North End artist captures the physical splendor of birds of prey through carvings
Nature at a standstill
North End artist captures the physical splendor of birds of prey through carvings
| CAPTION: Kelly Fosness/Daily Mining Gazette Local artist Stuart Baird features detailed carvings of magnificent birds of prey. |
By KELLY FOSNESS, DMG Writer
CALUMET — Not only do you need the basic tools to carve a block of wood, Stuart Baird said from behind his shop desk, “you’ve got to have a good supply of bandaids.”
Wearing magnifying glasses and a smile, Baird reached out to turn the knob on his wood burner. As the tip came to temperature he said “you always want to know your subject before you begin.”
He then began to trace his finger along the breast of the unfinished ring-necked duck.
“You want to know the feather size, the feather pattern, and the feather flow,” he said, before gliding the point through the grain creating lifelike feathers. “You have to establish that rhythm.”
From his studio inside the Albion Station in Calumet, the retired machinist brings to life some of natures most beautiful birds. His passion, however, is birds of prey.
Sometimes investing hundreds of hours on a single raptor, Baird said for him, it’s the next best thing to owning a real one.
“I’ve always been fascinated with birds of prey,” he explained while paging through a portfolio of previous wood carvings he’s done on commission, some of which have sold for $10,000. “They’re such magnificent birds and since I can’t own one, I guess this is the next best thing.”
Like that of many wood carvers, Baird is completely self taught. He researched several publications, learning what tools he needed and the proper techniques. Completing his first masterpiece four years ago, a relief carving of an eagle’s head, Baird knew he had a knack for it.
“My father was a wood pattern maker and my grandfather was a custom furniture maker,” Baird added. “I guess I had the wood in my genes.”
Returning to the duck, resting unfinished among gouges, knives and chisels scattered atop his desk, Baird said before he even begins to carve, he has to come up with a subject. Then a pattern is created and transferred to a single block of bass wood. Following with a rough cut on the band saw, he begins to “carve away everything that doesn’t look like a duck.”
When the wood is sanded down to an almost polished finish, Baird applies acrylic paints to make his birds come to life.
“It’s the blending of very thin color washes,” he explained of his technique. “It’s like the consistency of skim milk.”
Baird has finished projects on display in his studio including a broad-winged hawk, prevalent in the Upper Peninsula; an american kestrel, and an eastern screech owl, among others.
Directing his attention to the head of the American Kestrel, Baird said he prefers to use the eyes taxidermists use on their mountings because “that’s what brings it to life.”
“When you turn it, the eyes will follow you,” he said.
And while Baird has been learning new techniques over the years, he is also passing them on to his latest student, 15-year-old Chris Leer of Calumet, who has been taking lessons from Baird a few hours a week.
“We’re working on the basics of carving, techniques and how to use the tools,” Baird said.
“I like everything but sanding,” Leer added, as he held onto his unfinished chickadee. “The only thing I’ve ever carved before this was the point of a pencil.”
Wood carving, Baird said, is a good pass time while he enjoys retirement.
“I enjoy the creativity of making something out of a plain old block of wood,” he said.
Originally from downstate Michigan, Baird worked 38 years as a master machinist before taking a temporary job in the Upper Peninsula before his retirement. He never left since.
And for a man who’s retired, Baird sure is busy. During the year he works at the Calumet and Hecla Library, doing archival work, preserving old manuscripts and photo collections. He also restores old machinery into working order at the Coppertown U.S.A. Mining Museum and is on the Main Street Calumet Design Committee.
“It seems that since I’ve moved here, it seemed to spark an interest in history and preservation,” Baird added.
And while he has years of experience working with wood, learning from his grandfather and father how to utilize tools, Baird said carving is “just another facet of wood working.”
For more information contact Baird at home at 337-3213 or reach him at the Albion Station at 337-0257.
Kelly Fosness can be reached at kfosness@mininggazette.com
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