The versatility of wood can sustain the poetry and refinement of form for which Riemenschneider* and Berruguete** were searching, or render the silent, raw expression of Jonathan Shahn, allowing this artist’s sentiment to surface. Georg Baselitz’s rude, crude carving bears the artist’s scream: “This will let me say it!” Wood is generous.
Its warmth, familiarity, and feel speak to all of us, accompanying us in our voyage from toys to a walking cane—preferably hand-carved. A very accessible material, it can be laminated, assembled, carved back, left raw, or polychromed, retaining any desirable finish. There is no need for foundries or fabricators, no mold-making as in bronze casting, no models nor heavy equipment needed. Wood-carving is direct and visceral, resulting in a final product which is light enough for easy transportation, yet which, with a little care, can survive millennia.
Collectors all over the world have cherished works of art in wood, often referred to as crafts, ceremonial pieces, or native art. In this issue, our articles on wood-carved African couples at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and Northwest Coast carvers’ works at the Seattle Art Museum are testimony to the inclusion of wood sculpture in magnificent collections.
This organic, intrinsically beautiful material has inspired many artists who have used it in their drive for self-expression, and whose styles have been revisited throughout history and all over the world, in my point of view.
Giancarlo Biagi
*See Sculpture Review Spring 00 issue
**See Sculpture Review Fall 99 issue
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Current issue: Winter 2003