Saturday, June 4, 2011

A visit with master carver Michael Keller

My wife, Linda and I, recently took a few days to relax, get away from the constant rain and to explore a part of our state Linda had not seen.  We ended up at beautiful Lake Chelan.  As luck would have it, the day we arrived was one of the very few days of the year that Lake Chelan received its minuscule rain fall.  Lucky though, the rest of our trip was dry and partly sunny until we crossed the mountains to home.

While in Chelan, I visited with Michael Keller, an extremely talented and prolific carver.  Check out his web site: www.whiteeaglestudios.com and you can see small glimpse Michael’s exquisite carvings.  I have included other carvings in this blog to further reflect Michael’s talent.  Most carvers I have met keep with a particular style of carving, but the diversity of Michael’s carvings is amazing.   His home and studio are filled with masterpieces and nearly every genre.  From small medallions and sea shells to larger sculptures; from detailed relief carvings to humorous and amusing caricatures.  Michael has also had several of his pieces produced in bronze.



Michael’s studio is very organized and set up for one thing; carving.  His workstations and tools are organized for efficiency and comfort.  The layout of Michael’s shop reflects a solid understanding of the task he has set out to accomplish.  The ability to move from one function to another, without stopping to set-up, allows his creative vision to flow.  Large windows provide lots of natural light for his work and a view for inspiration.  Michael’s home/studio sets on a mountain six miles north of the city of Chelan.  It is only six miles from Chelan to Michael’s, but in that six miles, you climb over 2,000 feet in elevation.




Linda and I originally planned this trip to help her recover from foot surgery, but my visit to Michael’s studio turned out to be very inspiring for me.  Visit Michael’s web site and check out his blog.  There is a lot of informative and interesting information for carvers of any skill level.  If you are ever in the beautiful Lake Chelan area, call Michael ahead of time and he might be available for a visit.  Michael told me he was getting ready for shows he will be doing this year and I hope he posts them on his site so we can all see his newest creations.

Imagine, create and inspire,

RP Myers

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