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Friday, December 24, 2010
Wood Carving: So You Want to Be a Wood Carver
Wood carving is a special craft. It requires extreme patience that could flourish with a fine imagination. If you decide to become a wood carver, you'll have several styles to choose from. You could use just a piece of wood and a small knife. Or you could go so far as using power tools. So how can you know which style is best for you?
There are five main styles of woodcarving. Each style is distinctly different from the other. These styles are whittling, chip carving, relief carving, intaglio carving and carving in the round.
Whittling. Whittling involves the removal of pare shavings or bits of wood with a cutting blade. It is the simplest form of wood carving, but not actually the art of wood carving. This is a significant distinction because whittling is, and should always be, very simple. All you need is a piece of wood and a knife and you're set to go. And because it is so simple, whittled objects don't have much detail, as is the case in all other styles of wood carving.
When you're holding a whittled object in your hand, you absolutely know it. You can plainly see each knife stroke. It remains as simple as when it began centuries ago, during the time of cavemen. Isn't that amazing?
Chip Carving. Chip carving involves the use of several knives to remove small pieces of wood (chips) from a flat wood surface. These are specially made chip knives that are used to push or pull at the wood, cutting upwards or downwards to free each chip.
Chip carving has expanded to become its own art form. The main technique is to chip varying triangular shapes from the wood. This is done in a way that creates intricately detailed patterns that are often geometric in nature. Free form lines are regularly used to accentuate these chipped patterns. You could really let your imagination go.
Relief Carving. This type of carving is done on a flat back cut of wood with images cut in 3-dimensional fashion. These are the wood carvings you see on walls or sitting on tables or surface tops.
There are two types of relief carving. A low relief carving is identifiable by the visual effect that is created. Without shadows to imply deep carving, the product appears very shallow and is thus considered low relief. In high relief carvings, a spectacular depth effect is created by the addition of shadows throughout. Both types result in carvings with good dimension and detail. The end product is polished to create a very smooth surface. Then it may be painted, waxed or varnished.
Intaglio Carving. This style of wood carving is very similar to relief carving. But instead of looking as though it is above the wood surface, it looks as if it is part of the wood. This is because the design is actually carved deep into the wood, below the surface. Think of old wooden rolling pins. Remember the cute little pictures that were carved into it? That's intaglio carving.
Intaglio carving has been very popular with furniture makers. It has come so far as to be fitted for a blank space, carved separately and then inserted into the furniture. How about that? It can even be found in dining tables and in bedroom furniture. It's wonderful for wood paneling. You can even see it in specialty plaques, as part of an existing decorative item or as the actual surface of coffee tables and end tables.
Carving In The Round. This is the most advanced style of wood carving. It involves a completely detailed carving that can be viewed from all sides. It is carved out of the wood and its base serves as a supporting platform or as a pedestal. The carving could be a person, an animal or a landscape-nearly anything you can imagine. It could be life-sized or to scale. The sky is almost the limit with carving in the round.
This style of carving requires quite a number of tools. A variety of knives, gouges and chisels are a bare minimum. The use of power tools is not surprising and often expected. The final product then is usually quite spectacular. Oftentimes, a product of carving in the round is easily mistaken for a porcelain creation. The details are that impressive.
Wood carving has been around since the days of cavemen. With time, it has become quite an impressive art to behold. It's very relaxing, often exhilarating and extremely satisfying. If you're looking for a hobby, wood carving could be just what you're looking for.
Retrieved from "http://www.articlesbase.com/art-and-entertainment-articles/wood-carving-so-you-want-to-be-a-wood-carver-585194.html"
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
The Arts and Crafts Styled Kitchen
Kitchens today are more than form and function. A properly designed kitchen can add great style to your whole home. But what style to go with may be your question. While there are a handful of styles to choose from, one that has remained popular through the decades is the Arts and Crafts styled kitchen.
What would you expect to see in an Arts and Crafts kitchen? The Arts and Crafts movement was based on form and function, therefore such kitchens emphasize natural colors, rich woods, clean strong lines and light. For a kitchen to appear Arts and Crafts it may have recessed panel doors with thick frames, contrast in finishes of wood, stained glass windows and lighting fixtures, and mullioned glass doors.
Arts and Crafts kitchens look similar to Shaker, Prairie or Mission style kitchens. Woods used for both include maple, birch, beech or oak. Most important is the use of wood. Rich dark woods, distinctive styles utilized from wood along with styled cabinets is important.
To understand the Arts and Crafts look is to understand the style. Arts and Crafts has also been called Mission, Stickley, Prairie or even Frank Lloyd Wright. The design started around 1900 as a backlash against the ornate style prior to 1900. People wanted a design that was more functional and furnishings that were better built. An emphasis on quality craftsmanship was important. Cabinetry was constructed with mortise and tenon, dovetail joinery, and of solid hardwoods.
