Carving out his niche: Retired park ranger residing in Waukon Junction brings wood to life with his award-winning passion
Carving out his niche in Waukon Junction ... When Dan Campbell retired as a park ranger in Johnson County nine years ago, he and his wife, Carolyn, moved to Waukon Junction. In a corner of a large shed on their Waukon Junction property is where his craft comes to life. Photo by Julie Berg-Raymond.
Recent awards include Best of Show and People’s Choice ... Among other awards, Dan Campbell won a Best of Show award and a People’s Choice award for his carving of an otter and its habitat (pictured above) at the 56th annual International Woodcarvers Congress, held June 10-15 at the Jackson County Fairgrounds in Maquoketa. Photo by Julie Berg-Raymond.
More cheese, please ... The personal style of wood carver Dan Campbell of Waukon Junction, developed over four decades, could be characterized as conveying both a deep affection for the natural world and its inhabitants, and a sense of humor - of fun, and whimsy - about those inhabitants. Pictured above, a small carving of a mouse holding up an empty plate, like a character in an unfolding story, might almost be heard to ask, “May I have some more, please?”. Photo by Julie Berg-Raymond.
by Julie Berg-Raymond
Woodcarver Dan Campbell, of Waukon Junction, had been carving for almost 40 years when a friend talked him into entering his first competition - and it was a big one: The 56th annual International Woodcarvers Congress, held from June 10-15 at the Jackson County Fairgrounds in Maquoketa.
According to information provided at the organization’s website, “The International Woodcarvers Congress is, to the best of our knowledge, the longest running, competitively judged, woodcarving art show in the United States. It is truly the most prestigious show of its kind.” Offering over 95 separate categories in a judged competition, the annual event includes not only the competition, but also seminars, a banquet and judges’ critique sessions (woodcarverscongress.org).
“I took seven carvings to the show, and they all won a ribbon,” Campbell says. Recalling the event, he says, “It was kind of surreal.”
When he walked around the area where entries were displayed following the judging he noticed that his pieces had won ribbons, and he was pleased about that; but he couldn’t find his carving of an otter and its habitat. He eventually found it near the front of the display area and saw it had won ribbons for Best of Show and People’s Choice - he’d gone right past it when he walked in. “I was flabbergasted,” he says.
What Campbell loved most about the whole experience, he says, “was talking to and meeting other carvers. We all speak the same language; and it was exciting to see all the other carvings.”
“DOING SOMETHING INTERESTING”
While awards are nice, ultimately Campbell - like all artists - does what he does, because he loves doing it, and can’t imagine not doing it. “It’s always about doing something interesting, and getting that ‘kick,’” he says.
For Campbell, whose specialty is nature/wildlife carving, the “fun part” – and, technically, he adds, the hardest to learn - “is getting them animated.”
Whether “getting them animated” might mean carving a fish or an otter that appears to be so realistic it looks like it’s about to swim away, or a bird that seems to have alit on a branch only a moment ago - or carving a character - piece (a hungry little mouse, for example, as pictured above) that might have stopped in place to say ‘hello’ in the middle of telling a story, Campbell has, over the course of 40 years, developed his ability to “get them animated” into what could well be considered a signature style.
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