Relief Carving
Detail of fireplace surround by Chris Pye, relief carving, 1999. (Height of mouse is one inch.)
Detail of limewood bedstead by Chris Pye
Chris Pye and student
Chris Pye
July 21 – 25
Chris developed this course over years of teaching beginners in his Herefordshire studio and then turned it into a book: Relief Carving: A Practical Introduction (GMC Publications, 1998), which serves as the course text. During the week, Chris leads students step-by-step through two projects designed to give them a thorough grounding in low-relief and high-relief carving.
The course offers a strong foundation in carving skills applicable to decorative panels, architectural details, and furniture. Students develop a confident understanding of the functions of the various carving tools and how to sharpen and handle them; relief design and working wood grain; lining in, grounding out, setting in, modeling, and undercutting; finishing from the chisel; and many other aspects of the carving process.
From his studio in Herefordshire, England, Chris Pye works on a broad spectrum of commissions, including lettering, heraldry, furniture ornamentation, architectural carving, and sculpture. A Member of the Master Carvers Association, clients include HRH the Prince of Wales. Chris has some thirty years of experience as a carver, and is the author of five books published by GMC Publications Ltd.: Woodcarving Tools, Materials, and Equipment (1994; 2002), Carving on Turning (1995), Lettercarving in Wood (1997), Relief Carving – A Practical Introduction (1998) and Elements of Woodcarving (2000). He has also produced three DVDs which are available through his website: www.chrispye-woodcarving.com.