Just the other day another carver published a photo on the Caricature Carving Face Book page that they had completed. It was a pretty good piece of work. Unfortunately, it was a direct copy of one of my pieces which wasn’t meant to be copied. As I stated on the first page of my website “All Images and Information on this site are under Copyright of Out West Gallery. Unauthorized use or duplication is expressly prohibited.” On seeing it I immediately advised the carver that that was a copyrighted piece and was not meant to be duplicated by others. They understood and kindly removed the photo.
I have always said that to really enjoy the art of carving is to strive to develop your own style of how you carve your pieces and to steer away from the constant duplication of your work. Doing this will, over time, will allow you to stand out from the crowd and be recognized as a true artist whose each piece of sculpture is original and not a duplication. That might sound a little egotistical but that’s okay! You’ve earned the right to be proud of what you’ve accomplished. The downside of being an original artist is that you have to protect your style from others who will be eager to copy it.
From the beginning of my carving experience I’ve always enjoyed passing on the methods I use to create my pieces. I gave those using these methods permission to duplicate the carvings used in the various projects we did together with the understanding that the pieces I created outside of these teaching projects were mine alone and not to be part of their learning experience. Now I know a lot of copying goes on that I might not be aware of. All I ask is to not make me aware of it because if I see it I will say something. In doing that I’m not being mean! I’m only being protective of my original work.
Below I’ve attached a number of photos to show just what my style is and how I strive to make each piece original. There are lots of Cowboys, Indians, Mountain Men, even a Clown, a French Chef, and a Chinese Cook! Some might look like another but not quite! There is just enough to make it my style and be original and that’s the two most important things to me.
Your comments are welcome!
