Creating a Sculpture From Real Life Experience.

We all have beautiful times with our families. One day I saw my brother sitting on the water pot and thinking about something else having a book in his hands. It was pinned in my mind. I sculpted that moment in wood and that was an amazing journey from sketching to modeling and carving in wood. This project is done only with hand tools which is challenging and fun. To make the project you can simply follow the steps I followed and enjoy the carving time!

1. A beautiful thing or the moment you've seen.
2. Any modeling software.
3. Softwood (8"*8" 1ft block).
   (Basswood- Tilia americana or Gamhar/Gamari -Gmelina arborea)
4. Permanent Marker.
5. Saw.
6. Mallet.
7. Chisels and Gauges.
8. Wood rasp file.
9. Small chisels for detailing.
10. Sanding papers (120/200 grits).
11. Hand gloves to protect hands from sharp chisels.
12. Masks to prevent breathing wood dust.

• To be able to sketch the basic shape of the object.
• Some knowledge about any 3D modeling software.
• Some knowledge about using chisels and gauges. This is a must if you want to stay happy with your carving and prevent cutting yourself from the razor-sharp chisels.

Now look on the internet to find similar carvings or sculptures. This study will help you get the best out of your ideas. You should look for the details, expressions. Some works are really inspiring that will guide you to carve easily and not being lost.
Then you need to sketch the way you want your sculpture to look.

Now you can use any software to make the basic 3D shape to begin wood carving. If you use SketchUp to model this First import the sketch reference. Then model the basic shape which will be followed several times in the later steps.
If you can sketch the shape by yourself then you don't need to print this out. Otherwise, print out four sheets taking four views from the four sides of the model which will be pasted on the four sides of the block.

As you have made a 3D model, you will need it to look around while carving. Keep the printed copies and the computer closer to your carving table. To cut the basic shape you can go through the following steps-

• Sketch the shapes of the four sides on the four faces of the wooden block. If you have printed out the four sides then paste them on the wooden block properly aligned. Then trace them on the wood with the marker.
• Then you will need to remove a large amount of wood from the sides. Using large chisel and hammering with the mallet you can remove the excess wood.
• Start from one side and when you'll chisel out the wood chips, your marker guides will be removed too. Keep an eye on the shape and use the marker.
• When you are close to the shape, keep more material so that it can be used to carve the small details.
• Now take the rasp file and smooth out the surface. This will help you remember the shape easily.

After you have removed excess wood from the block, let it dry. Otherwise, it can crack. After one day you can start detailing using small chisels and gauges. Follow these steps to detail quickly and successfully.

• Detail the face, the fingers, and the collar.
• As you have kept more material from the outline, start carving the wrinkles of the clothes.
• Then smooth the surface with 120 grits sand paper.
• Apply varnish to keep it safe for a long time.

No matter what your first carving look like, you will always feel great. Enjoy the carving!