What is more fun than one fish? It is telling a story with a school of fish and a yellow submarine. The fish and the submarine are wood art pieces that I turn on a lathe. Most items that come off the lathe are perfectly round and not oval as are these items. So how does that happen? This is a technique that I learned in a workshop with a brilliant woodturner and artist Michael Hosaluk. I refer to Michael as the Picasso of woodturning. He makes a piece and then cuts it up on a bandsaw to reassemble into a new form. In the case of the fish and the submarine they are turned in the traditional way. When they come off the lathe, I cut out a middle section. Then I glue the two remaining parts together and the oval shape is there.
My first attempt with this process was a single fish. This inspired me to tackle a more complicated piece that would tell a story of school of fish swimming near an approaching yellow submarine. The fish are mounted on a solid brass rods over a natural edge elm burl that is airbrush painted to appear like a coral reef on the ocean floor.
The Creative Process
This series is so much fun that I have plans to continue with this theme. My ultimate goal is to co author a children’s book with my author daughter using these sculptures is illustrations.
How do I come up with these ideas? It is a valid and complex question that I think about a lot. Why are some people good at math and others not? Is it the Right Brain, Left Brain Theory? Whatever it is I love that I am capable of doing this. To picture something in my mind and then to be able to bring it to life is a gift and a blessing. Here is the original Fish.