FEATURE ARTIST
Michael A. Penny
Like many artists, Michael Penny
began his working life in and around
the kitchen tackling everything from
haute cuisine to bartending, in locations
across Canada from Montreal to BC.
The late-night shenanigans of the
service industry didn’t suit family life,
so he trained at a cabinet-making
school in Vancouver and began a new
life as a woodworker. Creativity was
never far away, and he also spent time
as an actor, painter, poet, playwright,
and musician.
2011 brought major life changes.
In the process of closing a cabinet
making business that Michael ran with
his wife Isabel, he met woodcarver
Ralph Ireland. Although Ralph died
that same year, his influence was
profound. Through observation and
practice, Michael was inspired as an
artist and found a new direction for his
woodworking skills. Ralph’s tools of the
trade were the chisel and the mallet. it
was later, under the guidance of carvers
Pierre Turgeon and Neil Cox that
Michael discovered chainsaw carving,
and just a few months later he was at
Carvapalooza with 37 other chainsaw
carvers for a 4-day-long event in
southern Ontario. He was hooked.
Six months later, Michael, and his
wife and children Isaac and Gabriela,
moved across the country from his
hometown of Rawdon, Quebec, to
Calgary. The new urban home proved
inhospitable for noisy machine carving
and along with a shortage of raw
materials and suitable space Michael
was compelled to temporarily hang up
his chainsaw. After just two and a half
years, it was clear that the metropolitan
environment simply did not suit the
family and they packed up and resettled
in Fernie in June, 2015. Michael now
spends his working life carving and looks
forward to a future full of chainsaws,
creativity, and plenty of family time
skiing, playing hockey and enjoying life
in Fernie.
Visit Michael’s working studio at
1439 MacDonald Ave on Hwy #3 in
West Fernie. Open most days and by
appointment. 250-423-0552
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