3D studio: Material technique.

Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure, or in the sculptural ornamentation of a wooden object.

The phrase may also refer to the finished product, from individual sculptures to hand-worked moldings composing part of a tracery.

Many of the most important sculptures of China and Japan, in particular, are in wood, and so are the great majority of African sculpture and that of Oceania and other regions.

Wood is light and can take very fine detail so it is highly suitable for masks and other sculpture intended to be worn or carried.

It is also much easier to work on than stone.

Basic tool set

the carving knife: a specialized knife used to pare, cut, and smooth wood.

the gouge: a tool with a curved cutting edge used in a variety of forms and sizes for carving hollows, rounds and sweeping curves.

the coping saw: a small saw that is used to cut off chunks of wood at once.

the chisel: large and small, whose straight cutting edge is used for lines and cleaning up flat surfaces.

the V-tool: used for parting, and in certain classes of flat work for emphasizing lines.

the U-Gauge: Is basically a specialized deep gouge with a U-shaped cutting edge.

sharpening equipment, such as various stones and a strop: necessary for maintaining edges.

A special screw is used for fixing work to the workbench, and a mallet, to complete the carvers kit, though other tools, both specialized and adapted, are often used, such as a router for bringing grounds to a uniform level, bent gouges and bent chisels for cutting hollows too deep for the ordinary tool.

Whittling

Whittling may refer either to the art of carving shapes out of raw wood using a knife or a time-occupying, non-artistic (contrast wood carving for artistic process) process of repeatedly shaving slivers from a piece of wood.

It is used by many as a pastime, or as a way to make artistic creations.

Because wood dries slowly when air dried, tensions are released slowly: fast drying in kilns, if not well monitored, can actually create tensions within the wood, adding to stresses that are there from the growing years.

For this reason, air dried wood is usually best for carving.

Does soaking wood make it easier to carve? Yes it does.

This is because as wood soaks the fiber grains in the wood become increasingly flexible as its cells start to absorb water.

Carving involves cutting or chipping away a shape from a mass of stone, wood, or other hard material.

Keep an eye on color changes within the wood, too. Too great variation can create an unintended look.

What is the best wood for carving?

Basswood is the most popular choice wood for beginners.

Aspen is another white wood that is quite popular among woodworkers. ...

The most popular wood carving among beginners.

BUTTERNUT-

Butternut is another good wood for beginner wood carving.

BLACK WALNUT.

Black walnut is also a popular choice.

Generally acknowledged as the hardest wood, lignum vitae.

Basswood (Tilia Americana) is easy to work, Europeans sometimes even call it American lime because it bears some carving similarities to European lime (Tilia vulgaris).

Basswood is an off-white, almost cream colored, tending towards very light brown.

The grain is straight, and texture is even. It holds carving detail very well.

REFERENCES

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_carving .

http://www.hardwooddistributors.org/postings/top-hardwoods-for-carving .

https://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/arts/visual/general/wood-carving .