Tools and materials I propose:
In this project I create an icon of Agios Paisios, the Greek Orthodox saint of our age. I made it out of basswood and I painted it with latex paints.
I begun by planing my wood flat with a hand plane. I first planed perpendicular to the grain to remove material fast. Then I went with the grain with shallower cuts as a finishing pass.
To transfer my design on the wood I first filled the back of my design with graphite. I used graphite from a 2mm mechanical pencil. Then I pressed the design with a bamboo stick and this left a trace on my wood.
I divided my image into three basic layers of height. The deeper area was my background, then came the light circle and finally the figure.
I begun with a V carving chisel. I carved outside my line. Then I used a gouge to remove material perpendicular to the grain.
Then I tried to cut on the line of my design. I tried to match the curves of the design with the curves of the gouges. Once I did my stop cuts I removed material with the gouges.
Next I repeated the same process to carve the light circle behind the head.
Next I started working on the figure. The head and one arm are my highest regions. So I removed material around them. In a few tight spots I used a skew chisel and a carving knife to remove the material.
On the face the highest spot is the nose, so I removed material around it.
Basically the whole process was determining the highest spots and trying to carve around them.
Once I was happy with the overall carving I did some fine tunings and I sanded the piece.
I then added a coat of clear to act as a sealer. This also raised the grain so I lightly sanded the piece.
Then I painted my icon with latex paints. Basically I added three tones of color in each area of the design. I then marked the guides for my typography and painted the letters.
I finished the piece with a coat of clear.
And that was it. I hope we all have the blessings of Agios Paisios. I also hope that you liked this project, because that was it. See you soon with a new project video.
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