Chainsaw Sculptor Draws A Crowd In Arden

Feb 19, 2014

Certain types of art and craft work, when demonstrated live, often draws a big crowd. That was the case outside the Kennebec hall in Arden during this year’s Frontenac Heritage Festival, where chainsaw artist Robin Deruchie of Cloyne spent the weekend sculpting a bear from a piece of solid pine. Onlookers gathered around Deruchie as he bent, crouched and moved around the free-standing piece of pine, etching in lines and cutting away chunks of wood to bring forth a bear that lay hidden inside.

Deruchie, who works out of his Wolf Creek Studio in Cloyne and who travels extensively all year long doing shows and demonstrations, delighted festival-goers, who watched him in amazement. Deruchie has been chainsaw carving professionally for eight years and creates a wide variety of work that includes sculptured owls, bears, turtles and other wildlife as well as totem poles, spirit faces and functional pieces like benches, floor lamps and coffee tables.

A self-taught artist, Deruchie said he “stumbled across the art form” while building his home in Cloyne. “I had a bunch of extra logs lying around so I just picked up the chainsaw and started playing around”, he said, but that is not something he recommends to others. Deruchie is not only a full-time artist but also teaches the craft. Asked if he knows of others making chainsaw art, he said not in the local area but he did say the art form in general is booming. “In the last five years it has become very popular, which is likely due to the internet and the fact that artists are able to share their tricks of the trade.”

Deruchie said he starts each piece with a solid piece of pine, many of which he collects from fallen trees that neighbors want removed from their properties. “Often after a storm, neighbors who know what I do will call me up and ask me to remove a fallen tree from their property for them, which I am more than happy to do.”

His pieces take roughly an hour per foot to carve. After the piece has been carved, he lets it dry out for about two weeks and then adds the finishing touches by burning the surface of the wood to create facial characteristics like eyes, noses and other decorative highlights. Deruchie said the most challenging thing about his work is knowing how to do it safely. “Making a six-foot bear will bring you about 250 kickbacks of the saw. So you really have to know how to handle the saw and make sure that you are using the right side of the blade at all times so that you don't run into problems.”

Deruchie uses a number of different-sized Stihl saws, one being a custom saw specially designed for carving. It has a special bar that prevents kickback.

Asked why his artwork tends to attract so much attention, Deruchie said it is likely the fact that it is unusual to see a chain saw being used to create a piece of art work. “People don't often get a chance to see a big burly chain saw being used to create something intricate, which I think is why people find the demonstrations so interesting.”

Deruchie has donated one of his chain-sawed totem poles to the Arden Legion and it will be raffled off at a later date as a fundraiser for the organization. For information about purchasing tickets call the Arden Legion at 613-335-3727.

To see more of Deruchie's work visit www.wolfcreekcarvings.com or call 613-336-2137 to make an appointment.