Animals and flowers are tucked into every corner of Paul Cummings' house. The creatures are not real, but cast in marble, alabaster, soapstone and wood. Using a chisel and mallet, and sometimes an air hammer, Paul uses nature as his inspiration and creates art that is not meant to be realistic but creates an intimate, friendly display.
Paul took up the art as a child growing up in North Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin. When he was 12, he used a pocketknife to carve wood and turned it into wooden birds. His craft was carefully nurtured over the years and he is an artist for more than 50 years. Paul specializes in stylized animal forms, but had the opportunity to study many aspects of art, including watercolor, acrylic and oil painting, and three dimensional design next to wood and stone carving.
In the mid 70's, Paul began teaching stone and wood carving in the Pal
m Beach County Community Schools. This continued for a number of years as he expanded the stone and wood carving classes to his country home. He had 10 acres of woodlands and therefore plenty of space for an outdoor studio. In 2002 he moved out of the country and into the city and had to find a new studio space for teaching classes. He rented a building at a friend's local farm and was able to contiune classes. Pieces of his sculptures are found in many private and public collections in Florida and elsewhere.
Paul has not only a passion for carving but is as well a naturalist and outdoor enthusiast. He is a memmber of the Florida Trail Associations' Loxahatchee Chapter and part of a group of volunteers instrumental in trail maintenance in State Parks and other public lands. A remarkable milestone in 2011 is the celebration of 20 years of leading the annual "Big-O" hike around Lake Okeechobee on Thanksgiving week. What a great accomplishment !
Find pieces of art by Paul Cummings on worldtravelart.com.
Note:
Paul is working on one of his latest pieces on the picture shown. It is a sculpture showing a women looking at a birds nest, with a baby chick showing its head out of one of the eggs.
