The Next Great Whale (4).

The Last Leg of the Whale is 'In Progress'.

If my whale has a last leg then I'm on it

I bet I'll be at this painting job for 10 - 14 days because my daily schedule can only be considered 'full on.'

"But Gord, you're retired," some will say.

"Yes, and I have a motorcycle (Saturday looks perfect for a BLT and ice cream in Port Bruce), a couple of other jobs on my workshop agenda, a fun and fitness routine, the house is being painted, my wife is making soup (I'm her sidekick) and that's just Page One of my 'busy sheet'."

That being said, now that I have my paints and brushes lined up like ducks in a row, I will keep at it here and there, now and then.

 It's going to get messy before it's all done

 I'm not sure if the GREAT Canadian whale will look angry or happy!

Lots of room for the Toronto Maple Leaf : )

More to follow.

Please link to The Next Great Whale (3)

Photos GH

The Next Great Whale (3).

Almost Ready for the Maple Leaf.

Lots of sanding ahead.

I have done the chiseling, done the low relief. Soon I will be painting a Maple Leaf. But first I have to raise a lot of dust.

The sanding I have to do will take some time - it's fussy work - but will set me up for the lengthy final task, i.e, painting all surfaces, hopefully with a steady hand.

The rough surface of the Great Canadian Whale, Bruin, Stanley Cup, deep sea and outer edge of the pine board is more clearly seen in the following photographs:

White pine barn board has a rough surface for paint

The Bruin team better watch out next year, for sure!

 The small pine knot will soon become a hockey puck.

Below is a photograph revealing a 1950's Toronto Maple Leaf hockey crest. I may use that version of the crest as my inspiration for the Great Whale's own hockey jersey, the kind that won't shrink under water.

Yup, that's me circa late 1950s. Still a fan.

More 'work in progress' updates to follow.

Please link to The Next Great Whale (2)

Photos GH 

The Next Great Whale (2).

Low Relief = A Lot of Pine Shavings.

There will be a lot more shavings on the floor before I finish.

I think there is an official name for what I am doing with a set of palm chisels and pine slats. Bas-relief or low-relief sculpture is likely it, in which the picture depicted is part of the wall or material used, and is only a little bit thicker than the background. 

I often say "I'm busy carving a whale,' but because it is not a 3-D whale then 'carving' does not best describe what I'm doing. I'm sketching a picture and removing a lot of wood chips from around the picture, that's what I'm doing. And it takes time.

 Initial sketch of a Boston Bruin, ready to give up the game!

 Lots of work ahead, removing the wood's surface from around the outline.

The Great Whale's mission - secure the Stanley Cup!

The time to sand and paint is at least 3 - 4 days away.

Little by little I will remove a lot of the surface layer of the pine barn board before I give it all a good sanding. Adding to the detail, I will try to carve away the wood around the letter B on the Bruin's sweater - an idea suggested by my 6-year-old neighbour Evan. Then I will add a Toronto Maple Leaf to the side of the whale. Yipes.

Fun times ahead!

Please link to The Next Great Whale (1).

Photos GH

The Next Great Whale (1).

The Long and Winding Wooden Road.

This next woodworking project will take a bite out of my time.

You may not know this, but Canada is home to some pretty serious whales. They can be seen in the Atlantic, the Pacific and in the St. Lawrence River too (e.g., near the mouth of the Saguenay River in Quebec).

Then there's the lesser known and rarely seen Great Lake Ontario Whale. Large and feisty, living near Toronto, and quite the boisterous hockey fan I am told. And it's a fan - along with millions of land-lubbers - that is getting impatient for the return of the Stanley Cup to its chosen surf and turf.

This next woodworking art piece - started yesterday pm - is dedicated to this feisty, boisterous, true blue, impatient species.

Photos From The Workshop:

White pine barn board and a rough sketch are at the ready. 

This long-term enemy of the whale better watch out, I say

The sketch is almost done. Where's the Bruin?

Before adding the Bruin I started removing thin layers of wood with small chisels

Skimming off the wood is a lengthy process.

To be continued.

Please link to Whale At Play - Fini!

Photos GH

Whale At Play - Fini!

Is the Whale Just Goofing Around?

Methinks the whale is giving the wee boat the 'Evil Eye'

For the curious, I am going to say the whale is a Right Whale and a hungry one at that.

And I'm also going to say that the sailboat is in the wrong place at the wrong time, from the sailor's point of view at least.

"Oh yeah, that's the Evil Eye for sure!"

For those more knowledgeable than me - and there are more than a few readers like that out there - I will admit that the Right Whale is a pretty good size creature, with a good sized stomach, but it's not likely it would eat a small boat - or the family (with two young children) that is hiding under the gunwales in the scene above!

