Make the wood chips fly!  This course is for students ready to stand at the chopping block and to learn to use classic wooden bowl-carving hand tools—the adze, axe, gouge and push knife. Topics to be explored include selection of wood stock, elements of bowl design, strategies for hand-hewing, use of sharpening skills, and techniques for finishing. Students start with a birch log and end with a spectacular bowl (or two!) with graceful lines and smooth surfaces.  The shape and style of the bowl connects directly to how the tools themselves function—the classic hand-crafted lines echo the Scandinavian bowl-carving tradition that reaches back hundreds of years.

During the shaping of the bowl, students learn to use appropriate tools and holding devices such as wedges and blocking. Both a chopping block and a bowl-carving bench will be utilized. A variety of tools, books on traditional bowl carving, and other resource materials are provided for students to use during the workshop. Techniques for managing the drying of a greenwood bowl will also be covered. As time allows, students may experiment with a second bowl style, if desired.