West Coast Eisteddfod 2011 Lovespoon - Video Blog

LINKS

David Western's Portland Eisteddfod Lovespoon

Fine Art of Carving Lovespoons: Understanding, Designing, and Carving Romantic Heirlooms

 
"The Fine Art of Carving Lovespoons" An Interview with David Western

Portland Lovespoon 2010 Finished!!

Laura Gorun collaborated with David on the design of the 2010 Left Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon. See an excerpt from the blog here:-

David Western and Laura Gorun's Left Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon Blog, 6 April 2010,

See the West Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon at the AmeriCymru table at NAFOW and the W.C.E :-

NAFOW

West Coast Eisteddfod

From the Wikipedia

'The lovespoon is a traditional craft that dates back to the seventeenth century. Over generations, decorative carvings were added to the spoon and it lost its original practical use and became a treasured decorative item to be hung on a wall.

The earliest known dated lovespoon from Wales, displayed in the St Fagans National History Museum near Cardiff, is from 1667, although the tradition is believed to date back long before that. The earliest dated lovespoon worldwide originates from Germany, and is dated as 1664.

The lovespoon was given to a young woman by her suitor. It was important for the girl's father to see that the young man was capable of providing for the family and woodworking.

Sailors would often carve lovespoons during their long journeys, which is why anchors would often be incorporated into the carvings.

Certain symbols came to have specific meanings: a horseshoe for luck, a cross for faith, bells for marriage, hearts for love, a wheel supporting a loved one and a lock for security, among others. Caged balls indicated the number of children hoped for. Other difficult carvings, such as chains, were as much a demonstration of the carver's skill as a symbolic meaning.

Although the Welsh lovespoon is the most famous there are also traditions of lovespoons in Scandinavia and some parts of Eastern Europe, which have their own unique styles and techniques.

Today lovespoons are given as wedding and anniversary gifts, as well as birthday, baby gifts, Christmas or Valentine's Day gifts. They are now mostly seen as a folk craft.'

2011 West Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon Complete!!!!!

Reproduced with permission from David Western's Portland Eisteddfod Lovespoon Blog

TA DAAAA!

2011 West Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon

Front View ( click to enlarge image )

The 2011 Eisteddfod Lovespoon is finally done!   I am just applying a few coats of oil to bring up the colouration and to protect it from the elements a bit and then it will be ready to go!   I'm really pleased with how it has turned out...the wood has a soft amber tone with flecks of colour from the spalting which give it some real liveliness.  The design worked out as I had hoped it would with the dragon being dominant, but not overwhelming (or cliche).  I'm also delighted with how the contest designs worked out.  They are all very eye-catching and relevant....I'm glad I didn't have to decide which ones went on there though, there were a lot of really good ideas!   I think my favourite part of this year's spoon is the look of the knotwork.  I'm very pleased with how soft and 'organic' the birch makes the knots look; they are very touchable!!!   I think this year's spoon is a very unique design which will go very nicely on some lucky donor's wall!!!

2011 West Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon

Back View ( click to enlarge image )

This year I included L.C.E. 2011 on the back surface of the design...even though I know the official name of the event is the West Coast Eisteddfod, the seditious side of my nature couldn't help itself, and I reached back to the event's original moniker, The Left Coast Eisteddfod-- cheeky yes, but who is going to stop me??)  I thought we should commemorate the event in a way which was both noticeable AND unobtrusive (with contradictory ideas like THAT, I should have been a politician!!) so I figured some thin lettering along the back of the spoon would be the way to do it!   With the knotwork carved as thoroughly on the back as it is on the front, the spoon will cast some nice viewing shadows when hung on display and the shadows will help to give the knotwork even more depth!

This spoon represents a great deal of thought, time and effort and I hope that you are as pleased with the results as I am.   The whole purpose of carving the spoon has been, and continues to be, to raise funds which will be used to stage our Eisteddfod.   It is my hope that you agree the West Coast Eisteddfod is a great idea worthy of your support and that you will consider donating a dollar or two even if you don't think you'll be able to attend. Every dollar you donate equals a chance to win this spoon and I thank you in advance for your kind donations!

West Coast Eisteddfod L.A. Lovespoon 2011 - And The Winners Are......

Harp/Cerdd design for L.A. Lovespoon 2011

Reproduced with permission from DavidWestern Lovespoons 

After due deliberation David is pleased to announce the winners of the design element competition for this years West Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon . The finished piece which will be on display at the event at the Barnsdall Art Center between September 23rd and 25th, incorporates three design elements which were selected by popular suggestion and vote both here and on the AmeriCymru website . From an initial list of about 30 suggestions the final slate was whittled down to just five contenders. Here are the three winners:-

3. Cerdd:  The harp is seen as the symbol of Welsh music (Cerdd is the word for music in Welsh). The Welsh are renowned for their musicality and music is always an important part of the Eisteddfod experience.

2. The Awen:   Awen is a Welsh word for "(poetic) inspiration". Used historically to describe the poetic inspiration of the bards, it is a beautifully apt and very stylish symbol for an Eisteddfod spoon!

1. This lovely design by Laura Gorun includes the ever popular Welsh Daffodils and leeks. These iconic symbols of Wales are always a beautiful addition to any lovespoon design!

