This is a happy story of the mixing of two different nationalities (Canadian and Panamanian) both with a love of carving.
The Panamanian Carver: Arquimedes Degracias is not sure where he was born, but from age five was living in the Tonosi, Panama area. For as long as he can remember he has always wanted to carve. He escaped from family farm duties when young by hiding in the fields to do his carving. It has been his life-long passion. He sold his first piece, an armadillo, when he was 18. In the future he would like to make more carvings of people.
Arquimedes now calls Guanico (in the Tonosi district of Panama) home. He has carved all the columns of a restaurant there and does custom work as well. The tools he uses are ones he made himself from Stella files.
We met him when visiting Guanico to look at the restaurant columns someone had told us were interesting. In his free time you will find Arquimedes out behind the restaurant working on a new creation. When asked if he had any carvings for sale, he brought out a large beautifully carved horse that stands approximately 24 inches high, and which Kathleen bought. It is a stunning, absolutely stunning piece. Since that first time we both have purchased a number of other creations he has carved.
The Canadian Carver: Phil McCarver (aka Phil MacIntyre) was the youngest of 14. He did not have any interest in carving when he was younger. He served as a soldier for 25 years, and it wasn’t until he moved to Panama that he took up carving – about 15 years ago. However, it has become a passion for him as well. He has an array of tools that any carver would love to own. Phil lives in Uverito, Panama with his girlfriend Gloria. You can't miss their beautiful home on the beach with his masterful carvings adorning most corners of their place. Truly a sight to behold. Everywhere you look is a work of art.
Sue got to know Phil when she started taking carving classes from him in 2019. She has made a number of beautiful pieces under his tutelage. Carving was something she had always wanted to learn.
Phil and Gloria have three apartments for rent in this magical place with a grand pool and courtyard done in a Tiki theme.
The collaboration: It all began when Phil was in need of some help with carving hammock totems. Phil asked Sue if she thought Arquimedes might be interested in doing some carving for him. He wanted Sue to find out if Arquimedes would be willing to come to Uverito to work on the totems. A couple of weeks later, Sue and Kathleen again made a trip to Guanico, and talked to Arquimedes. He was somewhat reluctant to commit and suggested that Phil should come down in person to talk to him about what he wanted and to see if they liked each other. Sue later took Phil and Gloria to Guanico to meet and talk with Arquimedes. They hit it off instantly! So three days later, Sue made the trip to Guanico to pick up Arquimedes and take him to Phil’s place in Uverito. When Arquimedes saw Phil's carving tools, his face lit up as he handled and admired each piece. He had never seen tools of this quality. When Phil told him he could use his tools, he was ecstatic.
Phil likes to work with beach driftwood, which in addition to the tools, was new to Arquimedes.
So it was, on that day in October 2020 that the two of them began their journey of carving together. Their carving styles turned out to be similar. As they worked side by side it became a great collaboration of artistic design and learning from one another. The language of carving has overcome any difficulty with spoken language.
Arquimedes has made the journey to Uverito a few times now, usually staying for approximately a week each time. Since Sue has been taking carving lessons from Phil for 2 years now, she had the added pleasure of having Arquimedes helping out the newbie carvers. Arquimedes was also able to purchase his own carving tools. He really enjoyed carving on the beach in the Rancho. He said Uverito's beach was nice and had a wonderful breeze off the ocean. A little bit of paradise!
It has been a blessing to watch these two men grow as carvers and friends.
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