This one started almost by accident.
Just before Christmas 2024, I decided to make a Nutcracker as a decoration to go with the others we had around the house.
I immediately cut its head off.
From there, I started doing my own thing.
What began as modifying a Christmas decoration quickly turned into something completely different. I realized I was essentially creating cartoons in three dimensions. I don’t really design every detail ahead of time. I start with an idea, begin building, and then let the character develop as I go. One thing suggests another. A new expression, a strange hat, an object in its hand, some ridiculous little detail that suddenly makes the whole character work.
Every Nutcracker presents a different challenge, and that’s a big part of why I enjoy making them.
I use power tools and all kinds of materials – plaster, epoxy, foam, acrylics, enamels, wood and whatever else solves the problem in front of me. Since that first one, I’ve made many more and learned an enormous amount about tools, fabrication and materials along the way.
Now I find myself searching for old Nutcrackers everywhere – stores, antique shops, flea markets, wherever I happen to be. I don’t necessarily see what they are anymore.
I see what they could become.
More than almost anything else I make, the Nutcrackers represent a kind of artistic freedom for me. There really aren’t any rules. I can sculpt, paint, build, cut things apart, add things that were never supposed to be there and completely change the character as I go.
And if something doesn’t work, I can always cut its head off again.