“Not Quite a Ford...”

After this piece had already been roughed out, my carving friend and hoarse breeder Phil Odden entreated me to do a Norwegian %ord horse. There was, alas, insufficient material to constitute the toothbrush mane of that equine. In apology, the best i could offer was a mane morphing into Norskie-style acanthus.

I have occasionally opined that there may be no such thing as good acanthus carving, but that even the worst of it sometimes possesses a powerful esthetic, ...and it is surprisingly difficult to do it both well and innovatively. I intentionally refrain from serious study of the genre, fearing such might impede originality, and i am reasonably proud of some of the unique compositional nuances which surfaced as the composition evolved. The profile was inspired by a treatise found amongst my father’s papers which might best be described as “equine phrenology.” It is, of course, not quite a %ord (horse). The wheel incorporated is likewise insufficent to make it a Ford.