Carving as Craft

Carving as Craft

Author: Archer St. Clair

Publisher: JHU Press

Published: 2003-08-29

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 9780801872617

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From 1989 to 1994 more than fifteen hundred bone and ivory objects were excavated from the northeast slope of Rome's Palatine Hill. These remains constitute the largest such find in the western Mediterranean and the first traces of the actual working of ivory in Rome itself. In this original work, art historian Archer St. Clair explores the significance of these finds in understanding both the development of artisanship in Rome and the broader Greco-Roman cultural and artistic tradition to which they belong. Dating primarily from the first through the fifth century C.E., the carved objects include ornamentation for furniture and boxes in the form of plaques and framing strips, jewelry, dolls, a wide variety of pins, as well as smaller numbers of handles, needles, and other implements. Also present at the site was extensive evidence of a bone and ivory workshop, including prepared blanks and waste fragments that provide valuable evidence for artisanal practices in both materials. This volume includes a representative catalog of 648 objects from Palatine East, extensively illustrated with photographs and detailed drawings. Four chapters of introductory material offer a comprehensive overview of the material properties of bone and ivory, the literary evidence, and wider context of their use in the ancient world, and the particular significance of the Palatine East site. While bone has often been treated simply as an inferior and less valuable alternative to ivory, St. Clair notes the close association in their use and elucidates a complex relationship between them. In doing so, she offers a detailed, contextual study of the uses, social perception, and distribution of the two materials, revealing a shared Mediterranean vocabulary of form and technique.


The Art of Spoon Carving

The Art of Spoon Carving

Author: Lora Susan Irish

Publisher: Courier Dover Publications

Published: 2017-08-15

Total Pages: 163

ISBN-13: 0486813495

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Beautifully illustrated guide by a master woodcrafter presents 12 projects, with mix-and-match suggestions for creating dozens of spoons and other implements. Perfect for beginners, the book features clear, detailed directions.


The Complete Book of Woodcarving

The Complete Book of Woodcarving

Author: Everett Ellenwood

Publisher: Fox Chapel Publishing

Published: 2014-07-01

Total Pages: 854

ISBN-13: 1607650967

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Whether you're a woodcarver expanding your talents, a seasoned carver refining your skills, or a beginner newly introduced to this fulfilling craft, this is the only carving book you need. Brimming with expert instruction and 8 attractive step-by-step woodcarving projects, you'll learn all the classic carving styles and techniques along with the fundamentals of wood and tool selection, sharpening, creating a workspace, and finishing your completed work. Also included is a complete chapter on power carving.


Carving Out a Living on the Land

Carving Out a Living on the Land

Author: Emmet Van Driesche

Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing

Published: 2019

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 1603588264

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When he first envisioned becoming a farmer, author Emmet Van Driesche never imagined his main crop would be Christmas trees, nor that such a tree farm could be more of a managed forest than the conventional grid of perfectly sheared trees. Carving Out a Living on the Land tells the story of how Van Driesche navigated changing life circumstances, took advantage of unexpected opportunities, and leveraged new and old skills to piece together an economically viable living, while at the same time respecting the land's complex ecological relationships. From spoon carving to scything, coppicing to wreath-making, Carving Out a Living on the Land proves that you don't need acres of expensive bottomland to start your land-based venture, but rather the creativity and vision to see what might be done with that rocky section or ditch or patch of trees too small to log. You can lease instead of buy; build flexible, temporary structures rather than sink money into permanent ones; and take over an existing operation rather than start from scratch. What matters are your unique circumstances, talents, and interests, which when combined with what the land is capable of producing, can create a fulfilling and meaningful farming life.


Grinling Gibbons and the Art of Carving

Grinling Gibbons and the Art of Carving

Author: David Esterly

Publisher:

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13:

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Published to coincide with the first ever exhibition of the work of Grinling Gibbons, this study looks at Gibbons' work from the perspective of a fellow wood carver.


The Book of Wood Carving

The Book of Wood Carving

Author: Charles Marshall Sayers

Publisher: Courier Corporation

Published: 2012-05-22

Total Pages: 124

ISBN-13: 0486141071

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In clear, straightforward language, Sayers carefully guides the reader through the fundamentals — what tools and materials to use and how to use them. Still the finest book for the beginning student in wood sculpture.


Crafting Tradition

Crafting Tradition

Author: Michael Chibnik

Publisher: University of Texas Press

Published: 2010-01-01

Total Pages: 308

ISBN-13: 0292782667

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Since the mid-1980s, whimsical, brightly colored wood carvings from the Mexican state of Oaxaca have found their way into gift shops and private homes across the United States and Europe, as Western consumers seek to connect with the authenticity and tradition represented by indigenous folk arts. Ironically, however, the Oaxacan wood carvings are not a traditional folk art. Invented in the mid-twentieth century by non-Indian Mexican artisans for the tourist market, their appeal flows as much from intercultural miscommunication as from their intrinsic artistic merit. In this beautifully illustrated book, Michael Chibnik offers the first in-depth look at the international trade in Oaxacan wood carvings, including their history, production, marketing, and cultural representations. Drawing on interviews he conducted in the carving communities and among wholesalers, retailers, and consumers, he follows the entire production and consumption cycle, from the harvesting of copal wood to the final purchase of the finished piece. Along the way, he describes how and why this "invented tradition" has been promoted as a "Zapotec Indian" craft and explores its similarities with other local crafts with longer histories. He also fully discusses the effects on local communities of participating in the global market, concluding that the trade in Oaxacan wood carvings is an almost paradigmatic case study of globalization.


The Lost Carving: A Journey to the Heart of Making

The Lost Carving: A Journey to the Heart of Making

Author: David Esterly

Publisher: Prelude Books

Published: 2013-03-21

Total Pages: 303

ISBN-13: 0715646494

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Awestruck by the sight of a Grinling Gibbons carving in a London church, David Esterly chose to dedicate his life to the art – its physical control, intricate beauty and intellectual demands. Until his death in 2019 he was the foremost practitioner of Gibbons’s forgotten technique, which revolutionised ornamental sculpture in the late 1600s. After a fire at Hampton Court Palace in 1986 destroyed much of Gibbons’s masterpiece, the job fell to David Esterly to restore his idol’s work to its former glory. It turned out to be the most challenging year in Esterly’s life, forcing him to question his abilities and delve deeply into what it means to make something well. Exploring the determination, concentration and skill that go into achieving any form of excellence, Esterly breathed life into the world of wood carving. This special collector's edition of The Lost Carving reveals an astonishing life and deftly illustrates the union of man and material necessary to create a lasting work of art.