Stephen
Haigh
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WHAT
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Marquetry |
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WHERE
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Images
Studio, Burnstown, by appointment, 613-432-2717 |
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SHOWS
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Two
Rivers Studio Tour, May 25-26
One-of-a-Kind Christmas Craft Show, Toronto,
Nov. |
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WHY
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"There
is nothing finer than using all your skill and
knowledge to make something really worth doing
and having someone respond - it's a real thrill." |
Images
of Stephen's work
Previous
Artist Trading Cards
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Stephen
Haigh - Freedom to Fret
By Sally Hansen
Marquetry, like Burnstown, chose Stephen Haigh. "I was
a painter, but I fell in love with wood over thirty years
ago," explains the artist. "My palette became the
wood, and it still is. I love it when I see an image, a picture,
in a piece of wood. The medium is talking then, and it's really
quite a wonderful experience."
Looking at Haigh's marvellously crafted works is also a wonderful
experience. His pieces proclaim the artist's extraordinary
gift for communing with nature - his lifelong creative partner.
He listens with his eyes and he interprets with his imagination.
In his hands, the textures and grains and colours and tones
that nature paints into wood veneers become wind blowing across
the prairies, hair cascading down into a waterfall, the slopes
of a ski hill, or the gently curving contours of a farmer's
field. In many of his pieces the veneer background tells the
story.
Patience, Perfection
Invented by the Egyptians, marquetry is the ancient art form
of creating images in wood using a palette of hundreds of
different species of veneer. It is a demanding taskmaster.
Building up an image is a very time-consuming, exacting process.
Stephen takes pleasure in executing every stage of the process
himself - from conception to design to selecting the raw materials;
through the intricate cutting of tiny slivers of veneer, fitting
in thin jigsaw pieces in layers, taping, gluing, sanding;
crafting an exquisite frame that is integral to the piece
itself; all the way to exhibiting and selling his pieces.
Stephen's main tool is a small fretsaw - the blade is so delicate
it shimmers like a cobweb. But with its 100 tiny teeth per
inch, it gives him the precision he needs to cut openings
to reveal the fine ankle straps on a dancer's pump, or the
arc of a flyfisher's line curling over the swirling waters
of the veneer river surface below.
Passion, Pleasure
He shows me his vast collection of over 250 different veneers,
collected throughout the three decades he has spent mastering
his craft. "A while ago I found a wonderful shop near
Buffalo, and twice a year they let me spend days rummaging
through their wood - I feel like a kid in a candy shop! Every
year I seem to discover a new species of wood whose texture
and pattern are that certain sky, or whose colour is the petal
of a particular flower, or whose sheen is the sparkle of a
sunset on a lake."
Following in his mother's footsteps, Haigh studied painting
at the Ontario College of Art. But he met "a wonderful
man in Toronto" who showed him how to paint in wood veneer,
and it was an instant, intense and enduring love affair with
his new medium. He took off for the Quebec woods and mastered
his craft through trial and error, going into towns to sell
works to provision himself. He spent nine months in Newfoundland
living in a converted bread truck. He designed a fold-down
bed that flipped over to serve as a workbench, and sold from
the back of the truck when he went to town. An extended trip
to Florence and other parts of Europe enhanced his interest,
and his pleasure in his work persists unabated to this day.
Freedom to Not Fret
In a recent film profile of the artist by CJOH Regional Contact,
the interviewer remarked that Stephen Haigh's works leave
you with a wonderful sense of freedom. It's true - most of
his current works reflect a marvellous, light-hearted space
and tone, with images of flowers and birds, skiers, kids on
swings, and sails and skirts blowing in the wind. I asked
Stephen how he manages to maintain and convey such freedom
while pursuing a craft that entails endless hours of painstaking,
intricate, concentrated work.
His response lingers in my thoughts: "I chose a lifestyle
that gives me time to live. The common thread throughout my
life is waking up in the morning and loving what I do - there
are no chains on me. I'm free." These days Stephen uses
some of that freedom to play and compose flute music. He finds
that the spontaneity and immediacy of creating music provides
balance against the discipline and protracted gratification
of marquetry. He also evolves his mastery of his craft by
applying it to new formats, creating the occasional spectacular
lamp, table, mirror or other piece of furniture.
Freedom to Enjoy
Stephen Haigh's work is treasured internationally. There is
a piece in the Embassy in Tokyo, he is shipping a piece to
England, and one collector has over 100 pieces. He accepts
some commissions, but Haigh enjoys having a gallery and meeting
people. He is putting the final touches on renovations to
his Images Studio at his home in Burnstown in preparation
for his next scheduled showing during the annual Two Rivers
Studio Tour taking place May 25-26.
He has lived in Burnstown for the past ten years, and loves
the town, the beautiful Madawaska River, and the wide variety
of interesting neighbours in this small but eclectic community
about 10 km north of Calabogie just off Route 508. To schedule
a chance to see his works, you can contact him at 432-2717.
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