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his year has been rich in events and impressions for the s c u l p t o r, h a v i n g prepared a personal exhibition and taken part in the fourth international open air workshop for wood carvers. “Young people from Russia arrived, who had a slightly different approach to carving, from which we can learn,” he smiles. “I don’t tend to copy from real life but there are sometimes aspects and small details which can make a work more perfect. I do my best to focus on what I’m doing, to produce something worthy. For example, I love one particular sculpture by Georgian master Elgudzhi Amashukeli, as it’s well organised and has an interesting national style. Among Belarusian masters, I admire Zair Azgur.” Mr. Sklyar is a designer by education, having graduated from Kiev ArtIndustrial College in 1968. He recollects, “At that time, design was in its infancy in Ukraine and we were taught the foundations well. We studied modelling, sculpture, pictorial art and design. We drew a great deal. Afterwards, I moved to Grodno to take a job at its Plant of Trade Machine Building’s Design Department. Later, I began decorating the interiors of energy enterprises. At that time, a network of institutes of technical aesthetics operated, so I contacted them directly, often working as part of a team on a major project — such as Grodno City Electric Station.” However, his foremost love was wood cutting and sculpture. On being asked about the popularity of wood as a material, he notes, “Wood is gradually returning to our homes — albeit it not as ‘solid wood’.” Ma s t e r s of g a rd e n - a n d - p a r k sculpture are often asked to create a group of sculptures united by a single theme, perhaps each carving a single figure. The variation possible is endless — from traditional to exotic. At present,
Specialists say that Mr. Sklyar is a virtuoso, bringing characters alive; they radiate warmth and wisdom the most popular styles are folk, African and Japanese. Customers simply agree an idea with a master and choose the material: wood is cheaper than stone while adding ‘warmth’ to a courtyard or garden rather than monumentality. An oak sculpture can cost up to $1,200 while a lime and oak sculpture of any size may be had for $600. On average, decoration of a courtyard costs $400 per square metre. Not long ago, your personal exhibition — Cats and Birds — completed. Which characters did you use? All my cats are polite rather than hunting birds. They are friendly with mice, sharing cheese with them and offering fish to birds.
Which wood do you prefer working with? Oak is best used for large sculptures in our region, being strong and more durable. It’s also most beautiful. I’ve worked with various woods — including poplar, lime, pine and alder. Sometimes, open air workshop organisers propose a certain wood in which each sculptor must demonstrate their artistry. You have to know the qualities of the wood to use it most effectively. Are you aware of these? I can’t say that I know everything, although an acquaintance of mine once said that I can ‘see inside wood’. Of course, this isn’t true. I can still be surprised, even when working with a well-known tree. However, I can distinguish pine from oak. When you first hold a piece of wood in your hands, do you immediately know what you’d like to carve or do ideas come gradually, as you work? It’s bad when you aim to carve a fox and end up with a crocodile! Sometimes, you need to make adjustments though. For example, at one Grodno open air workshop, I decided to carve a figure of a Ukrainian. However, my piece of wood had a knot at the base, so I decided to carve a cat near the man’s foot, to avoid tackling the knot. A plot composition appeared: the Ukrainian is smoking, causing the cat to cover its nose with its paw. Mr. Sklyar’s artistic life is certainly rich, bringing forth many major joint works — such as Kolas’ Path, which begins by the memorial mansion of Akinchitsy; there are over 40 wooden sculptures devoted to Yakub Kolas’ characters, honouring his work. He also worked on Grodno Fortress and the Partisan Camp complex — with Valentin Bogdevich, he carved four Belarusian partisans from wood. Specialists say that Mr. Sklyar is a virtuoso, bringing characters alive; they radiate warmth and wisdom. His creations are found in state and private collections in Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, Israel, Denmark and Japan. By Svetlana Devyatkovskaya
2012 беларусь.belarus
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