Art Chowder March | April 2018, Issue 14 | Page 19

C
arving into wood or stone, he creates a
majority of his art outdoors, year round. With
sweeping forest views and visits from wildlife
as inspiration, his deck features a permanent
platform to hold his work in progress.
When Adamson is not dusting snow off his
workspace, he uses a converted garage as a
shop, where he keeps at least one of every kind
of saw. “Some say that the difference between
a man and a boy is the price of his toys. I can’t
take credit for it, but I can tell you it’s true.”
The most common tools used to chisel the
images in his head are: seven chainsaws; ten
hand held grinders—each with a different disc,
ten Makita grinders, and hand carving tools. He
has his electrical tools at the ready to increase
efficiency. “When I’m on a job, I don’t have
time to change bits.”
Adamson has had a busy career as an artist.
With art pieces on almost every continent,
Antarctica the exception, over 10,000 people
have commissioned or purchased one of his
wood sculptures. This includes President
George W. Bush, who received a gift presented
by Montana Governor Judy Martz. Adamson’s
experience ranges from hand carved wood and
chainsaw carvings to stone, bronze, clay, and
even ice. However, he began as a painter.
Growing up in Montana, Adamson had the
desire to be an artist. As a young teen, his
supplies were limited to sketching on notebook
paper, advancing to acrylic painting by the
age of 17. He worked at a lumber mill that
produced planer boards in the early 1970s.
“Getting a job was the way of things.”
He had a one-hour lunch, but driving elsewhere
was counterproductive. As a non-smoker, he
avoided the break room and opted to walk
along the riverbank where he found unique
pieces of wood. “You don’t want to use
driftwood. It is risky, takes a long time to dry,
and always has sand in it.” Cottonwood was the
easiest to access in Montana, and, according
to Adamson, makes a fine hand carved piece,
since the bark remains on the wood. Adamson