WOOD CARVING

DEFINITION
Wood carving is a form of working wood by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two
hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in
the sculptural ornamentation of a wooden object. The phrase may also refer to the finished product, from
individual sculptures to hand-worked mouldings composing part of a tracery.
BRIEF HISTORY OF WOOD CARVING
Woodcarving has been around just about as long as man has been upon this earth. Due to wood being a
material that will not withstand the test of time, woodcarvings must be protected and taken care of if they
are to endure. Unlike stone carvings or sculptures that might be buried for thousands of years, due to wars
and conquests or for whatever the reason and survive, imagine what would happen to a woodcarving or
woodsculpture under those conditions. Between the elements and the insects, in a short time nothing
would be left.

Man has always used wood. Adam was probably the first woodcarver. He must have used wood as one of
his first tools. Maybe for a club, maybe for a walking stick or he could have tied a rock on a stick of wood
and used it for a hammer. When he found a way to make an instrument sharp enough to hunt with, an
arrow head or spear head may have been first but if so the knife couldn't have been far behind. What do
you think a man with a knife living in the forest or jungle who is surrounded by standing and fallen trees
would do to pass his time? Woodcarving just got its beginning. Was the date recorded in a book? There
probably were no books. Besides, carving was so much fun who would take the time to write it down. He
probably started out whittling or maybe carved other tools or utinsils out of wood. After a while he must
have discovered he could carve or make just about anything he wanted out of wood. Carving could have
been his favorite passtime, at least until Eve came along.
There is a country in the world where conditions are favorable enough that wood could survive for long
periods of time without the best of care. The climate in Egypt is the only climate where this could happen.
In 1860, eleven wooden panels were found that had been preserved under the sands for over 4000 years.
Each of these panel measured two feet by one and one half feet. These panels are what us modern
woodcarvers would call relief carvings. They were found in the tomb of Pharaon Hesy-Ra. The earliest three
dimentional figure yet found is thought to have been carved around 2500 B.C. The carving is three feet
high and is in the usual Egyption pose, walking forward with both feet flat on the ground and holding a
staff in one hand. Wood was not plentiful in Egypt and the Acacia and the Sycamore were the only trees
growing suitable for carving. These tree's were so scarce that they were considered sacred.
During the Dark Ages Woodcarving had its ups and downs.In Europe,the art of Woodcarving was pretty
much confined to Monasteries as that was the only place that was safe enough practice it. There were
many wars and acts of barbarism taking place at that time. From about 700 A.D. to about 900 A.D. the art
or practice of making images was strictly forbidden in some parts of Europe. This included images of any
kind such as woodcarving and even paintings. This was brought about by artists who were copying Roman
sculptures of pagan gods, pagan emblems and symbols. Many artists left for other parts of Europe where
Monasteries employed craftsmen and artists of all kinds to worked on the monasteries themselves. The
woodcarving that was done in these monasteries were mostly relief carvings done in doors and wooden
panels. Carvings done in each country in Europe were remarkably similar which can be attributed to the
fact that the carvers travelled from monastery to monastery practicing their trade.
After the year 1000 artists felt more freedom and began to open up with their work. Woodcarvers were
influenced by stone carvings and based some of their work on remains uncovered in parts of Europe such
as Italy. In England carvings were also based on stone carvings. These carvings were not usually statues
but decorative carvings. Some of these seem to be based on carvings done in Denmark and Norway.
Centurys later Scandinavian woodcarvers seem to have been influenced by stone carvings done in
England. Some carvings done between 1000 A.D. and 1200 A.D. can still be found in old Churches in

England. These woodcarvings naturally were protected from the elements otherwise they could not have
survived.
Many woodcarvings over the years have been destroyed due to neglect. Others have been intentionally
destroyed by wars and acts against the churches. Many also were destroyed in the name of improvement,
such as replacing older carvings with newly done carvings.
Over the centuries woodcarving has undergone may changes but has never died. Like in the beginning
when the man was alone in the garden with his knife, as long as there is wood and there is man, there will
be woodcarvings.

BASIC CONCEPTS
Methods and styles

Chip carving- is a style of carving in which knives or chisels are used to remove small chips of the
material from a flat surface in a single piece

Relief carving- can be described as "carving pictures in wood". The process of relief carving involves
removing wood from a flat wood panel in such a way that an object appears to rise out of the wood.
Relief carving begins with a design idea, usually put to paper in the form of a master pattern which is
then transferred to the wood surface. Most relief carving is done with hand tools - chisels and gouges which often require a mallet to drive them through the wood.

Scandinavian flat-plane- is a style of figure carving. The figures are carved in large flat planes,
created primarily using a carving knife. Tool marks are left in the carving and very little (if any)
rounding or sanding is done

Caricature carving- is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or
exaggerated way.

Lovespoon- is a wooden spoon decoratively carved that was traditionally presented as a gift of
romantic intent. The spoon is normally decorated with symbols of love, and was intended to reflect the
skill of the carver. Due to the intricate designs, lovespoons are no longer used as functioning spoons
and are now decorative craft items.

Treen- literally "of a tree" is a generic name for small handmade functional household objects made
of wood. Anything from wooden plates and bowls, snuff boxes and needle cases, spoons and stay
busks to shoehorns and chopping boards can be classed as treen.

Whittling- may refer either to the art of carving shapes out of raw wood using a knife or a timeoccupying, non-artistic process of repeatedly shaving slivers from a piece of wood
The 4 Basic cuts!

