Turning Roots (Sculp/Turns)

As variations in a solid bowl blank occur, such as bark inclusions, natural of bark edges, voids, knot holes of roots, the complexity in turning increases. Turning a salad bowl is the least complex, while turning hollow forms and roots are considered advanced turning. The turner often must adapt turning techniques to meet the challenges of turning root balls. Often the turner will turn the outside of the root ball form; then partially turn the inside the form, then return to the outside to refine the shape before finishing the piece. Additionally the spinning roots present problems to the turner not only in safety but also in construction. Spinning at 1000 rpms the natural edge of a bowl, in this case roots , become a blur, invisible to the eye, so the turner has to intuitively know where these roots are at during the turning process. Many times the roots are so fragile that they must be carved rather than turned which increases their fragility during the turning process. Unlike a bark edged bowl, nature does not always put roots symmetrically around the trunk, which ads to design problems. However when all things are correct, a turned/carved root wood art form is most unusual and always one of a kind piece. Wood art objects which are both turned and carved to bring out the natural features of the wood's character. No added wood or dyes are used in making these wooden art treasures. These sculptures show motion and contrasts through the manipulation of the wood to highlight their hidden beauty.