Woodcarver Sherilyn Tharp expresses her history of drawing, woodworking and carving experience with this carved mask. Tharp takes a traditional carved form and uses a wide variety of techniques sometimes in unusual and nontraditional ways to articulate her own vision. Her masks are carved from a wide variety of woods and often embellished with scraps and found objects such as nails or thorns. The hair of a mask might be scrap from some other project such as basket making materials or fabric scraps. Some of the masks are carved from wood collected from tree cutters that save especially beautiful and unusual logs for her.
It is not uncommon for fine artists to use masks as a form of expression. If you dig through our archives you can find a few other examples of mask sculptures on the wall or a metal stand. In addition, there are tribal cultures that display masks on the side of a hut or the inside of the “men’s house.” A+
