Showing posts with label Scrimshaw. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scrimshaw. Show all posts

Friday, June 24, 2022

Artistic Interactions

One of the thing not described in most descriptions of the Blade Show are the interactions with artists.  Yes, artists.

I was so busy looking at knives I didn’t recognize Sandra Brady selecting beautiful warthog ivory-handled knives from Arno Bernard. https://arnobernard.com/

Arno Bernard lives in South Africa and makes amazing knives.  These will become Sandra’s canvas.  Sandra Brady is a fantastic scrimshaw artist.  I have, or rather my wife has, one of her pieces and it is stunning.  https://sandrabradyart.com.

I asked her if the Bernard knives were part of a project, and she said no, she wanted them for future commissions.  Her display held a wide subject range of scrimshaw art.

“What’s your favorite subject to work on?”

After a moment, she told me, “I like doing eagles and hawks, but I love a challenge.”


The Green Man

To demonstrate she showed me a Dozier knife with a Green Man on it.  Drawn only in black on white the intricate man was made of plant leaves.  The Green Man is a legendary being belonging to many cultures worldwide and across time.  He has his roots, in the symbolic rebirth of every spring.  I vaguely remember him associated with the Arthurian legend from college studies.

I asked the price and Sandra told me $1350.  You might think it’s a lot of money for a knife, but I think it’s reasonable for art.