Five-Day Bare Bones Woodcarving Classes
The Bare Bones Woodcarving Class will give the beginner carving enthusiast a solid foundation in woodcarving. You don't have to be a physical giant to handle woodcarving tools; it's all in the technique. Learning the fundamentals of woodcarving is like watching a tennis pro who has trained his tennis volley to be both effortless and graceful. Woodcarving can be effortless and graceful too. This is the romance of the skill.
We will Study and Explore the Following:
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WOOD CARVING TOOLS: Learn how to redesign and sharpen your tool edge so that you have better control and a more versatile woodcarving chisel. I will show you how to sharpen with the proficiency that was used in the European apprenticship programs. I also incorporate some Japanese sharpening theory because the training of their hand sensitivity is an integral part of their apprenticeship. Sharp tools that easily bite into the wood and do not skate are an important ingredient for woodcarving with intent.
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WOOD CARVING TECHNIQUE: Learn how to handle your carving tools in the wood; from roughing out the beginnings of your project to the final delicate detailing . I teach an approach I call the "cradle position" and it is an integral part of good hand technique. Wood carving is a skill that incorporates the body to better assist your hand control of the gouges. It is like a baseball pitcher throwing you a ball. You swing with the bat and use your body to step into the hit. The same is true in woodcarving, you use your body strength and weight for the cutting action.
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ART OF SEEING: Learn the mechanical steps in the process of carving. Often I hear my new students say what I call the beginner's mantra... "What do I do next?" There are mechanical steps to seeing what is the next action in your project. I also work with an approach perspective I call visual mapping. It is an activity, same as using a map, that helps you to move through the progressive steps of your carving project. It is teachable and gaining this skill is critical for the beginner's eye.
DESIGN SKILLS: Learn how to design your wood carving projects using references that many of the great artists used. There are many basic tools and mechanical steps to designing that are unknown to the novice woodcarver. This approach to building your design will expand your imagination and the steps to creating your own projects will start to come more easily to you.
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TRADE SECRETS: Finally, among many other things, you will learn about finishing and building contrast in your piece, a necessity to having a striking, attractive look. You will learn alot of trade secrets in these woodcarving classes that were thoughtfully passed down to me from my European teachers.
This wood carving class will give you the skills to add creative, personal details to all your wood working projects. It is a chance for the woodworking student to take his or her skills to the next level. 
The class and workshop formats are three or five days in length. Calvo Woodcarving School located in Gloucester, Massachusetts is a convenient commute from Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, New Jersey, Connecticut, New York and New York City areas. Check woodcarving schedule page for dates and prices. For more description info click on: The Bare Bones of Wood Carving Article. This wood carving workshop will give you skills that will put you on a whole new level. You will be pleased with your new found woodcarving abilities.
Both Brunner and his protege taught me the skill of forging tools which was part of the woodcarver's professional arsenal in the old days. There is absolutely nothing more satisfying than carving wood with a tool that you have made. Learning how to forge your own wood carving tools will complete your skills. This is a excellent forum for the study and understanding of good tool design necessary for the control needed in wood carving. You will treasure your hand forged tools and they will become the favorites of your collection. Guaranteed.