The Classic Hobo is classic by his appearance of well worn face, tattered clothing and the far off and wondering look in his eye.

A Hobo is a traveling man who travels to find work. A Tramp is a traveling man who does not look for work.  A Bum neither travels nor looks for work only asking for a hand out.

The Classic Hobo was a noble person who was simply an itinerant laborer who traveled the country side looking for work to sustain his way of life day by day.

The Hobo makes a good carving project especially as a caricature because of the various things that can be done with the appearance.  In studying the photographs one can view the various exaggerations of tale tell signs that says right away, “Here is a hobo.”

Notice the torn areas in the hat, the shoulder and elbow of the jacket and the knee of the trousers along with the frayed trouser cuffs.

The hat, jacket, shirt and rope belted trousers are wrinkly with an unkempt, slept in clothes appearance.  The red patch on  the trouser knee and the red feather in the hat add come color to the everyday colors of the clothing.

Study the pose of the hobo by looking for the casual flow of a lazy S in the turn of the head, the body posture and the flow of the clothing.  This hobo is not static, but has movement in his appearance from every angle.

Notice the casual stance of the toe on the right shoe resting on the side of the left shoe which has the toes of the feet exposed.  It is this casual movement that makes this hobo a classic in appearance.

It has often been said, “It’s the clothes that make the man,” and in a hobo’s case the clothes signal the hobo status of the man.  It is, however, what is in a person’s heart that determines who they are as character is the inside rather than the outside appearance.

The face of the hobo shows wrinkles as well as an unshaven beard and yet it is a face of character and nobility.  There is a friendliness to his eyes, a wry curl to his mouth, a strong chin of character and a well weathered face with the tracks of wrinkles showing a life well lived.

These close up views also shows the well worn hat with lazy S flow of the hat brim, the neck line of the shirt, the torn jacket at shoulder and elbow and the subtle wrinkles and folds of the clothing.

This Classic Hobo was carved from a rough out designed by Wayne Shinlever and was carved in a class he taught which is highlighted in the April 9, 2009 posting of “Always Learning.”

Since “woodcarving is more a journey than the destination,” carving a Classic Hobo is to journey with the spirit of hoboing.  In every carving journey, we become a part of the carving project and the carving project becomes a part of who we are very much like an actor becomes the character portrayed in the drama.

Every carving becomes then a self portrait of the carver. So as my good friend at www.whiteeaglestudios.com Michael Keller says, “Stay sharp and be CARVEFUL.”