Making it big by carving small

Wood-carver Ward English loves creating wooden bowls and vases just inches high, which should be pretty easy after all those years of making battleships and building houses.

English has traded big and practical for tiny and cute.

But don't expect this fellow's artistic heart and hands to be disappointed with such scaled-down creations. That's because English is actually getting in touch with his very beginnings with wood, back when he was young and loved to whittle anything little.

"I started out with a pocketknife when I was just 6. I'd make little animals. I even had teacher's permission to bring my knife to school. I could be in study hall and quickly carve out a little bear."

It turns out that English made most of his toys as a kid. Some of his favorites were the four-inch rifles he would carve so he and pals could play cowboys and Indians. And yes, he carved wee bows and arrows, too.

When he got a bit older, English started gluing and nailing wooden pieces together to create everything from dump trucks to airplanes that really flew - for a ways, at least.

"I always just loved wood. It's just something you can express your ideas with."

These days, at age 82, English is retired from making big stuff for a living. Instead he makes small carvings in a variety of styles and sells them at miniature and art shows around the

state.

His wife, Ardella, is also an artist. They both belong to Yuma Potpourri Artists and will be featured during an art show Feb. 1-3 at the fairgrounds.

"Ward is an exceptional craftsman," raved Hunter, president of the Potpourri group. "His work is just incredible."

English's abilities probably reflect a mix of natural-born talent and the fruits of simply having manned a knife for so long.

As a youngster growing up in rural Idaho, he was first exposed to wood working through his father.

"My family was pretty average people just trying to make a living. My father was a carpenter and a part-time blacksmith, but never made enough money to buy groceries."

English helped with his father's carpentry business and had built an entire two-bedroom house with him by age 14.

But it was at 15 when he started to build on the big stuff. That's when he left home with some buddies and headed to Portland, Ore., where they helped the war effort behind World War II by working in the shipyards.

English climbed scaffolding several stories high to weld pieces of ship together from both inside and out as the ship rested in dry dock. He later helped repair battleships at another location, getting the honor of helping out such famous ships as the Ticonderoga, Kearsarge and Yorktown.

One job wasn't quite for him, however.

"In those days you changed jobs, always looking for something better every couple years."

English lived up to that belief, too, going from buying a service station to attending business college, selling used cars, working at a bank and trying his hand at logging. He also did custom grain harvesting for awhile.

But those were just his jobs. English's careers ranged from owning a cabinet-making shop to building houses for a living and lastly working as a long-distance truck driver.

English figures he built more than 100 houses in those years. But once he hung up his hammer, English hit the road, driving a truck for 20 years. Based out of Washington state, he mostly hauled furniture and made the lengthy run from Seattle to Miami about once a month.

"Oh, I loved it. I loved the travel."

English retired in 1993.

"But all those years, I always had my relaxing woodworking hobby," he said, listing all the neat things he built for fun.

One of his favorite projects was a wood boat, a 16-footer complete with two seats and a 40-horsepower motor. He also made at least a dozen smaller boats to sell.

These days, though, his projects can literally be piled up in one hand. In addition to the little bowls and vases, English carves everything from clocks to pens.

Instead of whittling shapes into form, he now focuses on a technique called turning. This process involves pieces of wood being spun 'round and 'round by a machine as English cuts away with various tools.

"You use a real light touch. You learn to feel the wood."

English amazes his contemporaries in many ways, but they are particularly impressed that his hands are so steady and nimble, despite some considerable physical challenges.

He was born with deformed ring fingers, which were eventually removed. Then arthritis caused considerable harm to his remaining fingers, forcing them into a sideways slant.

But English doesn't see anything getting in his way. "I really don't notice it. You learn to do with what you've got."

Besides, he and the wood are old pals by now and they certainly know how to work together.

"Some pieces of wood determine their shape for you. Sometimes when you're turning, all these different colors and patterns will show up.

"You don't know when it's going to stop. You start out with one idea and all of a sudden it dawns on you what the wood is telling you it wants to be."

SEE THE ART, MEET THE MAN

-Ward English will be one of many artists exhibiting and selling work during the Yuma Potpourri Artists' upcoming show Feb. 1-3. For more information, call 345-0242. English also plans to demonstrate his work during the Art in Action segments.

-See more examples of English's work at www.YumaPotpourriArtists.org

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Darin Fenger can be reached at

dfenger@yumasun.com or 539-6860.