Seniors for Excellence program coordinator Helen Edwards welcomed 40 seniors to Lunch and Learn recently at the Knox United Church in Clifford.
After Ray Harris offered grace, everyone enjoyed a meal of ham and cheese puff casserole, strawberry spinach salad, fruit slush, cinnamon buns, orange knots, Chelsea buns and assorted muffins prepared and served by Donna Gingrich and her helper Mary Cain.
Guelph Carving Club members Ray Lang and Ken Fulger shared their hobby of whittling. They demonstrated their skills and brought along a display of their artistic designs and creative carved caricatures.
Lang unfolded and donned his wooden tie before describing his whittling wonders. He has carved birds, mice, comical cows, seasonal decorations, spoons, glass keepers, tools with moving pieces and canes with an eagle head. He is working on perfecting fishing lures. He always has several projects on the go.
Ken Fulger told of master carvers and the personality behind each caricature chiseled out of a block of cypress, butternut, or cottonwood.
He demonstrated the fine art of whittling using the same process it takes to whittle an owl in five minutes or a piece that takes two weeks to develop: put on a glove, take a sharp knife, examine the bass wood, see the creation in the piece, and whittle away anything that doesn’t fit, he explained.
Sometimes a pattern is traced on a block of wood and cut out with a band saw. Some creations are sanded and painted before they are finished and ready to present to family and friends or entered into contests.
Pro carvers can create life-like birds and animals or scenes with intricate details that tell a full story in a few feet of space. Chainsaw carvers are at a whole different level creating massive statues like the ones seen in Orangeville and Fergus.
Joyce Cook of Clifford brought along a selection of chip carving and told about the trays, card boxes, clocks, switch plates and crosses she created.
She is interested in teaching anyone who would like to learn this art form. Other talented wood carvers in Clifford include Gerald Buhrow, Bruce Kaufman, Henry Dyksterhuis, Ross Derbecker and gallery owner and award winning artist Wesley Bates.
Lunch and Learn programs are held the third Friday of the month at Knox in Clifford.
The meal is $12, but the presentation at 12:30pm is free. Call 519-638-1000 if planning to attend.
