Padre Art Art Collections

Hatchling Dragon

The Hatchling Dragon is a commissioned project. The collector was viewing my progress on the fourth in a series of jeweled pipes and I mentioned my contribution to a FaceBook discussion of inspiration among members of the FB group, United Colors of Artists . . . that the figure can be inherent in the material to be carved. This intrigued him and he commissioned another carving, in this series, with that type of design . . . Bowl and stem are hand-carved from a single piece of Maple burl. Translucent carnelian eyes surrounded by oxidized silver eyelashes add life to the hatchlings expression. The subtle coloring of the finish was achieved by layering colors in a method adapted from a metalworking technique called 'Mokume'. In this case the coloring tints used had no carrier agent and could be mixed with water or denatured alcohol to create a dye that soaked into the wood. Different hues were layered over each other and then the wood was selectively removed or burnished to achieve different colors and shades. There is no surface coloring (paint) anywhere on the carving.