Sailing to Valhalla
Sailing To Valhalla was inspired by Miss Kerr, my classical history teacher who fired my imagination with feats and wild tales of great heroic acts as she clipped my ear many times for daydreaming in class. I am very interested in any part of ancient history, but especially its mythology. Norse mythology with its warrior gods of Odin, Loki, Freya and Thor, struck a particular cord when I was a kid. I found this picture on an open Pinterest tattoo design page and was immediately drawn to carve it.
I have changed it slightly as the ship in the picture is sailing towards us and by altering the fill of the sails, I have placed it going into the ravine. The piece is carved out of three different pieces of wood. A very dry English oak for the main body which allowed for the cliffs to be so rugged and a burr oak for the sea at the front of the carving(thanks to Vince who gave this piece to me). Lastly, a piece of birch was scrolled out of a turning round for the white tree, which has been stained with an ash lime stain to whiten it further. The central ring is decorated in a naive attempt at inlay work using brass bar stripes sanded and polished in place. The piece is finished with sanding sealer.
This carving is dedicated to my middle brother Mick, who died of cancer some years ago. He was a great drummer in a band and also a petrol head who loved old British cars and bikes. At one point when he was working on an old Rover, I carved out the Rover emblem of a Viking ship for him. It wasn’t brilliant, but he appreciated the effort. Unfortunately, he didn’t finish renovating the old car, but I can’t see that make of car without thinking of him. There are plans in the future to add a fusion glass background behind the tree of life to add some more drama to the scene, but for now, I’m pleased with the outcome.
