Bonnie and Don Worley are pictured at their carving display table at the recent Middletown, Ohio,  Miami Valley Woodcarving Show, March 5 and 6, 2011.  Don is the creator and instructor of the ever popular No See-Ums  which are seen displayed on the left    corner of the table in the photograph.  Additional photographs below show close ups of the No See-Ums  (some with eyes) and by clicking on each photo they can be  enlarged slightly for a closer look.  Clicking on Don’s name above will bring up a previous posting of No See-ums  which are fun to carve and once begun become very addictive to carve a few more.  Don is also chairman of the world renowned  Artistry in Wood Show  in Dayton which will celebrate its 30th year this November 12 and 13.  Thank you Don for your many gifts to the woodcarving family and especially for creating No See-Ums. Read the rest of this entry »

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Don Stephenson  is a carving friend who has a great art for drawing as well as carving.  Often whenever I need a drawing of an idea, Don is eager to draw but not just one but several carving ideas.  In fact he comes up with so many ideas drawn that I have nicknamed him the IDEA MONSTER.   Recently he surprised me with a gift of a caricature likeness of the WOOD BEE CARVER  dressed as I appear at woodcarving shows with a black derby hat, a Col. Sanders’ bow tie and bib overalls.  The drawing included a carving of a troll that he had drawn for me some time back.  It was not enough for him to give me a drawing on paper he also gave me a canvas tool tote bag with a painted version of the original drawing.  Thanks Don for your gift of friendship, your drawings and especially for being the  IDEA MONSTER.

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Don also drew this logo  icon that was also included on the canvas tool tote bag along with the WOOD BEE CARVERS motto: “Would be carvers would be carvers it they would carve wood,” and another saying: “I can if I try for I am to be all I can be.”

WHITE EAGLE STUDIOS  is a center of creativity in the heart and mind of Michael Keller of Chelan, Washington.  He carves in a most unique style of carving art.  Michael is also an artist with words as he describes the passion of his art through his web log and the gallery in his web site is like a tour through an art museum.  We became  friends by way of the Internet in that upon reading several of his woodcarving essays on a Lake Chelan web news site I made it a point to make contact with him.  He became the first entry in this site’s Amazing Discoveries on the Internet  and is the author who coined the word “carveful” and “carvefully.”  He and I share a common bond as woodcarvers that is uncanny in that even though we have never met personally it seems like we have been friends forever.  He is an inspiration to me as well as to the group of carvers who gather at his studio periodically and those who are regular visitors to his web log.

Recently he honored me by posting on his web log an interview we did over the telephone and through  memory of numerous emails over the  last few years.  Upon visiting  his site listed below one will discover Michael’s unique gift of creating art with words.  White Eagle Studios-Don Mertz

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Michael Keller of  White Eagle Sutdio in Washington State is my internet carving friend.  We have never met other than through internet connection and yet it seems like we have been life-long friends who grew up together. He is an accomplished carver as well as an artist with words whenever he writes about his carvingpassion. 

 A CARVEFUL good time can be found by visiting  http://whiteeaglestudios.wordpress.com/    from which one can  link up to his web site which contains a gallery of his carvings.

 Hugh O’Neal of Munford, Alabama is a carving friend whom I met two years ago while teaching a carving class at Charlie Leverett’s Northeast Alabama carving studio.  Hugh is a good example of the benefit of participating in a carving class in that he was inspired to grow in his carving abilities.  Already an accomplished carver in his own right, Hugh learned a couple of “door opening” lessons that led him into his own room of creativity.  The WOOD BEE CARVER’s method of teaching is to teach the “how-to’s and the method” while each student carves his own style.  Hugh has done just that by taking a few of the simple step-by-step procedures to transpose his imagination into a very artist style as is evident by the photographs that follow. Read the rest of this entry »

John Burke  was remembered at the Artistry in Wood Show in Dayton, Ohio with a display of his signature carvings including the Caricature Scene of “Leroy’s Garage.”  Noted for his Native American and Mountain Men carvings, John also created Santa carvings, bronzes and rustic Western furniture.  Perhaps where he excelled the most was through his instructional advancement of woodcarving  and the number of his students who became instructors in their own right.  He and his lovely wife Nancy sponsored the long running Western Art and Wildlife Seminar as well as manufacturing the famous “Burke Sharpening System.”  The woodcarving family remembers  John with great affection and humorous anecdotes of John’s wit and fun loving ways.  He has certainly carved a place in our room called “Remember.”   A previous memorial tribute may be viewed in the January 30, 2010 posting under Carving Friends.

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My wife Frances commissioned Harold Enlow to carve me one of his caricature carvings as a birthday gift earlier this month.  I was very honored and appreciative to receive such a rare gift as an Enlow carving.  Harold has long been one of my carving mentors long before I ever met him, then  becoming his friend and now fellow Caricature Carvers of America member.  The cowboy is three and a half inches tall by two inches wide and painted with acrylic paints.

Harold Enlow is the one person who has done more for woodcarving than any other single carver and yet he would not admit that since he is a humble and unassuming gentle spirit.  So a Rare Gift of a carving that was carved by a Rare Gift to the carving world made my wife’s birthday gift even more rare.  Thank you.