RELIEF CARVING

Custom Relief Carving and Architectural Wood Carving

Fred is often asked to carve custom relief carvings including replicas of broken and missing parts of antique furniture, old fireplace mantels, architectural carvings, andSample of architectural carving other decorative elements. But what he really likes and enjoys is  realistic and figurative relief woodcarving. Fred’s ability to sculpt allows him to create unique pieces portraying people, animals and still life for any setting. During the past 20 years he created several large relief  carvings for churches, schools and other institutions. He also carved many smaller pieces  – some of them were custom commission works and some just for his enjoyment.   Fred really takes time and tries to capture all details when he carves. He always makes sure the fabric and hair are flowing and the  muscles are moving. His relief carvings capture moments in time.  Fred loves sculpting and carving women’s faces and he tries to show their emotions and vulnerabilities which can usually be felt just looking at pictures of his work.

Relief carving of a woman’s face – side view. Carved from basswood, stained.

Family coat of arms, relief wood carvingCarved family coat of arms

Angel, relief wood carving, Fred ZavadilAngel, basswood relief carving

Decorative panels, relief carving, Honduras MahoganyOrnamental and figurative relief carving, Honduras mahogany, from Alfons Mucha posters, by Fred Zavadil Woodcarving and SculptingFigurative relief wood carving – carved decorative panels from Honduras mahogany.  Inspired by Alfons Mucha posters and carved by Fred Zavadil

Carved picture frame, custom relief carving, Honduras mahogany, by Fred Zavadil Woodcarving and SculptingCarved picture frame, Honduras mahogany

If you like staining and finishing on the basswood carvings below, please check posts where I explain how I seal my carvings before staining and how I stain my carvings

Relief wood carving, St. George and the dragon, Fred ZavadilHigh relief of St. George with the Dragon, carved from basswood and stained

Relief carving, portrait of a woman, basswood, Fred ZavadilCarving of a profile of a girl, bas relief, stained basswood – this was a gift for my brother in law and his wife when they celebrated their 50st birthdays

Custom relief carving, family crest, painted and stained basswoodCarved and painted family crest, basswood relief carving. If you would like to see different stages of carving and a clay model which I created first for the crest, please visit this page.

Carved sculpture of an angel, religious relief wood carving, Fred ZavadilCarved sculpture of an angel, this is one of  my favorite relief wood carvings – stained basswood.

Custom carved wooden door handle, relief carving, Fred Zavadil WoodcarvingCarved door key, Honduras Mahogany,relief carving Fred Zavadil Woodcarving.

Architectural wood carving

Custom carved wooden door elements

These are some of my first woodcarvings which

I carved about 25 years ago.

They are carved from Honduras Mahogany,

my very favorite wood.

Carved door handle with a wood spirit

Carved door key in baroque style

Carved door knocker with a gargoyle

Samples of some of my architectural relief wood carvingCustom carved wood door knocker, relief carving, Fred Zavadil Woodcarving

Napoleon, relief carving, from J.L. David's painting, by Fred Zavadil Woodcarving and SculptingNapoleon, 2’8″ x 3’2″ x 4″,  This high relief carving was a commission for one of my clients. It is based on the original painting by J-L David. Carved, painted, and stained basswood.

Large relief wood carving:  Nature’s Realm, Cambridge, ON

Another of Fred’s large relief carvings for a public art project for the Region of Waterloo. It is carved from a beautiful Black Walnut tree  cut down on one of the region’s properties to make room for Christopher Children  Centre  (30 Christopher Dr., Cambridge, ON). Its name is  “Nature’s Realm” and it consists of 6 carved pieces – a large relief panel shows a forest scene with animals native to this area (4′ x 12′) and 5 3-D sculptures of animals. The large piece adorned the entry hall of the Centre, the  animals were placed by individual  rooms – basically  naming those rooms  – instead of having rooms 1, 2, 3…. or A, B, C,…, there will be the “Squirrel Room”, “Raccoon Room”, etc…. The Centre is now closed and the piece will be moved to Kitchener airport.

Grand Wood Park Retirement Residence, London, ON

The custom relief carving for Grand Wood Park Retirement Residence in London, ON was finished and installed in 2009.  It is a large carving – 10 feet long, 6.5 feet high. It is carved partly from elm wood and partly from basswood. Used elm wood comes from a tree cut on the Residence’s property.

Relief wood carving, Fred Zavadil

Figurative relief wood carving, elm and basswood, Fred Zavadil
Icarus, relief carving by Fred Zavadil This is one of my very favorite carvings and also one of my first carvings – The Fall of Icarus ,  The motive is from Bernard Picart engraving and it is carved from Honduras mahogany. Bas Relief Carving. 

Relief wood carving, Honduras mahogany, model of a cathedral by Fred ZavadilModel of a cathedral carved from Honduras mahogany, Ornamental relief wood carving

This little cathedral took Fred 3 winters to complete. He would work on it almost every day  instead of watching TV in the evenings. Fred carved the cathedral from Honduras Mahogany, his favorite wood. He completed it in 1996 and it really represents his beginnings in woodcarving combining very intricate and detailed ornamental relief carving and realistic figurative carving. It is not a model of any specific cathedral, Fred picked parts he liked from different churches. What you do not see  are tiny wood sculptures about 1-1.5 cm ( 1/2″) above entries on both side. The windows are stained to create illusion of stained glass and there are also lights inside – you can actually see colors in windows when the light is on. Fred made the roof from hundreds of little wood pieces. This is a real “one of a kind” piece. The model is under glass case – to protect it from dust and dirt.

Carving of a pirate, relief wood carving by Fred Zavadil
Relief wood carving of a pirate, stained basswood

Having little fun – relief carving of a Pirate

Santa Claus relief carving tradition

In 2011 Fred won the the Best of Show at the Artistry in Wood in Dayton Ohio and was asked to donate a small carving for the 2012 show. Because the show was not too long before Christmas, Fred thought that the best topic to carve would be Santa Claus. He had so much fun carving and Santa was so much liked by so many people that Fred decided to create a new Santa every Christmas. And he is just carving his fifth one.  All of his Santas are little different than what you would usually see around – they are funny, with a twinkle in the eyes, and most of the time show Santa celebrating after Christmas – with Mrs. Claus, with a reindeer, little drink or a bottle, with a couple of elves taking a selfie or a crying child

2019 – Wood carver’s wish list – basswood relief carving

Wood carving, Santa, Fred Zavadil

Santa Claus, relief wood carving, Fred Zavadil

Fred Zavadil, Master wood carver, located in Windsor, Ontario

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