The Icelandic Canadian - 01.06.1963, Side 37

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
35
WOOD CARVING SKILL
The following appeared in the Camp-
bell River Courier, of Campbell River,
B.C.
Although few people know about it,
the Big Rock Area boasts a miniature
museum of wildlife.
It’s the living room of two longtime
residents, retired loggers and fishing
guides, Thor and Carl Erickson.
The mantlepieces of their neat home
are filled with lifelike carvings of over
100 birds, animals and fish.
Nearly all were carved by Thor,
with some help from his older brother.
STARTED AT 71
The amazing and interesting part
about it all is that Thor did not start
carving until four years ago, when he
was 71. His brother Carl, who admits
only to helping out with “some of the
rough work”, is 77 now.
An outdoorsman and conservation-
ist all his life, Thor decided to take
up carving for something to do.
“I used ito carve as a little boy but
when I started again four years ago, it
had been over 50 years since I had
done any.”
He uses a simple jacknife and
practically any kind of wood he can
get his hands on. He uses yellow cedar,
although it is not too easy to work
with. Maple is a good carving wood
he says, and he likes ito use pine cones
as the body of many animal carvings.
“Sometimes I get pieces of wood off
the beach in front of our place, and
sometimes friends give me some. I like
to work with wood that won’t crack.”
Once he gets an idea for a carving,
it takes about three days to complete
it.
GIVEN 200 AWAY
He estimates that he has carved
over 300 figures in the last four years.
“I’ve given most of them away, over
300 of them, to friends in England,
the southern USA and all parts of Can-
ada.”
Birds appear to be Thor’s favorite
subject, although many animals and
fish can be found in the appealing-
living room collection.
The carvings range in size from a
delicate hummingbird, about three
inches high, to a proud and stately
eagle, about a foot high.
All are amazingly lifelike and true
to nature because Thor has finished
them off by painting them in their na-
tural colors.
Among the birds in the collection
are carvings of an eagle, crane, willow
grouse, cormorant, terns, pheasants,
kingfishers, owls, sea gulls, ostrich and
duck. Animals include a buffalo, ra-
coons, weasels, skunk, moose and deer.
Fish carvings are of whales, salmon,
blackfish and sharks.
USES PINE CONES
It’s hard to imagine the use of pine
cones in the carving of animals and
birds. However, Thor has used them
perfectly to make an ostrich, owls, buf-
falo, bear and a ferocious looking
muskox. He uses only pine cones from
the mainland because they are firmer
and better shaped. “The cones around
here aren’t very good”, he says.
A pair of mussel shells add to the