The movement of Arts and Crafts was not limited to the United States, matter-of-fact it was quite international and is said to have started in England. Artists and craftsmen such as William Morris and Gustav Stickley became notorious with the movement. The Arts and Crafts style spread from England to Europe and then North America. The writings of John Ruskin influenced the movement. Ruskin emphasized the belief that art communicated an understanding of nature and rejected mechanization and standardization. He advocated the value of an organic relationship between worker and his natural environment. At this time, industrialization was destroying the world of craft labor.
With this, style became more simple and straightforward. Decoration was limited, especially if it was superfluous. Patterns imitated British flora and fauna. Architects drew on the vernacular of an area for design. Many architects were influenced by traditions of the British countryside. Designers stepped up to meet the demand and began hosting workshops reviving old craftsmanship techniques.
The Arts and Crafts style also stemmed from a reaction of style against things shown in the Great Exhibition of 1851. This exhibition took place in The Crystal Palace in England and was to display examples of the latest technology developed in the Industrial Revolution. The Great Exhibition of 1851 had more than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world. Artists, philosophers and writers alike critiqued the styles shown stating it was too ornamental. Art historian Nikolaus Pevsner even stated, the Great Exhibition showed ‘vulgarity in detail.'
With all of this combined, it wasn't long before the Arts and Crafts ideals were influencing architecture, sculpture, paintings, illustration, book making, photography, domestic design and decorative arts Decorative arts included furniture, woodwork, stained glass, leatherwork, lacemaking, embroidery, rug making, jewelry and metalwork, enameling and ceramics.
The Arts and Crafts kitchen, even of today, still reflects these ideals. If you are somebody who enjoys the practicality of craftsmanship and the look of straight-lines, this style of kitchen may be for you.
Retrieved from "http://www.articlesbase.com/kitchens-articles/the-arts-and-crafts-styled-kitchen-3604080.html"
What would you expect to see in an Arts and Crafts kitchen? The Arts and Crafts movement was based on form and function, therefore such kitchens emphasize natural colors, rich woods, clean strong lines and light. For a kitchen to appear Arts and Crafts it may have recessed panel doors with thick frames, contrast in finishes of wood, stained glass windows and lighting fixtures, and mullioned glass doors.
Arts and Crafts kitchens look similar to Shaker, Prairie or Mission style kitchens. Woods used for both include maple, birch, beech or oak. Most important is the use of wood. Rich dark woods, distinctive styles utilized from wood along with styled cabinets is important.
To understand the Arts and Crafts look is to understand the style. Arts and Crafts has also been called Mission, Stickley, Prairie or even Frank Lloyd Wright. The design started around 1900 as a backlash against the ornate style prior to 1900. People wanted a design that was more functional and furnishings that were better built. An emphasis on quality craftsmanship was important. Cabinetry was constructed with mortise and tenon, dovetail joinery, and of solid hardwoods.
The movement of Arts and Crafts was not limited to the United States, matter-of-fact it was quite international and is said to have started in England. Artists and craftsmen such as William Morris and Gustav Stickley became notorious with the movement. The Arts and Crafts style spread from England to Europe and then North America. The writings of John Ruskin influenced the movement. Ruskin emphasized the belief that art communicated an understanding of nature and rejected mechanization and standardization. He advocated the value of an organic relationship between worker and his natural environment. At this time, industrialization was destroying the world of craft labor.
With this, style became more simple and straightforward. Decoration was limited, especially if it was superfluous. Patterns imitated British flora and fauna. Architects drew on the vernacular of an area for design. Many architects were influenced by traditions of the British countryside. Designers stepped up to meet the demand and began hosting workshops reviving old craftsmanship techniques.
The Arts and Crafts style also stemmed from a reaction of style against things shown in the Great Exhibition of 1851. This exhibition took place in The Crystal Palace in England and was to display examples of the latest technology developed in the Industrial Revolution. The Great Exhibition of 1851 had more than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world. Artists, philosophers and writers alike critiqued the styles shown stating it was too ornamental. Art historian Nikolaus Pevsner even stated, the Great Exhibition showed ‘vulgarity in detail.'
With all of this combined, it wasn't long before the Arts and Crafts ideals were influencing architecture, sculpture, paintings, illustration, book making, photography, domestic design and decorative arts Decorative arts included furniture, woodwork, stained glass, leatherwork, lacemaking, embroidery, rug making, jewelry and metalwork, enameling and ceramics.
The Arts and Crafts kitchen, even of today, still reflects these ideals. If you are somebody who enjoys the practicality of craftsmanship and the look of straight-lines, this style of kitchen may be for you.
Retrieved from "http://www.articlesbase.com/kitchens-articles/the-arts-and-crafts-styled-kitchen-3604080.html"
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Wood Finishing And Painting
Changes in the art of wood-finishing has come about through the rapid progress in the development of quick-drying, very permanent, nitrocellulose lacquers which are new finishes derived from the realm of magic and mystery.
Present-day lacquers contain varnish-gums in addition to nitrocellulose, and dry so quickly that they are practically dust-proof; yet they set slowly enough so that they can be applied with little training by use of either a brush or a spray-gun.