The push cut: the thumb on the left hand (non-knife holding hand) can support and
provide the power that you need to make a cut. This way also saves the wood because you have control
over the blade and on how much youre cutting.
The pairing cut: ensures that the knife is pulled towards your thumb, and these cuts
are great for slicing the detail areas. But using a thumb guard is a must, or you could do some serious
damage to it.
The stop cut: use the point of the woodcarving knife perpendicularly on the wood to
carve into the wood surface. This allows you to stop the cut to add details.
The V-Cut: you cut into the wood to make a V with the point of the knife. Make the cuts
at a slight angle to slice out the wood to create the V.
TOOLS TO USE
Chip-Carving Knife - Probably the first tool any carver starts with is a knife. Its primary use is for
whittling and chip carving. The blade is about 1 1/2" long, and has a handle designed to fit the hand. Like
gouges, it should be made of high carbon steel that will hold an edge for a long time.
Carpenter's Chisels - These chisels have a flat edge (#1 Sweep). They are not usually used for sculpture,

because the edge of a flat chisel tends to dig into the wood, twisting and plunging the tool deeper on one
side than the carver may have desired. They can give a crude, unschooled look that may be desirable on
some types of sculpture .
U-Gouges - Gouges are the work horses of carving. U-gouges are designated by the width of the cutting
edge (in inches or millimeters), the sweep, or amount of curvature of the edge (an arbitrarily assigned
number), and the shape of the shaft (straight, bent, spoon, and back bent).
Gouges can be purchased: in widths from 2mm (1/16") to 60 mm (2 3/8") - in sweeps from #2 (a barely perceptible curve) to #11 (a
very deep, half round curve) - in straight, bent, spoon, and back-bent shapes
V-Gouges - V-gouges are designated by the width between the top edge tips and the angle of the vee
bottom edge. Gouges can be purchased:
- in widths from 2mm to 30mm - in 60 (#12 sweep) and 90 (#13 sweep)
Bent and Spoon Gouges - These specialty gouges are used to get into inaccessible spots on a carving
that a straight gouge can't reach.
Bent gouge: the entire length of the shaft is curved.
Spoon gouge: the final 1 1/2" of the shaft is deeply bent in a spoon shape.
Back bent gouges: a spoon gouge with the curve reversed so the cutting edge is convex instead of
concave. These specialized tools are seldom used, but when needed, are invaluable.
Skewed Chisel - A skewed chisel's cutting is angled back from the leading edge at a 45 degree angle.
They come in straight, bent, and spoon shapes and in varying widths. These are specialized tools and are
seldom, if ever, used.
Palm Tools - Most of the above tool shapes can be purchased as smaller palm tools. A chip-carving knife
and an assortment of palm gouges are all that is needed for creating small carvings in basswood or other
soft woods.
Mallet - The traditional mallet for carving is cylindrically shaped and made from a heavy, dense hardwood.
I prefer using a rubber mallet. While it doesn't have the driving power of a wood mallet, it is less noisy,
easier on the chisel handles, and has some spring that brings the head back up for the next swing.
Power Carving or Electric Wood Carving Tools
Rotary Tool (Dremel) - A rotary tool is a hand held power tool with a variety of rotating accessory bits
and attachments that can be used for cutting, carving, sanding, polishing and many other applications.
Foredom Flexible Shaft Tool - Foredom tools have a motor (1/8 - 14 HP depending on the model), and
run at up to 20,000 RPM. A flexible shaft extends from the motor to a hand piece that holds a wide variety
of burs used for cutting and texturing wood. Its variable-speed capability is operated by a foot controlled
pedal.
The Foredom tool is an invaluable tool that can speed up carving. It reaches into small places that chisels
can't go, models wood with almost disregard for the grain direction, makes sanding quick and easy, and
allows the creation of textures that can not be made in any other way.
Burs and Accessories - A wide variety of burs are available to fit the several different styles and sizes of
Foredom hand pieces. Burs that may have been intended for other purposes can be used for woodcarving,
such as single cut and double cut carbide burs (intended for metal work). Burs with needle-sharp points of
tungsten carbide and burs coated with industrial diamonds can be used for texturing wood. Drill bits can
placed in the adjustable chuck hand piece for drilling holes. Small sanding discs and drums are also
available for sanding and finishing.
Woodworking Machinery
Band Saw - A band saw has a long, thin blade welded into a loop. An electric motor powers the blade
around two large wheels. The band saw is the woodcarver's most often used large power tool. It quickly
cuts off scrap wood, saving you the work of removing it by hand. To cut out a small carving, trace a pattern
of the subject's front view and side view onto the block of wood. Cut out the side view. Save the two end
pieces and put everything back together again. Next cut out the front view. Now that most of the scrap
wood has been removed, begin rounding out the carving with chisels.

Drill Press - The drill press is another invaluable shop tool. It drills precise holes, but other attachments
can be added, such as a sanding drum.
Belt Sander - A belt sander is another tool that comes in handy for doing so many things that come up
during a carving project. Once you have one, it seems indispensable.
Planer and Joiner - The planer and joiner are used to surface wood, giving boards flat sides. If you plan to
laminate boards into larger blocks for carving, flat surfaces are necessary.
Chain Saw - A chain saw is a very useful tool to rough out logs for large carvings. For shop use, most
prefer an electric model.
STEPS in WOODCARVING
The Carving Process
The sculptor starts by choosing a block of wood appropriate to the shape and scale of his intended design.
Employing gouges of various sizes, he then reduces the wood to an approximate shape, which he refines
with a variety of tools like veiners and v-tools. When the detailed work is complete, the sculptor smoothes
the surfaces with implements like rasps and rifflers, and with different grains of sandpaper. Lastly, to
enhance and preserve the sculpture, he stains it walnut or linseed oil, and then coats it in varnish, resin or
wax.