Masks - Issuu

from The Magical World of Robin and John Gumaelius

by Pau Scott Gallery / Gallery Russia

“I’ve been carving the masks out of old-growth western red cedar barn beams and posts. The wood came out of a barn built on my neighbor’s land (the Taney’s) in the early 1900’s. He had the barn torn down around 20 years ago. About 10 years ago, I asked him if he would sell or trade them. He said no. Last year he started cleaning things up because he was moving to Montana and I saw him cutting them up into kindling. I talked to him for a bit and he finally sold them to me.

Occasionally, you still see the original ax marks when they hewed the beams on the masks. Also, visible are the nail holes and occasionally a nail.

The wood from Ralph’s barn has been amazing to work with. Regrettably, I am almost out and old growth anything is really hard to come by. I have already started cutting up old growth stumps from when they first logged this area.” - John

“John does all the shaping and carving. Sometimes we talk about it. He asks advice sometimes. Usually, I say “great job”“looks good”. I do the painting. I do not ask for advice, but John sometimes gives it anyway. After I paint, John sands it, puts on a clear coat, buffs and may add a few touchups if he thinks it needs. It. We decide about the feathers together.

The imagery certainly has a local native influence. We participate in Woodfest in Tokeland, WA every year, and John has learned some native techniques and gotten some really neat tools from people he has met there. John uses power tools too –whatever works well. He started carving a lot because our son Cecil (12) loves carving, and they do it together. They have fixed up a covered outdoor carving area on the side of our Barn Studio.

John is also influenced by Chinese ceramic art – especially faces of the terracotta warriors and some of the smaller figurines as well. Some African masks as well as tribal face painting have also influenced the imagery.” - Robin