A passion for wood, a penchant for chainsaws

By Adriana Serafino | Manor Ink

Wood carving is one of the oldest arts, dating back to the earliest humans. Though many of their creations have been lost because wood decays over time, artifacts such as wooden spears do exist.

Chainsaw wood sculpting is a relatively new art form – though it has been around since the 1950s, it didn’t really gain popularity until the 1970s. But there are no records of the first artist to use the technique, and thus no way of knowing who created the first chainsaw-carved pieces.

One way this new art form gained popularity was through sculpting contests at summer fairs. If you have been to a county fair, you may have seen artisans carving giant tree trunks into creations such as bears, eagles or wolves. But you won’t need to travel to a fair in order to see the unique wood sculptures created by a local Sullivan County artist Brian Harnett.

Hartnett works in his studio, Harnett Designs, in Grahamsville. There you can find him using a chainsaw and other tools to create amazing one-of-a-kind carvings and sculptures.

You may have already seen one of his pieces – the impressive bear outside the Reynolds House Inn & Motel in Roscoe. It stands nine feet tall and took more than 25 hours over the span of a week to complete.

Manor Ink interviewed Hartnett and learned that his first carvings were created when he was a child. He learned the skill from his brother. For others interested in wood carving, he had a few recommendations.

“For starting out, I would suggest carving something soft like an apple or potato,” Hartnett said. “The first carving I did as a child was a face carved in an apple. I dipped it in salt water to help preserve it and let it dry out. It looked like a shrunken head!”

As an adult, Hartnett worked as a woodworker, cabinet maker and furniture designer. Eventually, he found his passion as a chainsaw wood carver. So what does Hartnett love about working with wood?

“The artistic freedom we can have with wood carving,” he said.”You start out with a block of wood and you just turn it into whatever you feel like.”

Hartnett primarily uses his chainsaw, but he also has additional hand-powered tools. His favorite type of wood is white pine which is readily available and is great for carving.

If you’re interested in learning more about wood carving, Hartnett recommends the magazine Woodcarving Illustrated which is available online at woodcarvingillustrated.com.

Learn more

• Visit Brian Hartnett’s website at harnettdesigns.com. There you will find various artistic sculptures like unique bird houses, wooden pumpkins, signs and plaques.

• Hartnett also offers handmade furniture at Liberty Fine Furniture, 199 S. Main Street in Liberty. Examples of his pieces can be seen on his website.