The Spirit of the Eagle

It took a little more than 200 hours of careful chain-saw whittling, chiseling, and hand-held electric grinding and sanding for Skip Armstrong to begin to see - and feel - the Spirit of the Eagle slowly flow from the inanimate piece of hard rock maple into his shop and his heart.

To any birder who has seen a bald eagle scoop a salmon from the white water of a rapidly flowing river, Armstrong's rendition will seem real. The massive beak of the eagle is there, the flow of its raised feathers on the top of its massive head goes directly to its eyes. It seems as though one can hear the brittle cry of the eagle, warning other eagles that the fish grasped in its massive talons is his and his alone.

"I tried to keep the round shape of the original maple log as the eagle began to flow from it," Skip said, wrapping his arms around the eagle's magnificent wings. "It was also necessary to remove the stress from the drying wood to prevent cracking," he added.

Those who are going to attend the Friends of the Sisters Library Annual Art Exhibit will have the opportunity to view this magnificent piece up close, in it's pre-finished form.

"I like to get the spirit of the animal flowing from the wood," Skip says, pointing to a wolf carving he calls the "Baby Sitter," a group of wolves howling from a piece of local juniper, "and then let it sit for a while until I can feel it's time to begin finishing the work."

Another example of this technique of feeling the spirit of the piece can be seen in an enormous maple burl, the surface of which looks like buffalo hair. Armstrong has left much of the gnarled surface of the burl intact, while at the same time using the surface and wood texture to carve out the Great Plains Buffalo People.

He has accomplished it in such a way that one can almost hear the men and buffalo shouting to the world that they are free.

"I enjoy bringing life and form to the wildlife I see in the wood," Armstrong said, as he slowly caressed the life-like fur and horns of the maple burl buffalo.

A reception opens the art exhibit Friday, January 13, 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Patrons can talk with the artists and learn something of their methods and feelings as they create the art they love to share.