Page 47 - Wood Review Dec 202 Full issue

WOODCARVING
form. A change in the paper’s width, thickness or length, or perhaps using another material will yield changes. Heavy materials (such as rubber) may droop for example, and suspension again causes interesting effects on the möbius model.
Different materials can be used to experiment. One of my favourites is plain old plasticine which I keep cool in the fridge between shaping sessions. This can be extruded and shaped, and has the extra benefit of been able to be cut away with knives and chisels
to refine the form. It is also relatively clean as opposed to clay.
Beginning and beyond
After I’ve got an idea of the form I want, I select the material that’s best going to work for the design. I take into account the dimensional requirements, the colour of the wood and its workability.
I wouldn’t suggest using heavily figured wood for these forms as they are difficult enough to carve without the additional challenge of grain variants,
and in some cases the figure may overwhelm the form. But then again...
Some of the timbers I use are Huon pine (Lagarostrobos franklinii), myrtle beech (Nothofagus cunninghamii), white beech (Gmelina leichhardtii), Australian rose mahogany (Dysoxylum fraserianum), and silky oak (Grevillea robusta). There are of course many other possibilities.
Gidgee
I should add that I use gidgee (Acacia cambagei) for my smaller work. This marvellous wood is more dense than the others just named and requires a very different approach and tooling. But here we say – welcome to the world of rasps and files.
The benefit of the figured gidgee in the making of the smaller works is that the form can be more robust and the endgrain, inevitable in a möbius form, remains quite strong.
Gidgee carving is a slow process but the deep tones of the wood and the tight figure make for some
wonderfully small intimate carving forms that are both fascinating and tactile in the hand.
Tooling
For the most part an array of shallow gouges are my main chisels for this sort of work. In addition there are
a couple of V-chisels that I find handy (12/6, 13/6 or equivalent ). In terms of brands, I find myself more often selecting my M-steins, Pfeils and Japanese Kawasei from the tool cabinet.
Over the years of carving I made some good friendships with certain chisels, they’re comfortable in
hand and I know them like they are extensions of my fingers, but I’m open to trying out others tools as well and regularly do so. Different cuts often require a change in approach and a möbius will most certainly require a willingness to adapt.
As with chisels, I keep an open mind in regards to rasps. I have a small selection of these which include Japanese rasps, microplanes, and
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