That being said, a lot of strange or unpredictable things can happen out in the ocean.

Today I will set up my table saw and cut the next few canvasses for a series of art projects related to whales. I have a lovely piece of white barn board (12" x 48") and another of dark western cedar (8" x 48") that I will divide easily into 4 - 6 smaller pieces. And thereafter I will be kept busy with palm chisels for quite some time.

More to follow.

PS. The following note appears on the backside of "Whale At Play."

Wrong place. Wrong time.

Please link to Workshop Variety Pack (3)

Photos GH

Workshop Variety Pack (3)

Several Projects Nearing Fini!

Birdhouse platform ready for pick up or delivery.

I sold one of my large birdhouses recently - a four-plex - and the buyer needed a platform for it and pole. Luckily I just happened to have some spare wood and a metal pole back at the workshop.

"All part of the plan, Gord?" someone might ask.

"Yyyyyup!"

Someone also might ask, "What's that old birdhouse doing on top of the red platform?"

It's sitting around waiting for repairs. I'll get to it soon.

 The unpainted wooden collar goes into the ground, for stability purposes.

 Ten-foot metal pole and sturdy platform and wooden collar.

I just have to add four screws to the underside of the platform.

Next up: I need to paint a wee sailboat and add second coats to white items.

When the white paint is dry I will add a title to this piece.

"Whale at Play"?

"Barney Eats His First Sailboat"?

Stay tuned.

Please link to Workshop Variety Pack (2).

Photos GH

Whale Time (6)

Slow But Easy Progress.

 Palm chisels from Lee Valley do most of the real work.

To do smaller versions of the real thing (e.g., whales in relief) all one needs is a pencil for sketching, a clean slab of wood, and a set of palm chisels from a reputable dealer, like Lee Valley. And don't forget the elbow grease.

I will continue the slow but easy progress as time allows. I am spending less time in the workshop now that my first spring sale is over and as writing projects come to the fore. That being said, I will putter around in the shop, hoping to complete a few more 'whales in relief' as the summer temperatures warm up the shop.

With a bit of sanding (and more elbow grease) I was able to clean up the whale after the first coat of light blue paint made it look as if it had been eating paint balls for lunch. The dark blue paint was applied a few days ago and - after sanding again - the sky now needs a second coat.

Then I can add black to the whale, white to the water line and out side of the frame, and primary colours to the wee sailboat.

"Add black to the whale":

Next up: White water line and outer edge. 

Slow but sure will win this race and I bet I'll be done by the end of June, as long as other workshop projects (related to birdhouses and repairs) don't pile up.

More to follow.

Please link to Whale Time (5).

Photos GH

Whale Time (5).

It Swallowed a Paintball?

[Last look at the cleaner than clean version.]

Yesterday afternoon, once I'd returned from the YMCA and mowed the front lawn, I propped up the nice, clean version of "Whale at Play" on my work bench and applied the first coat of blue paint.

["Looks pretty good from way back here!" I say.]

For the most part the first bit of painting went fairly quickly. But once I started the fussy edge work and spaces in tight corners - things got messy!

["Hey! Stay inside the lines," says one side of my brain.] 

["Looks like it ate a bag of paintballs!"]

I agree, it does look like the whale enjoys a side dish of paintball with its krill. But, once the paint is dry, a light sanding will remove excess paint, and I'll have smooth edges where they are needed.

No problemo, I say.

More to follow.

Please link to Whale Time (4).

Photos GH

Whale Time (4).

Playing with the Third Whale.

["Whale at Play" unpainted]

I thought I would try an art piece smaller than the first two, on 12 by 12-inch white pine barn board.

So far, so good, I think.

[The whale seems to be having a good time at any rate]

While removing a layer of wood from number three, my mind went back to the nice large "rectangular" shape of number two, and an idea sprang to mind that will likely become whale number four.

Number Two:

["Remember me? I'm actually a citizen of Canada, eh."]

My next project will likely be "The All-Canadian Whale", sporting a Canadian flag, maybe even with a large plate of poutine. Or, half-price wings from Morrissey House, London?

There are still small piles of wood in the shop waiting to be sanded and then turned into lovely log cabin birdhouses too (like the one below):

["Nice perch," I say!] 

So, when time allows, the workshop will be home to summertime hobbies 'on the go.'

Stay tuned.

Please link to Whale Time (3).

Photos GH

Whale Time (3).

Extra Extra Photos of Gord's Whales.

I had good fun making these first art pieces. (Yes, I quickly overused the phrase "had a whale of a time.")

Next projects -

Whale with a Sail.

The All-Canadian Whale

Extra, extra!

Please link to Whale Time (2).