The student wood-finisher in the school, the arts and crafts painter in the home who wishes to refinish old furniture, door toppers, or woodwork, and the professional painter will all find new and helpful hints and much practical information about lacquer and its use.
While it is true that the emphasis has been placed on new materials and processes, mention should be made of the fact that the entire field of wood-finishing, including wood-filling, shellacking, and enameling has changed.
Many microscopic studies have been made of the reaction of various finishes, especially wood-fillers, in the pores of several kinds of wood. Many technical difficulties were encountered in attempts to prepare photomicrographs of wood filler in the pores of wood, but nevertheless some interesting information was secured.
Some new and very valuable paint-pigments, such as lithophone, titanox, and "extenders," such as asbestine, are now used rather extensively in the paint trade since they were developed. For many purposes these new materials can be used to advantage. The person who applies paint at the present time has a wide field to choose from in selecting pigments, extenders, colors, drying-oils, and thinners, and needs information about these materials.
Another very fundamental characteristic of wood-finishing is that it is treated as a science as well as an art. It is for this reason that a rich background of related science is given in connection with the descriptions of the materials and the methods of using them.
The chemical formulas of the substances described are usually given, and some of the chemical and physical reactions of the materials are pointed out for the benefit of the amateur, the apprentice, or the master painter who may lack a thorough scientific background for his trade.
Experts gather information about wood finishing with meticulous care through visits to some of the best paint, varnish, and lacquer factories in the United States in order to obtain up-to-date, reliable information. A very careful study has also been made of the writings of scientists on this subject, on everything from finishing wooden bar rails to wood fireplace inserts.
In the industrial-arts departments of schools, wood-finishing and painting have often been taught in connection with woodworking, but at present there is a strong tendency toward the establishment of separate courses in which the informational aspect of wood-finishing and painting can receive proper attention.
The industrial-arts departments of 30 years ago gave little attention to wood-finishing, and attempts were made to finish articles in dusty woodworking shops; now separate rooms, after the universal practice of industry, will be found in all schools where serious work in wood-finishing is done.
The science and art of wood-finishing can be more clearly understood through a study of wood as a material. There is a book entitled "Wood and Lumber" which can be used to advantage in schools when related information and a scientific background are desired in order to give a more intellectual trend to shop work which may be too largely manual or manipulative to be educational and vocational in the best sense.
Retrieved from "http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/wood-finishing-and-painting-1206047.html"
Present-day lacquers contain varnish-gums in addition to nitrocellulose, and dry so quickly that they are practically dust-proof; yet they set slowly enough so that they can be applied with little training by use of either a brush or a spray-gun.
The student wood-finisher in the school, the arts and crafts painter in the home who wishes to refinish old furniture, door toppers, or woodwork, and the professional painter will all find new and helpful hints and much practical information about lacquer and its use.
While it is true that the emphasis has been placed on new materials and processes, mention should be made of the fact that the entire field of wood-finishing, including wood-filling, shellacking, and enameling has changed.
Many microscopic studies have been made of the reaction of various finishes, especially wood-fillers, in the pores of several kinds of wood. Many technical difficulties were encountered in attempts to prepare photomicrographs of wood filler in the pores of wood, but nevertheless some interesting information was secured.
Some new and very valuable paint-pigments, such as lithophone, titanox, and "extenders," such as asbestine, are now used rather extensively in the paint trade since they were developed. For many purposes these new materials can be used to advantage. The person who applies paint at the present time has a wide field to choose from in selecting pigments, extenders, colors, drying-oils, and thinners, and needs information about these materials.
Another very fundamental characteristic of wood-finishing is that it is treated as a science as well as an art. It is for this reason that a rich background of related science is given in connection with the descriptions of the materials and the methods of using them.
The chemical formulas of the substances described are usually given, and some of the chemical and physical reactions of the materials are pointed out for the benefit of the amateur, the apprentice, or the master painter who may lack a thorough scientific background for his trade.
Experts gather information about wood finishing with meticulous care through visits to some of the best paint, varnish, and lacquer factories in the United States in order to obtain up-to-date, reliable information. A very careful study has also been made of the writings of scientists on this subject, on everything from finishing wooden bar rails to wood fireplace inserts.
In the industrial-arts departments of schools, wood-finishing and painting have often been taught in connection with woodworking, but at present there is a strong tendency toward the establishment of separate courses in which the informational aspect of wood-finishing and painting can receive proper attention.
The industrial-arts departments of 30 years ago gave little attention to wood-finishing, and attempts were made to finish articles in dusty woodworking shops; now separate rooms, after the universal practice of industry, will be found in all schools where serious work in wood-finishing is done.
The science and art of wood-finishing can be more clearly understood through a study of wood as a material. There is a book entitled "Wood and Lumber" which can be used to advantage in schools when related information and a scientific background are desired in order to give a more intellectual trend to shop work which may be too largely manual or manipulative to be educational and vocational in the best sense.
Retrieved from "http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/wood-finishing-and-painting-1206047.html"
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