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AN INTRICATE HOBBY: PROFESSIONAL WOOD CARVER'S WORK EARNS HIM A TRIP TO SWITZERLAND TO TRAIN WITH A MASTER
Joyce Rudolph
Glendale News Press
http://www.glendalenewspress.com/entertainment/tn-gnp-carver-20100825,0,6005202.story
Aug 24 2010
CA
Upon first glance, the block of wood looked like it had been covered
with tangled pieces of plastic. But upon closer observation, the
intricate grapes and graceful vines take form. And when the artist
lifts back the top, an empty compartment is revealed.
The pear wood jewelry box was created by Glendale woodcarver Nairi
Safaryan and won top honors in the Woodcraft and Pfeil Carving Artistry
Contest in April. The prize was a four-day, three-night trip to Brienz,
Switzerland, and private carving training with master carver Paul Fuchs
at the Kantonale Schnizlerschule Brienz woodcarving school. Safaryan
and another winner took the trip in June.
"The Fuchs family has had four generations of woodcarvers," Safaryan
said. "We had a half day of training each day, and then they took us
to see museums the other half of the day."
Safaryan is a world-class carver, Lori Milner, marketing manager for
contest sponsor Woodcraft, said in an e-mail.
"The ornate pear wood jewelry box he entered into the Woodcraft &
Pfeil Carving Artistry Contest is incredibly unique and extremely
well done," she said. "He is an artist that is able to translate his
vision through his hands and carving ability."
Safaryan has several contemporary works in the del Mano Gallery in
Los Angeles, said Ray Leier, gallery partner. There are three major
works and a half-dozen or more smaller pieces on display.
"I think his work is fabulous," Leier said. "He's really got his own
style. Some of his pieces are downright sexy."
The 24-inch-high pieces depict women in gowns, he said.
"They are dressed to the nines and carved out of one piece of wood,
and that's what I mean by being downright sexy," Leier said. "It's
sensual, not erotic. You know how you get a gesture when someone
stands or looks a certain way? It's very alluring and beautiful."
Safaryan also carves 8- to 10-inch-high, single figures that look
like they are emanating from a high heel.
"It goes into a woman's form that is just beautiful," Leier said.
Safaryan has been carving since he was a child.
"I carved things out of the chalk used on the blackboard at school,"
he said. "I mostly carved faces."
His parents wanted to encourage his talent and gave him his first
saw at age 4.
"The first time I used the saw, I cut off the wood supports under
our dinner table," he said. "My parents just shrugged and said
'He's learning.'"
Safaryan was an electrical engineer in Armenia until the fall of the
Soviet Union when the company he worked for dropped from 120 employees
to 20, he said.
He decided to switch to his hobby of woodcarving and was able to make
a living at it, he said.
The catalyst for his intricate style of carving was a visit to a folk
museum in Armenia, where he saw several items carved with grapes,
vines and leaves.
While those works were made up of many wood pieces, Safaryan instead
uses one block of wood and carves several layers deep into it.
"I use power tools, and 90% of the time I use a hand chisel," he said.
He met an American visiting Armenia who liked his work and started
selling his carvings in the United States. In 2002, the owners of a
gallery in Las Vegas invited Safaryan to live in their home while he
taught his style of carving at a nearby training center.
"They would take me to other galleries," he said. "They provided me
with a place to live and food for free."
They also brought him to galleries in California and encouraged him
to submit his wood carvings in the annual show sponsored by Smoky
Hollow Carvers, Chapter 45, in La Crescenta Park. He won the Best of
Show and the People's Choice Award in 2002.
"He's basically a professional carver, which makes him stand out
from the amateurs who usually enter our shows," said George Smith,
the group's president. "His work is quite unique, and that in itself
makes him stand out over other people."
From: A. Papazian
Joyce Rudolph
Glendale News Press
http://www.glendalenewspress.com/entertainment/tn-gnp-carver-20100825,0,6005202.story
Aug 24 2010
CA
Upon first glance, the block of wood looked like it had been covered
with tangled pieces of plastic. But upon closer observation, the
intricate grapes and graceful vines take form. And when the artist
lifts back the top, an empty compartment is revealed.
The pear wood jewelry box was created by Glendale woodcarver Nairi
Safaryan and won top honors in the Woodcraft and Pfeil Carving Artistry
Contest in April. The prize was a four-day, three-night trip to Brienz,
Switzerland, and private carving training with master carver Paul Fuchs
at the Kantonale Schnizlerschule Brienz woodcarving school. Safaryan
and another winner took the trip in June.
"The Fuchs family has had four generations of woodcarvers," Safaryan
said. "We had a half day of training each day, and then they took us
to see museums the other half of the day."
Safaryan is a world-class carver, Lori Milner, marketing manager for
contest sponsor Woodcraft, said in an e-mail.
"The ornate pear wood jewelry box he entered into the Woodcraft &
Pfeil Carving Artistry Contest is incredibly unique and extremely
well done," she said. "He is an artist that is able to translate his
vision through his hands and carving ability."
Safaryan has several contemporary works in the del Mano Gallery in
Los Angeles, said Ray Leier, gallery partner. There are three major
works and a half-dozen or more smaller pieces on display.
"I think his work is fabulous," Leier said. "He's really got his own
style. Some of his pieces are downright sexy."
The 24-inch-high pieces depict women in gowns, he said.
"They are dressed to the nines and carved out of one piece of wood,
and that's what I mean by being downright sexy," Leier said. "It's
sensual, not erotic. You know how you get a gesture when someone
stands or looks a certain way? It's very alluring and beautiful."
Safaryan also carves 8- to 10-inch-high, single figures that look
like they are emanating from a high heel.
"It goes into a woman's form that is just beautiful," Leier said.
Safaryan has been carving since he was a child.
"I carved things out of the chalk used on the blackboard at school,"
he said. "I mostly carved faces."
His parents wanted to encourage his talent and gave him his first
saw at age 4.
"The first time I used the saw, I cut off the wood supports under
our dinner table," he said. "My parents just shrugged and said
'He's learning.'"
Safaryan was an electrical engineer in Armenia until the fall of the
Soviet Union when the company he worked for dropped from 120 employees
to 20, he said.
He decided to switch to his hobby of woodcarving and was able to make
a living at it, he said.
The catalyst for his intricate style of carving was a visit to a folk
museum in Armenia, where he saw several items carved with grapes,
vines and leaves.
While those works were made up of many wood pieces, Safaryan instead
uses one block of wood and carves several layers deep into it.
"I use power tools, and 90% of the time I use a hand chisel," he said.
He met an American visiting Armenia who liked his work and started
selling his carvings in the United States. In 2002, the owners of a
gallery in Las Vegas invited Safaryan to live in their home while he
taught his style of carving at a nearby training center.
"They would take me to other galleries," he said. "They provided me
with a place to live and food for free."
They also brought him to galleries in California and encouraged him
to submit his wood carvings in the annual show sponsored by Smoky
Hollow Carvers, Chapter 45, in La Crescenta Park. He won the Best of
Show and the People's Choice Award in 2002.
"He's basically a professional carver, which makes him stand out
from the amateurs who usually enter our shows," said George Smith,
the group's president. "His work is quite unique, and that in itself
makes him stand out over other people."
From: A. Papazian