The Harp design won outright with 24.36% of the vote whilst the Daffodils and Awen both tied for second place with 21.79%. The winners each of whom will receive a copy of David's book, "The Fine Art of Carving Lovespoons" are:-

1. Jennifer Brodeur
2. Brian Y Tarw Lwyd
3. Laura Gorun 

Many thanks to all who contributed designs and/or voted in the competition. We will present the first two named winners with their prizes at the West Coast Eisteddfod in September and Laura's copy will be mailed.

Please don't forget that the principal purpose of all this is to raise funds for this years event. So if you have a few ( or many ) dollars to spare please consider buying a few tickets for the grand prize draw which will take place at the Eisteddfod. You can enter the prize draw via the 'Donate' button in the right hand column on David Western's Lovespoon Blog or in the left hand column on AmeriCymru.net.

Bookmark this blog for further developments and to follow the creation of this unique work of art.

Time To Go to the Polls

Reproduced with permission from David Western's Lovespoon Blog 

As Canadians head to the polls to elect a new government, I thought this would be a perfect time for a vote on which three of the following 5 carefully selected choices will be the ones to use on the West Coast Eisteddfod 2011 Lovespoon. Vote early and vote often...just kidding about the often...but do vote which designs you'd like included on the finished spoon.

We had loads of suggestions to choose from and have gone with the following designs. We're keeping the names hidden until the voting is over so that there can be no claims of favouritism and no vote rigging etc.. Many of the ideas we received were in text form, so I have interpreted them as best I could.

1. This lovely design includes the ever popular Welsh Daffodils and leeks. These iconic symbols of Wales are always a beautiful addition to any lovespoon design!

2. The Awen:   Awen is a Welsh word for "(poetic) inspiration". Used historically to describe the poetic inspiration of the bards, it is a beautifully apt and very stylish symbol for an Eisteddfod spoon!

3. Cerdd:  The harp is seen as the symbol of Welsh music (Cerdd is the word for music in Welsh). The Welsh are renowned for their musicality and music is always an important part of the Eisteddfod experience.

4. Gair (Use the picture of the book and pen) Gair (the Welsh word for 'word') is symbolized by a book and quill. As fluid and sonorous with their language as they are with their singing, Welsh literature is a vital component of Eisteddfod competitioin.

5. Celf:   To represent Celf (the Welsh word for art) I have used an old fashioned movie camera and a Hollywood Star. Because this year's Eisteddfod is happening in Los Angeles, the movie industry seemed the perfect representative for the arts community as it relates to the Eisteddfod.

So there you go!!! Pick the 3 you like best and we'll see which ones wind up on the spoon!!

And in case you have forgotten what the spoon looks like, here it is roughed out but with the three circular areas left untouched. I'm excited to see which designs will be selected and even more excited to carve them onto the spoon! Every year the West Coast Eisteddfod gets better and better and it is my fervent hope that the spoons we carve for it get better too.

Please remember you can win this spoon!! Everyone who donates to the Eisteddfod gets a chance to win...each dollar equals one chance, so the more you donate, the better your odds!

From David Western's Lovespoon Blog: "Here be Dragons!"

I have finally reached the crowning section of the Left Coast Eisteddfod lovespoon and will now enjoy some time bringing the guardian dragon to life. I have 'ummed and ahhed' about how I am going to tackle this little chap and have decided to carve him 'in the round' (fully 3 dimensional). The walnut I am using is of a sufficient thickness to handle it, so I think that it is the way to go.

I have been calling him "Dafydd the Dragon" as I've been working on the spoon, but I but have now decided that because Dafydd is my name, he should be called something else.

So I've decided to throw a little competition to name him and it's open to anyone who wishes to offer a good alternative. Sorry, that there are no grand prizes for this, only the glory of having the name you suggest become the dragon's name for the duration of the carving and hopefully beyond when the lucky winner takes him home! In two weeks I'll get Gaabi and Ceri to pick the winner and we'll have an official naming! That will also be my incentive to get him done! Now you may be wondering why I say it is a he when it could conceivably be a she...and there is no valid reason that I could defend in a court of law for that...I've just had the feeling he is, a he!! So there you go, if you can think of a good name for him and are inclined to send it to us; give it a shot!

I'm going to break up the carving into 3 sections for the blog. I'll round out his body and shape the back scales first, then I will move on to the head and finally, I'll shape out the wings. This week is the body.

I've decided that I want to really exaggerate the scales along his back when I carve him, so I've excavated fairly deeply in those sections. I'm hoping that will help cast a nice shadow when he hangs on the wall and will generate a feeling of movement.

Once the scales have taken shape, I will start rounding the body, legs and tail sections. My plan is to leave him 'from the knife' (that is with the cut marks clearly visible in the form of facetting) rather than to smooth him down too much. I think that leaving him facetted will make for a more vibrant and lively carving, especially when viewed from a few feet away. It will also echo the idea of a scaley skin rather than looking too smooth and featureless.

Here's how he looks so far. I have roughed out the flow of his tail and put a nice tip on it, shaped the scales and rounded the front half of the body, started shaping the leg and have ramped the chest down so that the knotwork which will become his tongue can pass over.

Next week I'll shape the neck and head and will clean up the tongue knot. I also have an idea for the eye which will either be a complete success or a total calamitous disaster...stay tuned!

In the meantime, the Left Coast Eisteddfod welcomes any and all donations! . Please consider gifting this exciting cultural event! Every dollar you donate entitles you to a ticket in the draw for this very lovespoon!