Sculpture & artistic carving

Wood sculptor and carving commissions, Sunshine Coast

Woodcarving of this kind is close to extinct in North America. Franz Krutsky learned it in Prague, where he spent years on the carved wooden interiors of Renaissance and Baroque churches — the sort of carving that takes centuries to accumulate and an afternoon to lose.

In 2003 he restored the altar of the Infant Jesus of Prague. In 2006 he carved new work for the Benedictine monastery at Břevnov, founded in 993. He carves to commission from a workshop in West Sechelt.

A carved figure in relief within an arched wooden panel — **Figure carved in relief within an arched panel.**Cut by hand from solid timber.

A life-size robed figure being carved from a solid timber baulk — **Life-size robed figure, in progress.**Carved from a single baulk of timber.

Close detail of a carved head showing the face and hair — **Carved head — detail.**Worked to finished surface directly from the chisel.

Commissions

Figurative and religious carving

Figures, saints, reliefs, altar and church pieces. This is the direct continuation of Franz's work in Prague — where his commissions included new carvings for the church of St Margaret at Břevnov Monastery — and there are very few people in British Columbia doing it.

Architectural ornament

Capitals, corbels, carved panels, mouldings and decorative elements — for buildings, interiors and restoration projects that need a missing element cut to match.

Carved signs and lettering

House names, business signs, address boards. Carved wood, cut by hand, weathering into something better rather than something faded.

Memorials and personal pieces

Commemorative carvings, plaques, and one-off commissions made for a particular person or occasion.

Restoring carved work

Damaged carving is its own discipline, and it is the one Franz was trained in

Church pieces, antique carved furniture, statuary, ornament that has been broken, worn, or lost sections entirely — Franz can repair what is there and recarve what is missing, matched to the original in wood, tooling and character.

It is the work he did in Prague on the altar of the Infant Jesus, on the choir stalls at Plasy, and on sacristy furnishings at Želiv and St Nicholas. He does the same work here — including painted and gilded pieces, where the surface matters as much as the carving beneath it.

A carved statue with the face stripped back to bare primer during restoration — **During — face stripped back and primed.**Old overpaint removed before repainting began.

The finished polychrome statue, repainted with a gilded robe — **After — repainted and the robe regilded.**Polychrome surface and gold leaf restored.

If your church, collection or building has a carved piece nobody local will touch, this is the enquiry to send.

Other commissions

A carved and painted house-number sign topped with a carved seal — **Carved house-number sign with a seal above.**Designed on paper, carved, then painted.

A carved squirrel corbel mounted on a log post — **Carved squirrel corbel on a log post.**Carved to sit into the post.

A bear paw print carved into a log post — **Bear paw carved into a log post.**Cut in relief directly into the standing timber.

Every piece is commissioned

There is no stock to choose from — each piece is carved for the person who asks for it

Bring an idea, a photograph, a rough sketch, or a damaged original. Carving is slow work and pieces are scheduled in advance, so allow time.

Next step

Describe what you have in mind

A sketch, a photograph, or just a description. Franz will tell you whether it can be done, how long it would take, and what it would cost.

Request a quote (604) 399-8067 franz.krutsky@gmail.com