A wind-damaged tree in Kelowna’s Sarsons Beach Park is being upcycled into art.
Chainsaw carver Kamron Garbe sculpted the 12-foot tree trunk into a majestic great blue heron with a run of swimming kokanee at the base.
On Monday, Garbe began transforming the stump by spray-painting his vision onto the bark.
Then the chainsaws came out, with Garbe saying, “Sometimes the wood will tell you what it wants to be. But more often than not, I’m telling the wood what it should be.”
Six hours later, Garbe finished carving the heron portion, adding, “Chainsaws make for quick work when you know what you’re doing with them.”
Last year, Garbe fashioned an owl from an old oak in the city’s North End. That work took just one day.
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“The people really enjoyed the piece that was carved in Lombardy Park,” said Keith Pinkoski of the city’s parks department.
By Tuesday morning, the kokanee were starting to take shape. It’s expected to be finished sometime Thursday.
“Pictures and video only go so far,” said Garbe, “but to be able to walk around it hits on another level.”