Friday, July 26, 2013

Jim Harkness carving, Red-breasted Merganser

Red-breasted Merganser Wood Carving
by Jim Harkness

     At an auction the other night I was very fortunate to be able to obtain the carving depicted below. It was done by Jim Harkness of Stayner, ON.
     From the very beginning (1975) Harkness' work has been characterized by a strong graphic simplicity. The material used is basswood and white pine, cut with a bandsaw and then shaped by hand with files. When the carving is ready for its decorative finish it is painted with oil stains and enamels and is coated with varnish. 
    Harkness' signature style is immediately recognizable and all of his carvings of birds portray the same stylized representation of his subject. The flowing lines and utter simplicity of this piece are reminiscent of the finest era of duck decoy making in Ontario.
    


 Art washes from the soul the dust of every day life.  Pablo Picasso

Marcadores: ,
David M. Gascoigne,
David M. Gascoigne,

I'm a life long birder. My interests are birds, nature, reading, books, outdoors, travel, food and wine.

6 comments:

  1. The Furry Gnome26 July 2013 at 20:16

    What a beautiful carving.

    ReplyDelete
  2. David M. Gascoigne,26 July 2013 at 21:49

    Thanks very much. I am quite thrilled with it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous7 January 2014 at 17:53

    Ha! I just found a Mallard (I did not know I needed one) in a thrift shop. It is beautiful, so this one must be as well. Kind regards, Simone

    ReplyDelete
  4. David M. Gascoigne,7 January 2014 at 18:12

    Congratulations. I am sure you got a good deal in a thrift shop!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Marty McFly3 April 2017 at 10:40

    Hi David, I have a carving of a Red Throated Loon by Jim dated 1981. It's in very good condition. Any idea what it might be worth? Regards, Martin Brown Burlington Ontario

    ReplyDelete
  6. Unknown31 March 2018 at 01:45

    Searching online for duck carvings my uncle made. Remember clearly as a kid visiting and seeing his studio with so many work in progress works of art. So proud of him

    ReplyDelete

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