A Visit to Portland

While on vacation two months ago I visited Portland, Oregon, with my wife and my dear friend Amy. We stayed at a motel near the airport, which had  lovely pond located very nearby. Growing by that pond were many Queen Anne's Lace flowers. True to their name, the flowers were white and lacy, and very delicate in appearance. I plucked one, took it to my room, and drew it. That drawing is the basis for the right panel of my latest carving, seen below.
The left panel is also derived from Portland, but is not taken from nature. It was based on "Black Shino Unglazed Vase", a graceful ceramic pot featured at the Portland Art Museum, done by a wonderful Japanese ceramicist named Kobayashi Hideo. The curved lines found at the base of it inspired me to use similar lines in my carving. As in often the case, the act of carving altered the idea, and the lines became at once more crude and more graphic than in the pot. They reminded me of South Sea island carvings, or African carvings, and were a great counterpoint to the delicacy of the flower on the right side.
This artwork, then, is a tribute to Portland, and the variety of experiences - natural or cultural - that can be found there.