Faces of ASI Bill Jaeger

For decades, ASI has hosted popular woodcarving classes shepherded along by devoted instructors, including Ivar Anderson, Bob Erickson and most recently Bill Jaeger. These classes have offered hundreds of students the chance to learn Scandinavian flat plane figure carving, using nothing more than basswood blanks, a simple carving knife, and a little paint to depict anyone from Swedish immigrants to Vikings. Not for the first time, ASI woodcarving program is evolving: Bill is taking the opportunity to officially retire from teaching after 18 years, after ASI’s in-person classes were put on pause last year due to COVID-19. Bill is a homegrown instructor who started carving at ASI after he found one of Harley Refsal’s Scandinavian carving books in the bookshop. “It was just a natural thing for me,” Bill said of his connection to this older style of carving. “It opened a whole new world for me, I started meeting all these other carvers, going to Sweden… I met so many wonderful people.” Through the years, Bill took classes from Harley, Ivar and Bob, but also Göte Ericksson, Anja Sundqvist, Ramon Persson and other Swedish carvers, and was recognized for his work with a Gold Medal from Vesterheim’s folk art exhibitions. After Bill took over ASI’s carving classes in 2002, the classes grew from two to six

classes a week, with up to 90 students a term. Through it all, Bill kept students supplied with fresh carving blanks, inspiration for new designs and, of course, a regular fika schedule. Bill says that now he’s retired, he’ll most miss the people in his carving classes. “[I’ll miss] going every week and seeing everybody, sitting down and chatting with them. Some people were with me for all 18 years. And it was also fun to have new people come, with new stories. People have such interesting lives, these carvers – they all had these great life stories.” Alongside his students, Bill brought stories of the past to life through his traditional carving designs. “It’s a good art form,” Bill says of flat plane figure carving. “It’s our history, it’s culture. It’s timeless. I would love it if kids got interested in it again.” ASI is so grateful to Bill and all our woodcarving students who have kept the program alive all these years. Erin Swenson-Klatt, ASI’s Food and Handcrafts Program Coordinator, says, “It’s been such a gift to work with a master artist and instructor like Bill. The ASI woodcarving community has a deep legacy of keeping this important style of Swedish craft alive — it’s a completely unique program in both Sweden and the US. And we know there are lots of students ready to pick up their carving knives at the next opportunity!” We join with his students in sending our very best wishes to Bill in his retirement.

“I’ll miss going every week and seeing everybody, sitting down and chatting with them. Some people were with me for all 18 years. And it was also fun to have new people come, with new stories. People have such interesting lives, these carvers — they all had these great life stories.” — Bill Jaeger, retired Scandinavian figure carving instructor at ASI

WOODCARVING AT ASI

What comes next for ASI’s woodcarving program? ASI is always seeking out new instructors in both figure carving and slöjd-style green woodcarving and looks forward to returning to in-person classes as it is safe to do so. Meanwhile, students can look up current classes in our Catalog, or join a regular Makers Morning or Makers Night meet up on Zoom or in-person. For questions about teaching with ASI, Makers meet ups or our woodcarving programs, please reach out to Erin Swenson-Klatt at ErinSK@ASImn.org.