Andrew Evans, AKA the 'Constant Whittler' on Instagram, rarely gets the opportunity to work with timber that has a story behind it as special as that belonging to the giant sequoias of St David’s Park.
Standing tall in the park for just shy of 90 years, the two giants were planted in 1937 to commemorate the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.
After showing deep signs of distress and failing to respond to repeated attempts to revive them, the two trees were removed from the park.
Expressions of Interest process
Carefully cut and sealed, large barrels, limbs and other pieces from the two trees are now being offered to artists and the community for free as part of an Expressions of Interest process run by our Creative Hobart team.
There will be an open day to view the timber between 9am and 12pm on Thursday 18 June at 518 Huon Rd, South Hobart.
Expressions of Interest close Wednesday 1 July.
We have created an online catalogue displaying all of the timber on offer.
Applications can be submitted through the Expression of Interest process.
Apply now
A giant sequoia barrel.
Honouring fallen giants
Andrew Evans is being seconded to use his fine whittling and carving skills to work on one of the four largest pieces for a special City of Hobart project. He plans to turn a large sequoia barrel into a unique sculpture for one of Hobart's parks.
He’s an extraordinary carver, and owns a beautiful collection of hand-crafted tools.
While we remain saddened by the loss of the two giant sequoias from St David's Park, we know Andrew and local Hobart makers will turn the sequoia timber into something special.
One of Andrew's unique carving tools.
Beautiful timber for crafting
The soft red wood of the giant sequoia is durable and easily worked, and it's extremely rare to see so much timber of this nature released into the local artisan community, let alone for free.
For whittlers and carvers who prefer to work with milled wood, we have included a store of milled elm timber from a mature tree in Franklin Square that was sadly vandalised and subsequently removed in 2005.
This is an extraordinary opportunity to turn the passing of these beautiful trees into something special that will last for generations to come and properly honour the loss of these trees.
Apply now