Developing Your Wood Muse

NOTE: If you have previously taken Developing your Wood Muse, consider signing up for Continuing with your Wood Muse, a special offering Monica has designed for returning participants taking place in August.

Participants will learn or increase carving skills, gouge and chisel techniques. We will become familiar with at least two different woods. Emphasis is on learning about woods and experimenting with tools to achieve desired results. Participants will give thought to design elements and how they relate to the wood and the tool. There will also be some use of power tools along with instructions for safe operation. Prior knowledge of tool usage is not necessary.

Having grown up around the sculptures of her father Roy Setziol, it is not surprising that Monica Setziol-Phillips decided to investigate the medium. It drew her in, and she has now been carving for over 35 years. The character and feel of the wood continue to excite her. Developing the relationship between tool, wood and imagination informs the work. She looks forward to sharing what she has learned with her students and feels she learns from them as well. Her own work is mostly abstract, as she understands that approach best and finds it most meaningful.

Monica seeks to enable students to learn from the wood and the tools. Each wood has its own character, its own beauty and difficulty. Students explore these connections and focus on learning techniques to bring wood, tools and skills together. Focus is also on nourishing and developing each student's unique creative spirit.

Paper

Pencil

Sharpie

Ruler

Three gouges 1" #3, 1/2 #4, 1/2" #5 if possible

Variety of gouges and chisels

Several mallets

Two different pieces of wood to carve for each participant

Bench brushes

Sharpening stones

Two Japanese hand saws

Books and samples of different woods