MARYSVILLE — Four years of honing his craft finally paid off for Arlington’s Dave Mitchell. On April 18, he earned a first-place ribbon from the Quil Cedar Carvers during their 30th annual “Artistry in Wood” event at the Red Curtain Arts Center.
Mitchell was one of 60 carvers to contribute 179 carvings for the two-day event, and his multimedia rendition of a turtle crawling up a log, complete with lily pads and a dragonfly, won him first place in the intermediate category.
Mitchell estimated that it took 60 hours to put together his piece, which included metal sculpture as well as woodwork, and added that he wasn’t able to work on it every day as much as he wanted to.
“I like working with my hands,” said Mitchell, who credited the Quil Ceda Carvers with giving him the skills to channel his creative energies. “They’re wonderful teachers. I couldn’t have done it without them.”
Everett’s Dick Graham, the event’s featured carver, agreed with Mitchell that woodcarving is a relaxing process.
“I just like seeing what I end up with,” said Graham, who began his craft 21 years ago. “People look at these complicated pieces and say, ‘Oh, I can’t do that,’ but it just takes practice. Give it a try by starting with something simple.”
Wade Faries, a woodcarving instructor with the Quil Ceda Carvers, spoke glowingly of Red Curtain as a showcase for “Artistry in Wood,” even as he acknowledged that he’d hoped to see a bigger turnout. The event was aiming to attract as many as 250 carvers.
“It is a new venue, that’s unfamiliar to a lot of folks, plus the weather is really nice out,” Faries said. “We’ve had some of our best-attended shows in rain and snow.”
Faries reported the arts center was quite popular with attendees, and rated it as much more convenient than the state fairgrounds in Monroe.
“Just the simple things, like the fact that it has an even floor, with carpeting over the concrete, mean so much,” Faries said.
This year’s crowd drew carvers from as far off as Spokane, Kennewick, Oregon and British Columbia, as well as African carvers among its half a dozen vendors.
“If we can gain maybe three new carvers at each event, that makes it all worthwhile,” Faries said.
