Northwest Native Style of Carving

[pallin]

I have gotten intrigued by the carvings being done by Pacific Northwest natives, especially the plaques. They are initially carved with a shallow relief form, then painted in traditional colors. Finally, the edges of painted areas are carved with sharp grooves to define the the details. The wood (usually yellow or red cedar) is left natural on these final cuts.

So, I've started a trial piece on a 12" disc of sycamore. In this first phase I have carved a few "lumps" where the high areas will be, and have painted with some white acrylic, and tried several methods of cutting the grooves on the edges of the white - knife incisions and gouges. The gouges seem to be the better choice.

(I'll post a photo of the overall design when I find it. . .)

Salish.jpg

[gene-messer]

neat carving Phil .. Indian style

Gene

[bigEd_H]

Looks good, Phil. Just think of the tools they used to carve with originally.

[Nancy-G]

Fascinating!

[AlArchie]

Interesting development, Phil. Keep us posted as you continue.

Al

[carver33]

Phil,

Interesting idea and great start. I'll be looking forward to seeing your progress.

[uvawyo]

Yessir Phil very interesting keep us posted

[brent]

I was always interested and intrigued by their carving style and tools.

[Gulf Coast Handyman]

Excellent Phil.

Dave

[pallin]

Thanks for your encouragement, fellow woodcarvers. I am learning a lot with this, my first Northwest Native design. The sycamore I'm using has some very crumbly spots and it's hard to get crisp cut lines.

This style of carving begins with a partially shaped piece of wood - there are highs and lows corresponding to the design. Then some areas are painted with traditional colors - usually black, red, and white. When carved in yellow cedar, the exposed wood becomes the white. The edges of the colored areas are incised or carved to leave crisp edges.

In this photo I have only carved some of the upper portions of the design. This is a modification of a raven design by Don Yeomans (Haida).

raven 001.jpg