Oh No Not Again | ART AT POINT RUSTON
Artist: Pat McVay
Created: 2016
Materials: Sitka Spruce
Meaning: Boaters riding a wave and getting thrown from their boat by a whale
Dimensions: 8′ X 5′ X 3′
Retail Price $9,500.00
FEATURE PRICE: $8,000.00
(Feature Price expires March 1, 2018)
For inquiries on purchasing McVay’s artworks, please contact art@pointruston.com
McVay’s inspiration for “Oh No, Not Again!” came from reading accounts of early European explorers who encountered the Makah whalers in the 1700 & 1800s. In the early 1900s, Edward S. Curtis documented them in his photos. And historians described them as “brave & canny hunters, barely clad as they went onto the frigid Pacific waters to hunt the Grey whale”.
When you view McVay’s sculpture at Point Ruston, you can see all the details of the hunt. The Makah’s ocean going canoes & paddles carved from giant cedars, their ropes, lines & clothing all woven from soft cedar bark, their floats tied to the lines made from inflated seal hides, and the tips of their harpoons, made from sharp edged mussel shells.
Once a whale was spotted, the chase was on! As the hunters paddled furiously, the harpooner stood at the ready in the front of the canoe. When they came up on the side of the whale, the harpoon was thrown and when hit, the fight would last for many hours. The floats helped to fatigue the whale so the hunters could finally tow it to shore. A whale could feed the whole village for a long time. This was never easy as sometimes the whale would pull them far out to sea for days. And sometimes, the giant whale tail could smash their fragile boat and they would never be seen again.
And…sometimes, the whale would win…and other times, it would be the Whalers. This artwork portrays that drama….“Oh No, Not Again!” could be the the Whale speaking – or the Whalers – or both!
The sculpture, “Oh No, Not Again!” is carved from a single 4 foot thick, 6 foot wide, 7 foot tall block of salvaged Sitka Spruce. This wood was destined to be chipped up to make paper pulp…now that would have been a shame! This coastal wood has the highest tensile strength of any wood in North America. It is famous for supporting the wings of the world’s largest wooden airplane, the Spruce Goose, built by Howard Hughes.
McVay’s history in the arts goes back 40 years to Paris, where he began his career by repairing and making furniture. Pat had a small shop, a few tools and lots of paint used to hide mistakes. There was a blue period, a red period and a white period and soon, people began asking him to create new furniture. Then came work in porcelain tile, and after moving to the Olympic Peninsula, his attraction to the natural forms of the forest led him into wood carving. Currently, most of his work is large-scale carvings from already-downed trees, using everything from a chain saw to fine chisels. His whimsical and even comical sense is often the basis of unique carvings of people and animals. Many of his works are visible in public spaces up and down the West Coast. He was a founding member of the Northwest Stone Sculptors Association and the Cascade Wood Sculptors Guild. He shows his work at “Music for the Eyes,” a gallery in Langley, Washington.
For further information on works by Point Ruston artists, purchase inquiries, or for artist submittals, contact: Buster Baba at art@pointruston.com
