Thread: China project

Uf,
Wow! what an extraordinary privilege to be part of an event like this. The final piece was quite something.

Do you have any good photos to share?

Warm regards

Derek

That is just an amazing project ! Wow ! What a wonderful experience.

Dude you've made it.

I found myself grinning like an idiot while watching that. What fun! I'd love a longer and more detailed look at the finished results. What happened to the end result anyway? I'm going to be in China later in the year. Can it/they be viewed by the public?

Ten days to bring it off. An extraordinary mental challenge. What fertilizer!
I liked not only the result but the spectrum of tools used in the opus.
I have not met another wood carver, face-to-face, in more than a decade.

Wow this is quite amazing

Ta folks..it was great BIG fun..
This was only the first project..the collaboration title decided on was "gate" ..so basically we built an arch in camphor.(about 5 tonnes) and they built their gate in 10,000 year old wood dug up on hainan island ( about 4 tonnes)..then we swapped them and worked on each others..the theme was "harmony between man and nature" we decided to fill the space with hung and pierced panels..A seed pod on the right transitioned through the panels from natural to man made, ending in the cogs on the left....(seemed like a good idea at the time)..quick decisions agreed on by 10 people were the order of the day

Please explain "10,000 year old wood dug up" I've never heard of such a thing. Wouldn't it be petrified? What was it like to work with?

Originally Posted by Whittling

Please explain "10,000 year old wood dug up" I've never heard of such a thing. Wouldn't it be petrified? What was it like to work with?

I couldn't find any interweb info on the "ancient wood" we used in China, However I have worked some very old (5-10,000 year) swamp Kauri in New Zealand and it is preserved and dug up the same way (see link)..
The Chinese are not sure but think it might be a species of swamp cypress..it machines, carves and finishes beautifully..
http://www.ancientkauri.co.nz/zealan...amp_kauri_wood
Here's a pic of one of the Chinese team working on a piece of it...

10,000 years is piddle for petrification. Maybe 100k, maybe 200k, depending on the mineralization of the water.
In a swampy place = no water circulation, little mineralization and anoxic for preservation = status quo. You will get either mineral replacement or mineral addition, if there's adequate flow, particularly in the aftermath of vulcanism.

I did wood from a mammoth BBQ (8,000yrs) and it cut 15 microns like I whacked the tree yesterday.
In this day and time, not a spruce (ID) within 1,000 miles of the site/post glacial. Must have been a big hit, the anthropologists figure they camped at the beast for 2+ weeks and ate as it cooked.

Wow. What an amazing project.

Huon pine is also dug up out the mud in SW Tassie and can be of a similar age


Iggy

Fabulous stuphph Jon!!

Just to have been there as a spectator would have been good for the soul!!

That was brilliant Jon, you'll cherish that experience for life.