Octopus: sycamore tree-base; roots with stone. July 2016- February 2017

I found this tree base and root ball while canoeing on the Unadilla river near Mount Upton, NY.  The tree was in the water, having recently fallen over, leaving its roots exposed.  I cut off the main part of the tree and canoed home with the piece you see in the photo below.  I let it sit for a few years to dry, and in that time I finally settled on carving it into an octopus.  It allowed me to use as much of the trunk and roots as possible.

Most  recently I decided to hollow out the head to add some depth, shadow and texture.  The holes are designed to emulate the markings of the spotted  octopus while allowing  light to pass  through the carving  and give it a more airy quality.

Here you can see the tree base in its original state before I began carving it.  

Take note of the trunk of the tree above to get a sense of its age and size.  For a sycamore tree, the trunk thickness is relatively small.