Rob Gibson A Kelowna chainsaw artist says he's been getting plenty of attention after he finished carving an owl out of a downed oak tree in Lombardy Park last September. "The city received such phenomenal positive feedback, which is really heartwarming for me to hear," Kamron Garbe said. Garbe loves to work with downed trees and his trailer full of chainsaws to take old, damaged trees and turn them into works of art that tell a story about the area around them.
This latest carving was commissioned in part by the City of Kelowna and is a downed maple tree right beside the Okanagan Mission Activity Centre at Sarsons Beach Park. "Just trying to try to give back to nature. It's something I think a lot of people can relate to.
The great blue herons a bird I've seen around the area, and I'm working on some fish right now, so I'll also be giving a little nod to the salmon run in the area as well," Garbe said. "There's definitely an emotional attachment there and a different type of appreciation for seeing it get its second life instead of turned into firewood," he added. One of the members of the Okanagan Mission Activity Centre, Keith Germaine, says he's very happy with the way the carving looks so far.
"They chopped it down because it was unsafe, but the stump looked like it could be usable. Look at it. It's beautiful," Germaine said.
Other beachgoers stopped and took videos and photographs and seemed to enjoy watching Garbe work. If the tree stays rooted the carving should last another 10 to 15 years. Garbe says he loves working with maple.
"It's quite a bit harder, a lot denser. So there's a little bit more difficulty involved. I've got more time spent sharpening, slower plunge cuts, all that good stuff.
So it's a little more difficult involved as far as the carving goes. But you can pack more detail in when you (have) a nice hardwood like that." Garbe is going to carve salmon and attach them to the base of the heron.
Once that's done he will stain it with timber oil for all to see and enjoy..
