A dentist in Israel commissioned the carving of this caricature scene of a dentist and his patient.  It appears that there is a lingering fear of going to the dentist who will extract fear out of the patient long before any teeth are extracted.  Approaching this lingering fear with a bit of humor is a way to lighten any patients apprehension while poking fun at the dentist.  Thus when a dentist commissions such a carving it is the dentist who has the sense of humor by poking fun at the dental profession.

The eight photographs above are to be studied to give an overall view of the caricature scene from all angles.  It shows a dentist reading a book on how to pull teeth while he is in the process of pulling still another tooth to go along with all the other mistakenly pulled teeth in the tray on the patient’s chest.  The patient is strapped to the chair while his eyes are wide-eyed with fear while he awaits yet another extraction of a tooth.  The dentist is very intent, so much so that his has his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth in deep concentration while he reads the dental book and clamps the pliers around another tooth.

The process began with the inquiry from the dentist with his basic concept for a dentist and patient scene.  The carver-artist allowed the concept to incubate in imagination and drew a cartoon image to have a black and white image as a starting point.  Within the creative process of imagination at work the concept evolves throughout the carving process often to look a little different than the initial idea.

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The cartoon served as a point of reference and discussion in which one detail was changed with the pliers pulling a tooth rather than pinching the nose.  All other aspects of the overall design remained basically the same except for a few minor changes during the carving process.  Every carving is a journey that may have a change of scenery or a detour that leads to the final destination in the final scene.  The paper cartoon served as a blueprint during the carving process.

These series of photographs are to study the progression of the carving process from a block of basswood seven and a half inches tall, six inches wide and four and a half inches deep.  Following the blueprint of the cartoon drawing the block of basswood is opened up by carving the basic forms of each part of the caricature scene.

Everything is carved to basic form before any detail carving takes place. Traditional carving tools were used to carve this caricature scene.   Carving everything (except the syringe needle and dental tools in the pockets of the dentist’s jacket)  out of one block of wood is a challenge but a rewarding challenge.  The challenge is helped by following the Rule of Three for facial and body proportions so that everything in the scene looks about correct.

The final series of photographs will be close up views of the finished and painted dentist with his tongue protruding out of the corner of his mouth as he concentrates in reading his how to pull teeth book.

The last public viewing of this caricature dentist scene will be at the Artistry in Wood Show in Dayton, Ohio on November 14 and 15, 2009.