[mark yundt]

I got a last minute request for samples for an Architect to use in a presentation to his clients.So he sent me what he had in mind and I copied it as you see in the black and white paper,,and used that as my pattern to carve his design. (pics 1+2) And don't ask me what his design is supposed to be or where it's from,,,doesn't make much sense to me as it sits,,but that's what he sent. O.K...I can carve that but why?

They are also interested in other designs/styles so I made up the second one ( pics 3+4) Not needing a pattern per say,,I just drew it free hand onto the piece of wood. These aren't very large as they are just samples but they measure 11 1/2 inches X 29 inches. That's the overall board. His sample will be the same size as a piece of paper,,8 1/2 X 11. The piece I designed is 8 1/2 X 17,,,don't ask me why my design came out bigger,,,I don't have a clue!!!!!

But in the pictures you can see how I drilled pilot holes and then used a jigsaw to cut out the patterns. I started this this afternoon,,drew them ,,cut them out ,,and started a bit of the roughing in. It should go pretty well. The wood is teak. Luckily I happened to have a bit left over from the planter which is being delivered tomorrow.

[gene messer]

Mark .. what can said about your work .. just look at it .. everything you do always turns out so beautiful ..

Thanks so much for sharing your work with us .. it makes me humble to see how you do it ..

always great work ..

Gene

[curly maple]

mark i like your sample better than his. is he just trying to get a feel for your work? are you getting paid for this or just providing samples of whatyou can do? i love your work and have visited your site many times as well as viewed your work on this site you are truly a gifted man.

curly maple

[mark yundt]

Thank you gentlemen! Glad you like the pieces. It's not too uncommon to get odd pieces even from Architects. I don't know what he is really looking for,,or at times they seem to have a hard time designing something so they just grab a handy picture of something,maybe that's what happened here They can do well with the entire building,,but elements such as these are a something unto themselves.These are paid samples by the way,my favorite kind.

[doris]

lol---oh what an odd design, and that by an architect...no lines to follow, no focals, it looks like a kid has thrown a few curls onto a paper, or hey, yes, it looks like a bunch of woodchips on the floor, after carving... sorry, but it is so funny. you did a nice start to copy that into wood, mark...i would have urge to "repair" the design... i like your design,...acanthus at its best ... this carving with break throughs is on my "want to try out"-list too...thanks for sharing.

[Irish]

Mark, The two on the right side are acanthus leaves in a classic scroll layout. The half circles were used to represent the newest leaves as they seemed to emerge from the plant as clusters.

The left hand samples appear to be spoon leaves. Spoon leaves are not a description of the plant but a description of the style of carving. Unlike most relief work where the design comes up at you and the background is lowered in spoon style carving the design drops into the wood.

Susan

[BobD]

Nice work, Mark! Those are looking great!!!

Bob

[BobD]

Out of curiosity...would it be easier to do those cutouts on a scroll saw? The blades are a lot finer, and you could remove more waste with the saw before you even start carving...especially since teak is such a hard wood!

Bob

[mark yundt]

Oh,,I do "know " what the style is,,I've carved many of these before but I guess my question is really why he chose this particular design and where it is from.

For the rest of this job and the other representations of where the finished work will go,,this just doesn't do it I fear.
And of course most everything I do or say is done for a reason. Here,,though as Doris pointed out I could have changed his design to make a better picture so to speak and have it end up as a complete carving instead of a segment of a larger piece as it seems to be in this sample. And I pushed my design ,which is very traditional,to another direction. It's much more detailed and coherent I think.

I did this because now ,,in one sample board,,I'm able to show the Architect ( whom I haven't met) that he can send me any design he chooses and I can copy it straight away as he designs it or finds something he likes,,,OR,,I have the ability to design my own pieces,,step them up a bit,,and carve them as well in another style.

Ultimately,,this job,,should I choose to accept it ( mission impossible?) will encompass 23 unique and original designs. Each design will be used to hand carve 23 different king size headboards going into a Yacht Club in Rhode Island. There is a lot riding on these silly little samples,as well as the bids from the other woodworkers I'm tied in with,,a years worth of work with several years worth of income all wrapped up in one job.
This is only one of a half dozen jobs I've bid lately that several are pushing in this direction and scope as well.

That too is why I keep posting the entire range of things I do to hopefully spark someones interest and step up and say,,,"can I help,,that looks like fun and it looks like you need help"
Woodcarvers don't exactly fall out of the woodwork. Plenty of guys ( and girls) do cabinets and millwork,,,who carves? Or who has the basics that I can show the rest of what they need?

We all post for different and personal reasons.Here too I have reasons for what I do or say. Well ,,truth be told I have ulterior motives. I've shown everything from drawing,,to clay,,to castings,,and a fair representation of different types of carvings in work I do,,to tutorials over the past year. I do this first because I love it. Second ,,it's what was done for me and it seems to have helped me get going in a career I couldn't have imagined. Third ,,it'll make us all better carvers. And fourth,,it'll show someone what I have been able to accomplish starting from a 2 inch whittled little monk carving,,to a career of carving in ,and surviving in, a technological world.To allow someone to stand on my shoulders and get a glimpse of what can be done and what the future can hold. That's what was done for me and somehow it seems to have worked. I was able to visit,,and then work in my mentors shop. With this site,,,I'm allowing you to do just that.


Even if we never actually get together ,,,someone somewhere out there just might be like I was all those years ago and say "You know,,I just think I can make a go of this" But you can't see what I can see and know what's really available. The amount of work available,,the range,,the scope,,is overwhelming,,beyond what I thought possible. Woodcarving has been very good to me. I just wish it for someone else as well.

[Irish]

My apologizes Mark!

You had written: And don't ask me what his design is supposed to be or where it's from,,,doesn't make much sense to me as it sits,,but that's what he sent.

So I thought that you needed the name of the design.

Now, these are just my thoughts and impressions and nothing more. The two patterns/designs that you are showing are very old, if I remember here and I really need to go back to "Styles of Ornamentations" for a time period they come from a very early Greek/Roman era.

As I am sure you know they are filler designs that were often used to either fill up space where the artist had too large a blank area in the work. Also they were used as borders or accent lines between major designs.

I think that such designs, especially the scroll line acanthus leaves, are really neutral patterns that can be used without taking anything away from the major design. This is because they are so deeply founded in art history.

It's sore of like a quilter that has several bold floral patterns to use and needs something for accent that does not take away from those florals ... she will go to a micro check or micro dot or monotone small floral. Doing that she can't go wrong!!!

Your architect can't go wrong in his choice of designs when he goes with something so historically founded ... it's sort of a non-choice choice ?!? If he wants his work to look 'very classic' how could he go wrong picking very classic acanthus leaf scrolls. Again, it's like using a knotted rope as the border of a sailing ship or using oak leaves to surround a squirrel carving or using pine trees to edge a deer scene ... a non-choice non-conflicting and non-committal decision.

Susan