They had a tree leaning over the neighbors house. From previous trauma, they were very wary of storms, trees and houses.<< MORE >>

www.groeschen.com

January, 22, 2007

Arcata, California  My inspiration, the power of the wind that knocked  these trees down. It was a west wind blowing.  My thoughts, to create shields, wind shields, with a Pacific Oceanic feel.  Also, I carved  discs with welded metal stands  on the right, One Drop,  Left, Wave.  AND some oceanic poles.




With spirals, I played with the negative space and light, resulting in some nice shadows on the walls, a great suprise.  A woman interested in buying it, pointed out the shadows.  She's also is a midwife,  she said it makes her think  of the development of a life form.

The next step for the artwork... to possibly join another show, produced by a woman involved with the meterological society who also documented the 2005/6 storm with tons of photographs, including aerial photographs and  a short film.  The exhibition will also include interactive science and theatre. 

www.groeschen.com

January 9, 2007
Arcata, California  It was a storm I went thru.   Sculpted a body of work in 3 weeks, endured milling and carving wood in a pond that developed.


Another storm happened which blew my garage studio doors off its hinges,  4 chainsaws disappeared. A hit and run to one of my vehicles occured. More trees fell over including one on the totem. But the show went on and the magic "eye" appeared making everything worth while.   It was a vision quest in the end I saw the light. 


photo by Josh Jackson/The Eureka Reporter

Click here for photo and article in Eureka Reporter

The magic eye showed at the end of the day. Notice the strange light on the wall.


Photo by Sylvia White

The eye of the sun


 

A gallery showing of my work will be at the Westhaven Center for the Arts.<< MORE >>

www.groeschen.com

September 22, 2006
ARCATA, CALIFORNIA,  When I arrived in the Redwoods, a friend invited me on the North Coast Native Garden Tour.  On the brochure, the garden most intriguing to me  was Tir n nog, in Bayside.  it said  Faeries lived there. Of course I wanted to go! And we did, but didn't spot any faeries. 2 months later my photo was in the Arcata Eye paper, because of a carving demonstration.
    One woman spotted it.  What a coincedence; she has the garden named Tir n nog, same one I went to on the Native Garden tour.
    I carved her faeries.  Not knowing they would be Fern Faeries until it evolved. 
    The tiniest stump carving ever for me.  About 2 1/2 high, redwood stumps.

I continued on with the original reason why I wanted to come to the North Coast of Caliy.<< MORE >>

Since January I wanted to go to the North Coast Redwoods to work on the New Years Day Storm Trees. However, I got sidetracked.<< MORE >>

www.groeschen.com

June 25, 2006

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, My latest creation...the woman didn't want it to be anything...she just asked me if I could create something to fit in with her zen inspired garden...

So, my inspiration the Ryoanji temple and it's zen garden in the very stunning city of Kyoto, Japan
Here's one of my rock sand pictures i took.



what I created for the good doctor, commissioner of the project, in salvaged old growth red cedar.

Ok, so this woman called me up in tears because a woodpecker had attacked her totem carving.<< MORE >>

www.groeschen.com

March 31, 2006

Whidbey woodcarver turns fir stump into art
By Bill Sheets
Everett Herald Writer

EDMONDS, WASHINGTON - Two bears, two orcas, a raven, an owl and a man in a tall hat live in Nadeen Miller's back yard.
They're all still and silent. They haven't been there long, but will likely prove resilient and don't need anything to eat.


Michael O'Leary / The Herald
Jessie Groeschen has finished two chain-saw carvings for Nadeen Miller and Phil Forsberg of Edmonds, and is working on a third.

Miller and her partner, Phil Forsberg, invited them. They came courtesy of Jessie Groeschen of Langley and her chain saw.
Groeschen, a nationally known carver and author, recently created a totem pole out of a 14-foot Douglas fir stump in the couple's Five Corners back yard. She's now carving a 6-foot bear out of a log from the same tree to go with it.
"I am very pleased with it and very impressed," Miller said. "We've got a really central feature in the yard and something really unusual to look at."
Miller and Forsberg decided the 40-year-old tree was leaning precariously and had to come down. Forsberg, who had lived in Alaska, had the idea to turn it into a totem pole.

Michael O'Leary / The Herald

Forsberg's daughter bought them a troll carved by Groeschen several years ago, offering the perfect solution.
Groeschen started the pole during the rainy period in the winter and worked on it for about two weeks. She rented a scaffold to reach the upper half of the stump.
She'll carve most of the bear in one day.
"It's taken me about 13 years to get this fast," Groeschen said.
A Whidbey Island native, she discovered chain-saw carving through Pat McVay, a carver from Clinton. She worked with him for three years and then struck out on her own.
Now, at 37, she makes a living from her craft and travels to shows nationwide. Her first book, "Art of Chainsaw Carving," was published in October. It features biographies and photos of the works of several artists, including McVay and herself.


Michael O'Leary / The Herald
A troll carved by Jessie Groeschen graces Nadeen Miller and Phil Forsberg’s back yard.

"There's a lot more to the art form than most people think," Groeschen said.
Her style is versatile, and she's equally comfortable with realistic or abstract work. Sometimes she'll plan a carving with a drawing, as with the totem pole, or wing it, as with the bear.
"I really try to do my own thing," Groeschen said.
Despite her diminutive frame, she wields a Husqvarna 385 with the ease of a 250-pound lumberjack. She uses saws of different sizes to cut away most of the wood, then works on the fine points with chisels and sanders.
She added paint and varnish to the totem pole and will use a torch to add blackened touches to the bear.