When woodcarver Alex MacLeod looks at a gnarly cedar log he sees the spirit of a bear, eagle or salmon. The Halifax-born woodcarver said he often envisions animals in huge softwood logs before he picks up his chisel and knife.
"Sometimes it doesn't look like anything and I just say, 'OK, I'm going to make it look like this or that,' and other times just the shape of it actually looks like something and you can go well there's the head of the eagle and there's the shape of the wing," said MacLeod.
The steady stream of drivers and passengers that go by Britannia Beach every day couldn't help but notice at least one of MacLeod's offerings along the highway - a pod of dolphins, a bear or an eagle among others.
The Sea to Sky Studio is the only place art lovers can purchase MacLeod's work and he insists on keeping it that way.
"They get to come in and watch you work and get to talk to you in person. It's a discovery for them and they tend you get some connection with you. I find it it's the only way."
MacLeod sells all of his work personally through his Britannia Beach studio located just off Highway 99. Generally most of the carvings MacLeod creates sell for about $1,000 a piece, but his studio has plenty of smaller items for $100 and a few larger sculptures that could cost up to $10,000 each.
"I sell a lot of small stuff that people take home in their suitcases."
MacLeod specializes in carving larger than life wood wildlife sculptures as well as wooden wildlife themed doors and furniture.
A five-foot carving takes MacLeod about a month to complete but that's only because he work on about a dozen projects at a time. He said he loves carving eagles and salmon most but will carve almost any animal, including pet dogs, if that's what his customers want.
"I never rule anything out."
After growing up in a family that earned its living in the lumber industry, MacLeod said combining his creative talents with woodworking seemed like a natural partnership.
"Instead of cutting down trees for a living and sawing them up into lumber like the rest of the family, I just decided to put my creative side to use and go with it and have some fun that way. As I spent more time doing it I thought, 'Hey I could do this for a living and then I could be my own boss and go wind surfing whenever I want.'"
Prior to opening the Sea to Sky Studio in mid-October, MacLeod owned a studio in Halifax, Nova Scotia and in the Muskoka Lake region of Ontario. After spending five years in Ontario, MacLeod said he needed a change, so he decided to follow his lifelong dream of moving to British Columbia.
"I always wanted to move to 小蓝视频, since I was a kid. I always knew I was going to end up here eventually," he said.
"It was totally a new thing to come out here and have large big cedar trees which are so soft to work with, and they're usually very neatly shaped and interesting for that reason, it just rejuvenated my interest."
In addition to a great reception from locals and tourists, the West Coast has also proved to be beneficial for MacLeod's own frame of mind since its wildlife reminds him of the Maritimes.
"We see bald eagles all the time here in Squamish, and in Ontario where I was you never saw a bald eagle. I grew up with them flying over my house in Nova Scotia so I don't feel homesick living here because it's more like home."
MacLeod's larger-than-life sized wood carvings can be found at the Sea to Sky Studio located on Highway 99 in Britannia Beach. For more information on MacLeod and his wood art visit www.spiritofwood.ca.
