Spirit

Brad Sells begins his sculptures by carving away large chunks of wood with a chainsaw. He spends the next few days using customized electric grinders and sanders to open up the form. Finally, Sells hand-sands the pieces and coats them with a mixture of polyurethane varnish and natural oils to produce a semigloss finish. Spirit is carved from a maple burl, which is an outgrowth from the trunk or branch of the tree. Sells highlighted the irregularities of the burl by retaining a jagged edge on his vessel.

Credit: Gift of Dr. Donald and Mrs. Sue M. Spicer