you may have some inkling of the
character of the man forming and it
continues."
"
A film crew documenting unusual
occupations follows the Burl Hunter
around through the states of Oregon,
Utah, and California searching for burls
of the madrone, redwood, walnut, box
elder, maple and oak trees. They are
recording his livelihood for upcoming
segments on a production about people
in different, 'out of the ordinary', lines of
work. Filming what he does and
interviewing him, they asked, “What
draws you do this kind of tough work”?
“What generates your enthusiasm, your
passion?”"
"
“The work I do with wood burls remind
me daily of the redemptive nature of
God. You've seen the
burls I harvest. All gnarly,
bulbous, twisted, rough,
and dirty; nothing
appealing on the outside
but pressure washed and
cut through with the six
foot chainsaw it falls
open to reveal the great
beauty inside. I'm always
surprised by the infinitely
varied patterns and
colorings of the wood
grains. Understand,
burls are formed on the
trees by some disease
or injury or genetic
defect causing irregular
convoluted growth
patterns
and
deformities finally
ending up as an
enormous protrusion. It
can be located almost
anywhere on the tree
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including the root ball. At first glance on the
tree some would see it as too ugly even for
the burn pile but laid open others see it as a
piece of exquisite artwork as a mantle or
ornate art piece to place on the mantle. The
woods I harvest go to some of the finest
artists anywhere and used for knife
handles, fishing rods, gun stocks, and
furniture. Wood turners turn this wood into
intricate spindles and very delicate plates,
platters, and vases of all shapes and varied
sizes. I've sent the gnarliest of burl to a
woodcarver who carves the most beautiful
horse heads as though they appear to have
erupted out of the gnarly chaos leaving the
storm behind and reaching heavenward.
Guitar makers and percussionist have
turned this wood into beautiful music, works
of art.”"
"
www.burlhunter.com