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I’m excited to share my journey with you through this interview with my friend Maria.
From my unexpected love for wood carving sparked by a surprise encounter in Bulgaria to the challenges I faced as an instructor, I hope my story resonates with you.
Join me as I delve into the magic of carving, the influence of my family, and how my passion intertwines with my background in dance.
In 2015, I was going through a complicated personal moment, and I felt I needed to express things in a way other than dancing (I was a dancer at that time). Arriving unexpectedly at a restaurant in the middle of a forest in Bulgaria, a character from the series The Wire, and a creative family made me fall in love with wood and start creating with it.
I started in carving thanks to my aunt Neus and my uncle Ramón. Neus lent me some very cheap chisels and Ramón a piece of pine harder than a rock. In the company of my family, and without knowing anything about wood carving, I carved my first and only wooden sculpture. I was left wanting to continue carving and I didn't stop looking for information about wood carving. It was then that I found the Tallamadera workshop, where Jordan gave me some quality chisels and linden wood. Carving the right wood with quality tools was a pleasure that I still remember vividly today.
I especially enjoy pieces that combine Chip Carving techniques and Relief Carving. Although Chip Carving has stolen my heart, thanks to a recent trip to Turkey, chisels and Relief Carving are once again taking some prominence in my pieces. Also, in the workshops, I feel I have more capacity to teach and share details that I didn't know how to do before.
At first, I thought I didn’t know enough to teach. In a conversation with my friend Quim, he convinced me that this wasn’t true. Shortly after, Andrea, who was then the owner of Barcelona Wood Workshops (now closed), contacted me to teach the Chip Carving technique in her workshop. Andrea saw my content on Instagram and wanted to bet on me and give me a chance to teach Chip Carving for the first time.
I had never taught before and had to understand what I could teach and how. At first, I struggled to accept that I was capable of doing it, but even with doubts, I moved forward. I still felt like a beginner, and although I knew the technique, sharing it was a challenge; I didn’t know what was most important nor did I know if I had a good technique.
There’s something interesting that happens once you decide to share and teach what you know: you realize you know much more than you thought. All the experience you’ve accumulated, no matter how little, is there. You realize that no matter how little you share, people appreciate it and find it very useful because they are starting from scratch.
Over time, you realize what information is most relevant and what people are really looking for when they come to the workshop. When I started teaching, I wanted to share everything with all kinds of details, until I realized that the vast majority just want to enjoy the session carving wood. It doesn’t make sense to stop the workshop to talk for 30 minutes about the fibers and grain of the wood. Those who want to learn will show it with questions and by coming regularly to the workshop.
Now I let people enjoy without overwhelming them with information. Perhaps this is the most important thing I’ve learned in these 4 years of sharing! Hahahahaha
The support and passion with which they share everything they know, the enthusiasm they put into all their projects, and how they infect you with that energy. They truly feel pleasure in knowing that someone is starting their creative journey, whether it’s family or a stranger. It was very easy to start with this kind of support. A shout-out to my mother for letting me drill holes in the table of my room to put some L-shaped “stops” so I could carve wood from my room!
Like most people who start with wood, I began making small jewelry pieces and keychains. At that time, I didn’t have much money, and the technique I could practice without spending much was Chip Carving. Basically, with a knife and a piece of wood, you can create a thousand stories.
That’s why today I have much more practice with the knife than with the chisels. When I was able to invest money to buy chisels, that’s when I started making larger pieces and combining both techniques, beginning to feel that magic you talk about!
I think coming from the world of dance, the creative aspect and what to do didn’t scare me much. I knew I could create and do things on my own even if I didn’t know much about the subject.
In Breaking and in Hip Hop culture in general, personal style is highly valued. I had already been dancing for 10 years and searching for that style. I knew I could find a path that would also represent me in wood.
And on a more practical level, dance served as a platform to showcase my woodwork. Those keychains and pendants often carried the names of friends or Hip Hop nomenclatures that I sold as I traveled to events to compete. Later, I started making trophies. I was lucky because word began to spread, and many event organizers asked me to carve trophies for their competitions.
If you want to see me dance, you can come to the anniversary of my group Floor Players from May 23-25 in Barcelona; you’ll definitely see me and many others showing off some moves!
Perhaps the piece from Tarlak. 1.50 cm high by 68 cm wide, where I combined relief carving techniques, chip carving, and rotary machine work. I still have to recover some pieces inspired by computer hardware in the shape of microchips, but on a large scale. There will be a lot of work and a lot of magic involved!
Thank you for reading my story :)
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