There are a lot of reasons for grey nomads to visit the Western Australian town of Albany, and not all of them are to do with the National Anzac Centre … or whales and wind farms!
A local artist has been noisily carving out a unique tourist attraction that has brought floods of caravanners and motorhomers literally to his front door
The ABC reports that Darrel Radcliffe, who works as an orderly at Albany Hospital, has been hooked on the unique artistry of chainsaw wood carving for about a decade. He now has more than 100 unique sculptures placed along his driveway and has discovered that ‘if you carve it, they will come’.
Darrel Radcliffe transforms scrap wood and old tree stumps into something amazing. PIC: ABC/Toby Hussey
Dozens of tourists arrive daily at ‘Chainsaw Sculpture Drive’ where they can see pieces including sculptures of humans, animals, a castle, musical instruments — and even more chainsaws.
“I’ve carved all sorts of animals and people, from three-metre Ned Kellys down to small owls and everything in between,” Darrel told the ABC. “A small bird can take a day, but I’ve spent up to three weeks on a project.”
And Darrel has discovered that when you are using a chainsaw as a proverbial paintbrush, mistakes can happen … but he says that just presents more creative opportunities.
“If you’re carving an eagle and it’s not coming along, carve an owl and if that doesn’t work, carve a pigeon,” he told the ABC. “If you have to end up carving a blue wren, there’s nothing wrong with that either.”
His preferred wood is jarrah — a rich red wood native to WA’s south west — which he said was ‘reasonably soft’ against the chainsaw blade, but strong enough to allow carving fine details.
The ABC reports that social media also helped spread the word with more than a million people viewing a photo of a recent work online, and grey nomads made up the bulk of visitors to his driveway.
“They’re quite surprised,” said Darrel. “But they all seem to be quite happy about it and seem to enjoy the visit.”
There’s no entry fee to drive along Chainsaw Sculpture Drive, but Darrel appreciates a donation halfway through the drive.
Truly amazing artwork.
We visited a month or so back and were astounded by the quality of the work and workmanship and the variety of topics. Highly recommended that anyone in the area should visit.
Darrel has an amazing skill and the work he does is truly beautiful. More power to him and he should have donated some thing from his magnificent collection to Dorrigo. To see his work and to watch him creating his statues is a true pleasurer.