Customer Reviews

Carve Your Own Totem Pole

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is just what I was looking for! This book provides a great starting point for designing and carving your own totem pole. The explanations of the basic shapes and colors used in traditional Northwest Coastal totem poles as well as the meanings of some animal symbols helps in guiding and inspiring the design process.
The sections on carving tools and techniques were very helpful. This isn't a book on how to become a woodcarver, so someone who has never carved anything might want a general woodcarving book also. There are so many quality books devoted to basic woodcarving techniques I was glad to see these authors focused completely on the subject I bought the book for, rather than repeat info I already had.
The book was filled with high quality illustrations and fantastic photos that really helped me understand the concepts being discussed.
As for another reviewer's characterization of the poles in this book as "totem-like objects"..... I guess I have some confusion there. The authors of this book (and several others I've read) describe the purpose of traditional totem poles as, well, to say whatever the owners wanted to say. That's what I imagine most carvers want when they pick up a gouge and set to work. If one needs to be historically accurate to call one's work "totem pole" then one would first need to be of the indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast, then be apprenticed to a master carver for some years before starting one's first pole, wouldn't one?
I would highly recommend this book to anyone that wants to have fun and carve their own story in wood.

Along with many other carvers I would like to see a good book done on carving poles. This is not it. Even something as brief as Duane Pasco's recent booklet on carving a canoe but dealing with a pole would be better. The authors here have no real grasp on carving poles, IMHO, and basically produce totem-like objects and teach you to produce totem-like objects. The book by Vickie Jensen documenting a pole carved by Norman Tait is much better than this altho it only deals with one pole in one style.Robert Davidson's recent book about his first pole in Masset is also much better than this. However if carving a totem-like object is your goal this book may be helpful. Take a look at carvings by people like Tait, Davidson, Pasco, Don Yeomans, Scott Jensen, Bill Reid, Steve Brown etc and then look at what these guys are producing and ask yourself which you prefer. If you prefer what these guys are doing then this book is for you. If you like the other stuff, then get a copy of Robin Wright's book on Master Haida carvers, study the old stuff (as all of the above carvers have done), and try to find some classes taught by people who can do work like that. I'm giving this book three stars because there are some nice pictures here and there of good poles. Other than that, as Barry Herem once said in a review of a book about carving poles done by a local referred to as Ralph of Anacortes, the title would be perfect if they just added the word NOT to it.

Loved the Totem pole book. Very beautiful pictures and great instructions. May need a beginner Totem pole carving book but will certainly use this one too.

Husband loves book just what he wanted. Book was in good condition, and received in a timely manner.