Bone Workz

Materials and Methods

 

Materials

 

(in order of increasing cost) bone (cow, moose), elk button (crowns), mammoth ivory, hippo ivory, walrus ivory, limited supplies of narwhal tusk ivory and occasionally buffalo horn (black) and muskox horn. The walrus and narwhal ivory are obtained from a distributor who buys directly from the Innuit, to whom these animals remain an important source of food and income.

(require a comment about CITES treaty)

 

Methods

 

I use traditional techniques, meaning that aside from initial roughing out, everything is done with hand tools. Materials include bone from a variety of large mammals including cow and moose, elk and moose buttons (the dense bone where antler attaches to skull), mammoth ivory, walrus ivory (acquired through authorized Canadian distributors) and other forms of antique (preban) ivory that I sometimes find buried in antique shops. On rare occasions I have used buffalo and muskox horn for variation in color. I will continue to push my abilities, incorporating new techniques and elements into the basic designs for as long as my eyes and hands will allow.