Peter Demchuk

Wood carving is a hobby for me; mostly folk art and bowls.

My wife Kathy had her eye on a folk art giraffe and I assured her that I would make her one when I finished working, which I did in 2002.   A friend saw it and wondered if  I could make one for her and there you are; a new hobby.  Besides giraffes, I carve bowls, make yard birds from driftwood, and do some wood sculptures, mostly of fish.

I have been lucky to be able to use only found (or scrounged) wood.  My neighbors tolerate a bit of noise, and the little bit of dust generated in the garage is no big deal.  Most of my work starts with a chainsaw, followed by a Lancelot mounted on an angle grinder to do the rough shaping; with some detail done with a Foredom.  Sanding is done with a grinder and then a random orbital sander.  Acrylic paint works well for anything that needs painting, like most of the giraffes and yard birds. Bowls that might be used for food are finished with salad bowl wax that I make from beeswax and mineral oil.  Decorative bowls and sculptures are usually finished with Danish oil.

Kathy and I participate in a couple of shows and sales every year.  I have been entering a few items in the SPAC Show at the end of April in Sidney, and we have been part of the Art and Music in the Gardens event at the Horticultural Centre of the Pacific during the second weekend of August.  We have rented the ArtSea Gallery in Tulista Park for a week in June the last couple of years, and have been part of a show called “Sitting Pretty” at Coast Collective in the fall.  We also welcome people to visit us at home.