Wood as a medium
|
|
As a contemporary artistic medium, wood is used in traditional and modern styles, and is an excellent medium for green new art. Wood is used in forms of sculpture, craft, and decoration including Chip carving, Wood burning and .... ....
Although sculpture in wood was on the fringes of the 20th century's artistic energy, it has potential in the 21st, because of its ability to reflect an ecological point of view. Wood may offer a fascination, beauty, and complexity in the grain, that often shows even when the medium is painted.
A person who begins woodcarving is challenged to learn to work with the fiber and grain. Hardness and fragility vary with the species of wood. In general, wood tends to break in the direction between the fibers, the direction in which the fibers separate. In the composition of work, one must work around this. Also, wood usually responds differently according to the direction of cut. It helps if tools are very sharp.
There is a substantial network of hobbyists and professionals involved in woodcarving.