Carving is a unique joy in woodworking. It differs strongly from most of the work we do, relying more on one’s ability to visualize and actualize distinct shapes, than to make cuts at precise measurements. It’s a chance to let creativity take the wheel and engage your intuition rather than just your logic.
The subject of this issue’s book review takes the matter of intuitive woodworking to its extreme. Whittling Wildlife by Peter Benson is a book not just on carving, but a unique subset called whittling.
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| Whittling Wildlife by Peter Benson, GMC Publications, RRP $19.99, available online and from all good bookshops. |
WHAT’S WHITTLIN’?
To begin, let’s look at what whittling is. Whittling primarily means knife carving, though palm gouges and other small tools will certainly be employed. The workpieces are miniatures, allowing them to be held in a hand as they’re worked on, which is required for safe and effective knife carving.
As the title indicates, the projects in this book are animals. Mammals, birds, and fish make good subjects, as they require less overall detail than an insect, a plant, or a piece of architecture, yet they offer places where detail can be focused on: the feathering of a bird’s wings, the whiskers and tusks of a walrus, and especially the eyes of any creature.
Nonetheless, Benson is a skilled carver, and some of his later projects in the book incorporate additional scenery into the carving, resulting in impressive—if challenging—projects.
At its core, Whittling Wildlife is a book of projects. Benson provides guidance on what tools to use, how to use them, and how to tackle specific elements (like the eyes), but the heart of the book is the animals Benson has created. In that spirit, I’ll spend the next couple pages showing some examples of the projects in Whittling Wildlife to give you a taste of what the book contains.
WHITTLING PROJECTS
Whittling Wildlife is primarily about its projects. Yet, it begins with some of the basics that any neophyte might need to get to work on some whittling.
THE BASICS.
The discussion begins with tools. Benson recommends a few: either a coping saw or a band saw when initially shaping the blanks; a few knives with differently shaped handles and shorter blades; and palm gouges, preferably in a few small sizes with round and V-shaped blades.
At this point, Benson also discusses safety, sanding and finishing, and choosing what wood to use. Beyond this, he begins to get into some practical techniques. This starts with how to make basic cuts using a knife; again, good fundamentals for a beginner. But, what I found really helpful in this section was the discussion of eyes.
Benson spends six pages going through different methods of making eyes, getting them to match, and what to consider about the creature they’re on. For instance, glass eyes can be glued on to make a fish look more life-like, but they look uncanny on a creature that has eyelids. While the beginning of this book will be review for more experienced individuals, there are still gems of wisdom to pickup.
THE PROJECTS.
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| Benson’s carvings range from simpler, still forms, such as a sleeping duck or a pelican at rest, to intricate, moving designs, like a sea lion swimming through reeds or a kingfisher diving at its prey. |
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| Benson provides profiles to guide the initial shaping of the blank, which is done by saw. |
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| Photographs indicate how to redraw the layout lines as the carving is further sculpted. |
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| Eyes are an important topic within this book, and Benson provides several options, one being to use a length of dowel or a bit of horn, then trim it down and pare or sand it flush. |
As I said, the projects are where the meat of this book really lies. There are fifteen projects within Whittling Wildlife. These begin with simpler shapes, typically just the subject at rest, then evolve to ones with movement: an albatross in flight or a fish swimming. The latter projects begin to incorporate the subject’s environment as well, culminating in the elaborate carving of the diving kingfi sher shown at the top of this page.
For each of the projects, Benson presents a series of numbered steps, each accompanied by an in-process photo. The first phase of each project is to rough out the profiles. Patterns are provided that you can sketch yourself, or photocopy and apply to the blank.
Once the blank is shaped, the work focuses on sculpting the rough shape of the subject. This involves defining the main parts: head, torso, limbs and wings, and for the more advanced projects, key parts of the scenery. It’s important to redraw the layout lines as they’re removed, and Benson’s photos provide guidance. You can see one example with the octopus on the previous page. This project requires the carver to work in layers: first the head and eyes, then the mantle, the tentacles, and eventually the rocks beneath it.
After the broad strokes of shaping are done, Benson moves onto the finer details. This begins with contours, such as the pelican’s beak on the previous page, or separating parts, such as the tusks of the walrus. This process concludes with texturing, like the lines hinting at a bird’s feathers or the walrus’s fins. How far you push this step will depend on your skill. To see how far the details can go, look back at the photo of the kingfisher once more.
IN SUMMARY.
Whittling Wildlife offers a pathway for people interested in knife carving. Benson lays out the fundamentals for beginners while also offering practical advice for more complex problems.
The projects begin with a low skill floor, only requiring a few key details to form the animal, but they build up to grand projects that will test the skills of any whittler. Throughout, Benson’s projects incorporate a number of different carving techniques.
Whittling Wildlife offers a unique form of woodworking, but is approachable, requires few tools, and easy to start learning. If whittling interests you, then I strongly recommend you give Benson’s book a try.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Peter Benson has always been a passionate carver. On his retirement from a career of teaching in 1996, Benson established the Essex School of Woodcarving. He also served as Chairman of the British Woodcarvers’ Association for 14 years, heading a number of projects over that time including a 2.5 ton, life-sized polar bear carving. Alongside Whittling Wildlife, Benson has authored a number of other books on carving in miniature, including The Art of Carving Netsuke and the Whittling Handbook, both published by GMC Publishing.
