Ardea: A Collaborative Project

Christian Wessels, James Eatmon and Jim McGuire - 2008
Black walnut, red oak, red cedar and sweet gum wood

Ardea is the name Linnaeus gave to the Great Heron genus. Ardea stands just over ten feet tall and is made from woods indigenous to the Coastal Plain of North Carolina. The base is red oak from Sims. The legs are red cedar from Sims. The body, head and neck pieces are black walnut from Bailey. The beak is sweet gum from East Wake Hardwoods in Zebulon. No fasteners or nails were used in this sculpture. Ardea is meant to be an indoor sculpture.

In 1952 James Eatmon planted a red cedar tree near Sims. The giant red oak tree was the only tree left standing after his family cleared a residential plot. Years later the oak was cut down, the cedar blew down in a storm. Those parts of the trees which did not become firewood, was added to James Eatmon’s extensive wood collection. James also managed to trade a walking cane for a large black walnut tree from Nash County, adding to his growing collection.

By early 2008 Jim McGuire Jr, James Eatmon and Christian Wessels decided to work on a collaborative project. All three artists are self proclaimed wood nerds, and felt they were ready to try a large project. After several discussions, came trips to James Eatmon’s place to look at the wood. These cold days in Sims showed them just how much wood they had at their disposal.

Much of the early work on Ardea happened in Sims, where the giant chunks of wood had to be reduced to large, unwieldy pieces of lumber. These were then chain-sawed, hacked, adzed, ground, gouged, chiseled, rasped and sanded into the desired shapes. When the pieces were light enough to be manhandled, operations moved to Jim McGuire’s studio. Along the way there were a few surprises. A few chain saw blades were ruined by nails; beautiful wood grain and luster were uncovered.

The three artists decided to use a design by Christian Wessels. He had been carving birds for a few years, and the shore bird had become a favorite design. These birds almost always consist of multiple wood types in contrasting colors. Ardea would be the largest piece any of them had worked on.

Ardea is currently on display at the Woodworkers of North Carolina Gallery, 113A West Gannon Avenue Zebulon, NC 27597.

A Timeline in Pictures

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