Carving a Figure - The Female Form - DVD
by Ray Gonzalez
Published by Guild of Master Craftsman Publications Ltd, East Sussex UK
R.R.P.$29.90
ISBN 978-1-56523-413-0
As reviewed in The Australian Woodworker Issue 145
The female figure is one of the most difficult forms - some would say the most difficult - to paint, carve or photograph.
In addition to anatomical correctness, the artist must capture the fluidity and grace that we associate with beautiful women.
The task is simply beyond artists who have only limited experience and it is no accident that the masters of the past have mostly come to the creation of their greatest female nudes late in their careers.
The purpose of Carving a Figure: The Female Form by Ray Gonzalez is to try to substantially shorten the period between starting to carve and creating a masterful female figure.
This is not, however, a video for the novice. It is aimed at woodcarvers who have already notched up a fair degree of experience in the craft and who are looking towards making a major step forward.
Ray Gonzalez is a well known woodcarver who owns and manages his own workshop employing several other craftspeople performing traditional woodcarving.
He is perhaps best known away from his home in the UK for his development of the Ray Gonzalez hooked skew chisel, now a popular woodcarving tool.
The video follows the creation of a specific piece - a naked female form for which heavy paper templates are provided inside the DVD box.
Although Gonzalez is shown drawing the original shape of this piece, no such exercise is expected of the student.
Instead, the actual work begins with the selection of a blank workpiece to the specifications supplied and the laying out of the cutting procedure using the templates.
From this time onwards, the student is asked to follow the video carefully and copy virtually every movement, first in bandsawing the blank and then in carving the figure.
The voice over is professional and unintrusive. It never detracts from the work in hand. There are long periods of silence as Gonzalez demonstrates how to use the various tools - from carving chisels and rifflers to power carving devices and handheld sanding pads.
The many close-ups are brilliantly lit and every movement of the tools can be seen clearly without a trace of visual ambiguity.
The production values of this DVD are very high, ably complementing the artistic values of the presenter and his subject.
Duration: 120min