About the Artist
As a budding “new” artist in my 50’s I have always had an artistic flair from a young age, mostly with pencil. My fondest memories were sitting for countless hours drawing my superheroes from my comic books. I still have the pictures my Mother framed from my childhood. But alas, art gave way to reality, when I went off to school and I enjoyed a 30 year professional career before returning to art as a hobby.
Originally a prairie boy from a small potash mining town in Saskatchewan, I moved to Calgary, Alberta in the early 90’s and have lived there most of my adult life. If you are not familiar with this part of the world, it is approximately 1 hour east of Banff National Park bordering the Rocky Mountains, and it is home to an amazing array of wildlife and picturesque scenery. With regularity one can see deer, moose, coyote, elk, caribou, black bear, and grizzly bear if one is patient and knows where to go. While I do include some inspiring stock photos on this site, many of the photo’s of the mountain-scapes and the wildlife on the site are my own, typically just taken with my camera on my phone. It truly is a beautiful part of the globe that should be on your bucket list for travel!
In addition to Alberta, I was also lucky enough to get the opportunity to live in Eastern Australia recently for close to 7 years. Again an absolutely breathtaking part of the world, where thousands of tourists a year travel across the globe to experience world class beaches and be close to the ocean, paralleling Calgary where they come for the spectacular Rocky Mountains and its incredible wildlife.
A byproduct of this natural beauty that both areas also share is the proliferation of local artisans in the area. Most living minimalist lives, close to their source of inspiration, each with unique perspectives and mediums in which to express their art.
It holds true that you don't appreciate what you have until it is gone and when I returned to Canada in 2017, I gained a new appreciation for the majesty of the Rocky Mountains and its inhabitants. Living so close, it is not uncommon to witness these incredible creatures on a regular basis if you know where to look. I was inspired!
So I set out to create my own art. Functional in design, self supporting, able to stand alone prominently on display. It was only when a friend introduced me to some antler carving pictures online that something clicked. Shortly thereafter as fate would have it, I was enjoying a beer with my neighbor, an avid outdoorsman, and I showed him the online pictures and told him of my plans. What a great neighbor! “I’ve got 2 moose paddles in the garage you can have if you want?” he says. I could have kissed him. All I can say is I was hooked!
My goal was to create quality, stand alone pieces of art that reflect the scenes in nature responsible for producing these naturally shed canvases. And although we live on the edge of a major city, these incredible creatures literally live in and around my local neighborhood. Within a 5 minute walk of our home in suburbia, my wife & I, and our 2 off-leash dogs came around a corner to find ourselves face to face with a young bull moose calmly munching on some leaves. I was amazed our dogs listened to us as we slowly backed away, and we were left in awe and breathless at the experience. If you have never seen a moose up close in the wild it is an awesome experience. Check out the actual video on my home page above.
Each piece is a unique design, taking anywhere from 30 to 80 hours to complete depending on the size and complexity of my design. Is a piece ever truly "finished" in the eye of the artist? Most of my larger pieces are also lit with integrated LED lamps providing ambiance and atmosphere, and have integral antler stands/bases such that the pieces are typically free-standing and on display would enhance any bar, restaurant or living room. I use no paint or pigments in the making of my carvings. All coloring in each piece is natural to the antler itself and the images photographed are as carved with only relief contouring and shadows used to define the image. All are done by hand using my trusty Dremel 4000 rotary tool in my little workshop in my garage.
All of my antlers are ethically sourced locally from “shed hunter” enthusiasts in the area. Naturally shed antlers are exactly that. Ungulates such as deer, moose, and elk go through an annual cycle where their antlers shed typically early in the year, and then regenerate over the summer. One of my joys in going through this process has been getting to know this huge community on the web dedicated to the "shed hunting" hobby and post regularly about their treasure hunts and finds.
It is illegal in Alberta to sell any antler harvested from a hunted animal unless you have the proper permitting and strict requirements are met. As such, all pieces listed as available for sale are ethically sourced from a naturally shed antler.
As I am also available for commissioned projects, please visit my Shop page and select Commissions for more information.
I hope you get as much enjoyment from my work as much as received from creating it. I appreciate and welcome any feedback or comments you may have.
Nature is the balm of the soul!
Cheers
P/z
“Art is a harmony parallel with nature”
