With comments by Ronnie Graham.
#1 Scavenger
72x40x24"
Bog Pine on Bog Oak
€6500
The bog oak was taken from a government bog by a local scavenger and years later the bog pine was found on an island by another scavenger. The two pieces seem to belong together and are aptly named... "The Scavenger"
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#2 Riverbird
20x15x15"
Bog Pine on Bog Oak
€850
The bog-pine is a piece of what I call "Atlantic bog-wood"... driftwood released from the bog by a winter's Atlantic storm waves & thrown up some time later on nearby beaches. It is always difficult to carve, impregnated as it is with sea salts and sand... blunts the chisels quickly, & being particularly disobedient, it is always a challenge to finish.
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#3 Bog Bird II
8x12x9"
Bog Pine Nugget on Bog Oak
€380
Bog wood nuggets give an infinite variety of bird shapes and bird impressions. Unique.
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#4 Spirit Of The Game
Bog Oak on Sandstone
€2800
This sculpture was my contribution towards a unique exhibition held in Galway over the summer of 2001, entitled... "The Art of Hurling". Inspired in part by Kenny Corless, a great hurler & gentleman from Kinvara.
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#5 Bog Smile
26x8x4"
Bog Pine
€1200
Clearly Smiling! Intriguing figure which can tax the imagination. Another example of the carved & uncarved existing side by side.
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#6 The Traveller
59x7x17"
Bog Pine on Bog Oak
€3500
Ragged, rugged but still smiling. I see this as a self portrait of sorts. "This guy needs a therapist" - immediate reaction of Enda Coffey (Galway wood-turner) on first seeing this sculpture. Some sculptures refuse to be photographed in their entirety. This is one of them. The expression changes as you move around the sculpture.
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#7 Waiter
57x14x8"
Bog Oak
€2350
Named by a waiter in "Rosaleen's Restaurant" in Kinvara, after sharing the café floor-space for a few weeks. Two pieces of bog-oak, emerging as one. "The Waiter" adds a presence to any room, and this sculpture, more than most, connects with the collective subconscious.
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#8 Brown Oak Bowl
40x20x15"
Bog Oak
€2500
Created as a colaboration between myself and Galway wood turner, Enda Coffey. This is the first of a series of bog oak bowls... We'll see if we can "bend" the medium a little and create a series of bog oak bowls, each unique & equally impractical.
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#9 Large Oak Bird
6x6x2'
Bog Oak
€6500
Carved inside as well as out... I have also managed to retain some unique texture, created by my friends in the bog... insects ate away many of the bits I didn't want there.
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#10 Brown Oak Head
37x28x9"
Bog Oak
€1100
Standing over 3 feet high. Quite a unique texture when carving at times... Colour unusual. Dried for a long time.
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#11 Two Black Birds
30x10x12"
Bog Oak
€950
These birds were rescued from a "bog-wood dump" in the midlands. They look good as a centre piece on a table.
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#12 The Pirate
65x12x9"
Bog Oak
€1400
This title was suggested by Jerry Baldwin, Cheshire, England.
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#13 September Bird
16x20x12"
Bog Pine on Bog Oak
€2200
My favourite bird in this size. Bog Pine from Achill Island, bog oak from Co. Offally
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#14 Birds Of A Feather
59x7x17"
Bog Pine
€2350
Unique color in this piece of bog pine... characteristic of bogwood found in North Mayo. The more you study this piece, the more birds seem to come into view, hence the title.
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#15 Bog Bird I
38x16x4"
Bog Pine on Driftwood
€350
The base is a unique piece of driftwood... sculpted by the creatures of the sea. This helps give the little bird a fragile appearance, ready to fly at the slightest hint of danger.
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#16 The Traveller
37x29x20"
Bog Oak
€2350
Dominates any room... almost ghost-like!
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#17 Sweeney II
18x8x8"
Bog Oak on Sandstone
€950
I'm sure "Sweeney" had his happier moments... this sculpture represents him on one of those rare days.
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#18 Bog Bird III
8x10x6"
Bog Oak
€280
I have carved hundreds of small birds, but each one remains unique. This one comes from North Mayo, with the base a rare and unvisual piece of bog - oak, virtually un-recognisable when it was found by my son amongst the rocks on Achill Island.
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#19 Spiddal Black Bird
18x23x14"
Bog Oak
€800
Nice contrast in the 2 woods, though both are bog-oak. Occasionally I find brown bog-oak, but have yet to discover why it is not black!
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#20 Angry Salmon
9x16x9"
Bog Oak
€950
Too many carved fish look dead... this "salmon" however, is very much alive and clearly plotting revenge on the fisherman.
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#21 Sweeney I
30x15x9"
Bog Oak
€1400
I rarely carve the myths and legends of Ireland, but one historical character who is ever present in my sculpture is Sweeney, a 7th century figure from Lisburn, Co. Antrim. He took great exception to the edicts of the ecclesiastical government of his day and with typical Celtic beligerence Sweeney declared his own war against the church. He went on the run, living wild, to continue his opposition. An original eco-warrior, his enemies considered him a mad-man living like a bird in the trees.
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#22 Young Bog Man
46x17x6"
Bog Pine on Bog Oak
€1600
Friendly, likeable, impish bog face. As appreciation of bog wood grows, the finding of the material gets more difficult. 15 years ago, farmers burnt it in the field - now they sell it.
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#23 Wild Bird I
11x17x6"
Bog Oak
€650
Bird and base appear as one.
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#24 Wild Bird II
14x14x12"
Bog Oak on Limestone
€650
A much smaller version of Wild Bird I, the limestone works well as a contrast.
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#25 Wild Bird III
36x28x18"
Bog Oak
€1900
Imposing, strong piece. The bird looks truly ragged, yet powerful. Overall, the sculpture is heavy, yet the bird retains a weightless quality.
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#26 Wall Birds
22x12x5"
Bog Oak
€750
This looks stunning on a white wall, or above a stone fire-place? The features of the second bird are quite subtle... at first glance they are rarely seen.
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#28 Sea Hunter
8x22x12"
Bog Pine on Driftwood
€500
The base is a rare piece of bog-wood driftwood... again sculpted by sea-creatures as it spent a few years in Black-Sod Bay. The Sea-Hunter was found further up the coast.
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#29 Table
28x16x12"
Bog Oak
€2350
A rare attempt at "functional" art... the "table" gives the appearance of a body holding an ancient bog-wood disc.
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