MARK MCGEE

Staff Writer

The first hint that something might be interesting is the large Bigfoot lurking in the woods just off Pickle Road.

An even bigger hint of what is ahead is the large dragon at the entrance to the farm. A few feet on the left are two bears chowing down on fish. And ooh, there are monkeys, eagles and other birds, oh my. It is a true wooden menagerie.

The common thread among all of these animals is they are carved from wood. What makes them even more unique is the carving has been performed by Dave Marshalek, an artist using a chain saw.

From his school days in a small Illinois town near St. Louis, Marshalek was drawn to the world of art. When he was a youngster, he would watch his father draw animal sketches. A high school art teacher taught his students as if they were in college and Marshalek was eager to learn.

“He took us into different directions in art we had never thought of,” Marshalek said. “They created a class called independent studies because I had taken all of the art classes.

“I draw, paint and sculpt. I do it all. It sure beats digging ditches.”

His first venture was stone carving, back in the 1980s. He thought he would be spending his days carving angels and other religious symbols for churches.

“But one day you wake up and you have a wife, kids and a mortgage,” Marshalek said. “I had to get a real job. That all went behind me.”

His life changed in many ways. His father passed, a difficult time for him. Instead of art, Marshalek moved to Texas where he was a success in oil field sales.

He and his first wife divorced. He rekindled a romance with Camela, a sweetheart from high school. She asked him about his art career.

“She told me, ‘I thought you were going to be an artist,’” Marshalek said. “I told her it didn’t work out.

“She said why not now? So I transitioned out of oil field sales and started carving wood. A six-foot block of stone was $18,000 back in the 1980s. Tree trunks are free. I prefer white pine and I get it from tree services.”

They are married and live on the farm in Pleasant Grove along with the wooden menagerie. There are live sheep in the back pasture which provide the job of shepherding to keep their two dogs from being bored.

Marshalek has used a myriad of art mediums during his life. He studied a variety of art in classes at Kent State including a cadaver class where he learned about anatomy. He is particularly drawn to the old masters.

He spent three years in his early 20s working for Marvel comics. The “Amoeba Man” is his creation and disagreements on who owned the rights to the creation led to Marshalek’s departure.

“I started off a Marvel as an entry level completion artist,” Marshalek said. “If pages were not finished by the deadline I would be sent the book and have one day to finish it.

“I got into character development and wound up drawing quite a few. I created Amoeba Man and Marvel sent me a letter saying since I was employed by them they claimed all rights to Amoeba Man. I was young and head strong and said I will never draw anything for you again.”

Much of his work has been on display at various galleries around the country. He teaches a class called “Drawing for Wood Carving”.

“All good artists are good draftsman,” Marshalek said. “Most of the time what I do is drawn out first. To this day I can draw anything at any time.”

He admits wood carving with a chain saw isn’t exactly run of the mill art, but that is what he likes the most about it. He use\s a variety of blades known as carving bars, to make the intricate cuts needed followed by sanding and finishing of the details.

“Tt’s fast and loud, and it makes a good show,” Marshalek said. “There is an element of danger to it. It’s something not everyone can do.”