right to you and you'll be happy!

Jillsy

[Ron Davidson]

Welcome aboard. Just jump right in and don't be afraid to ask questions.
Ron

[Joy]

Welcome! Most of us feel the same way....addicted and loving every minute of it. We learn by doing.....sometimes it works....sometimes not.

[RussL.]

Mark,

I have no background in art, zero, and yet I have found that it does not limit my enjoyment of carving wood.
I have been 'whittling' for about 2 years and using gouges, primarily for relief work, for the last 10 months.

I have found architectural carving (moldings, rosettes, acanthus leaves, etc.) along with letter-carving, very satisfying. These require more application of precise layout and execution than having any artistic background...and yet, when one is done a piece one can't help but feel and see the artistry involved.

Just have plenty of wood on hand to choose from, both species and size pieces, so that lack of raw material doesn't limit you. For ideas look through all the books you can find on woodcarving at a local library or woodcarving-related sites online. Start saving pictures of those ideas in a folder or file of some sort.

Try as many types of ideas and carving styles that your tools allow.
The field is wide open.
While I currently am mostly focusing architectural carving I am not going to stop here, and that is part of the fun.

Just work safe & enjoy!

All the best,

RussL.

[Mottles]

Hello Mark and welcome. Check out this link Relief and Chip Carving - Woodcarving Illustrated Message Board also www.woodcarvingpatterns.com As for drawing and relief carving it's a matter of practice. Begin with something simple, even just an object say an apple. Susan Irish (Lora) is a frequent contributor and author to this site. She has some wonderful patterns, even some freeby's check out her site above. At some point we all want to be able to not always have to reply on someone elses patterns. So find the things you are interested in and study how to draw them. There are some fine books out on drawing...
Drawing The Head & Figure by Jack Hamm, How to Draw Animals by Jack Hamm, The Art of Animal Drawing, Ken Hultgren, Drawing Nature by Stanley Maltzman, Horses And Other Animals In Motion, Eadweard Muybridge, Perspective Without Pain, Phil Metzger. These are just a small few, but full of good instruction and example.
Kathy

[slather]

Hi Mark, welcome to the board, as you can see there is lots of helpful people here , all you have to do is ask.

Al
http://picasaweb.google.com/al.hillis/WOODCARVINGSMINE

[Fred Zavadil]

Mark, I have no background in art at all and started carving as a hobby when I saw a friend's carving - I just thought that I would like it. Yes, it takes a lot of practice but you mentioned the right word - Passion, not Patience -the one most people think is the only one you need for woodcarving - and Passion will take you far. This is a great place to get help and show what you love to do.
Fred