Man's Whetstone - Wood Carving
A hobby that started casually
Since I had some wood and a chisel at home, I decided to try carving wood and started wood carving.
The first thing I carved was my dog. I also made various things that I thought could be made, such as kagami mochi and flowers.
When I realized that my craft work as an elementary school student was an extension of my work, I was aiming to become a wood carver like an artist.
Making something that will remain in your heart
When you see a wood carving artist's work in a museum or collection, there are many such works in the world that make you think, ``Wow, this is amazing!'' at first glance. Some are recent works, while others are from 100 or more than 1000 years ago.
It's a hobby, but it's not just for my own satisfaction; I want to someday be able to create something that leaves a lasting impression on the people who see it, just like the artist did.
Sculpture is deeper and more interesting than I expected.
It's a hobby, so at first I think any method of carving is fine, and I think it's fine to use all your strength and whittle the wood as if you were banging it.
As I continued to carve wood, I started to pay more attention to the grain of the wood and did a lot of trial and error. You start to think about what to do and make decisions. I'm sure there's a place somewhere where the blade passes smoothly without any force. It's interesting to have such discoveries.
We still have a long way to go to figure out how to carve in the ideal shape, but we are aiming for a glossy cut surface when carved with a chisel.
Completion is the “charm”
First, think about what kind of wood carving design you want. I do things like sketches, and I wonder if I can get closer to the ideal I have envisioned as planned. How do we get this curved surface inside? Do you dare to drop this horn? There are some things that bother me.
Of course, there may be cases where the finished product turns out to be completely different from what you had imagined. Even so, I endlessly pursue my ideal as planned, and when I successfully complete it, I feel a great sense of accomplishment and fulfillment.
You can enjoy it because you can cut it.
You can sharpen the flat chisel (hirato) and into (into), but for the round knife (marutou) you need to prepare the whetstone yourself. When I say machining, I don't think about it in such a complicated way, and I simply scrape the surface of the whetstone using the largest round knife.
If sharpened well, the chisel blade will pass through easily. I think it may not be fun until you get used to sharpening, but little by little you will be able to sharpen.
Before you know it, you'll be able to sharpen it to some extent.
