Author: Chris Wells

Shearwater 2026: repaired, sanded, painted, oiled.
New sails made by our traditional sailmaker, Barry Quinn (Outer Harbour).
New wire shrouds, new stainless-steel turnbuckles and shackles.
Old boat (1984) sturdy as ever….

Mark Pearse used to sit at his kitchen table, and sketch small designs on the back of envelopes. Here is one such design that became a Christmas card…..

A block of Pink Gum (Euc. fasciculosa) given to me by Paul and Sue Elliot.
The wood is almost as tough as Myall: the grain runs up, down and every which way.

Shaping and re-shaping; embracing limitations.
Eucalyptus camaldulensis, River Redgum is a local wood – worth carving, even though the grain is capricious. I remind myself (yet again) of the Wabi Sabi philosophy: celebrating imperfection….knowing when to stop.

Lengths and breadths of Red Gum for a series: Elder. They will be vertical low-relief sculptures, or carvings. Low relief requires strong side light – and after years of reflection, I  have ‘alighted’ on an  idea that might solve the problem. Or not. We shall see….

Preparing ribs for a second lute body. Fortunately, I already have the (perspex) templates. The wood is Yew; the soundboard will made be of European Spruce, or King William Pine.

Here is the final practice run – before I tackle the real thing. The scrap of  wood is Huon Pine.
Still a bit rough, but getting less rough…so I tell myself.

This project fulfills Dad’s philosophy of ‘bit by bit’. I devote a maximum of  fifteen minutes each day to the sawing of  Pink Gum, the toughest wood around.
It also illustrates the associated observation: ‘less is more’.
I envisage three boat sculptures (assuming the wood is sound) –  and on the way, get plenty of time to think about what might be….

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797 – 1858)
Uraga in Sagami Province

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797 – 1858)
Fan Print
Raft and Full Moon