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Wood carvings & sculptures by Paul Aydelott

Inspiration

This area of Tennessee has a legacy of musicians.  This carving started with a photograph of songwriter Ed Bruce appearing at the Hickman County Chamber of Commerce's Grinders Switch Festival.  (Ed is perhaps best known for "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys."

Unfortunately, the piece of wood had something else in mind, so Ed's likeless got a little lost.  Actually, when the sawmill cut the plank the saw band took a turn south at about the base of where Ed's nose and chin were supposed to be.  With too much already invested in the carving by that time, some major surgery for the carving board was in order.  With new pieces replacing the damaged wood, the carving was saved, but the inspiration was gone.  (If you've ever carved a person's likeness, maybe you understand that it is really dependent upon what is in the wood.  Sometimes the features and qualities of the wood dictate that the originally desired image is just not there.)

Funny, how much the carving turns out to resemble another friend who happens to have music as an avocation.

Wood Carving: Guitarist

An unusual work for me, this carving is largely painted with acrylic paints to cover the wood that was glued in to replace the damaged sections left over from saw milling.  (This was scrap wood.)  The background is stippled to show the true color and appearance of the wood.  The fret board is a thin strip of black walnut inlaid on the original board; it is not painted.  The frets are simply broom straws glued in a groove cut in the fret board.  The strings are elastic strings from a sewing shop.