Vashon Island news-record. [volume] (Vashon, Wash.) 1919-1954, 1923-09-14
VASHON SCULPTOR
PLANS LONG TRIP
Gunnar Usland to Make Tour
Of Coast With CoIlec-
tion Of Carvings.

On Sunday afternoon last Gun
mar Ugland, Vashon s well known
wood carver, kept open house for
his friends and neighbors. A large
and appreciative number passed
in and out of the big covered van
which he has built to house his
many interesting and unique carv-
ings.
AS preliminary to winter
tour which Mr.. Ugland is plan
ming to make, an exhibit will be
given at Vashon Saturday and
Monday, September 1917.
The collection of carvings, rep
resenting years of patient labor,
is well worth seeing. Animals in
different poses, cleverly carved
canes, pixies, treasure boxes, pic
ture frames, wall plaques, table
lamps, etc, make up a very in
teresting collection.
Mr.. Ugland is a native of Chris
tiansand, Norway. He comes from
long line Of wood workers
father and grandfathers on both
sides having been expert workers
in wood in the old country.
Mn. Ugland cannot remember
when he began carving objects
from wood. His earliest recollec
tion is that his hands were always
mass of knife cuts, as almost
his first plaything given him by
his father was knife. AS small
boy he was the neighborhood cow
herd and his companion through
the long summer days in the
mountains was a knife. Every
tree in the vicinity of his grazing
herd was covered with carvings
and lettering-the work of his
knife.
When Is years of age he emf
grated to America. With him
came his love of carving, which he
did at odd moments, mostly as
recreation. During his residence
IN this country he has done the
hardest kinds of manual labor,
having been miner, a teamster,
a fisherman, a ship and house car
penter and lastly farmer.
For many years Mr.. Ugland
worked in a desultory manner,
now and then selling piece of his
work, until at the age of 35 years
he became acquainted with man
who had had some training in
wood work. As this mans pupil
he rapidly assimilated all that the
friend could teach him, and in so
doing discarded the knife in fav-
or of the mallet and chisel.
The sculptor does not claim to
be an artist with the pencil or
brush, but given block of wood
he "sees into it," as he expresses
it, and with mallet and chisel he
rapidly shapes something that I'M
mediately proclaims him an art
lst. Although he carves many
different kinds of animals as well
as human figures, during the
greater part of his life he has been
interested in bears-grizzly bears
and he has spent many hours al
the bear pits in city parks study
ing these monster animals. In
so doing he has made a mental
picture of every line and express
sion of the grizzly until it is
doubtful if there is another artist
or naturalist in America who
knows the anatomy of a grizzly
bear as does Gumar Ugland. He
was drawn to this species of the
bear tribe because that animal of
fers variety of poses that make
his work utilitarian as wei las ar
tistic. His library table lamp
stands, which take the form of a
standing bear holding aloft a
lamp and shade, are the best ex-
amples.
His clever, but muscular hands,
have chisled out and carved hund-
reds of bear--big bears and little
bears, bears holding up lamps,
bears with packs on their backs,
bears bearing vases and vessels
and hears in every imaginable
..- IL L.. l.nunn.n % .,naG 49,,