He celebrates a medium that has been crafted by human hands for function, beauty and ceremony since primitive times.
After a stint in University in Ontario I returned to New Brunswick and worked as a landscape horticulturist. As this was seasonal work I found myself back to woodcarving during the winter months. After several winters of hobby carving I started to sell some pieces and secure some commissions. In the summer of 2009 I applied for a solo show at the Saint John Arts Centre with a thematic grouping of seed and plant inspired sculptures. This show netted numerous sales and positive publicity and it was pivotal in my decision to commit to wood-sculpting at a professional level. From this point I focused full time on carving items for sale in craft galleries as well as commissions. At the same time I began to experiment with the construction of wooden furniture with a sentiment that ‘utility’ contained a certain beauty as well as better liability to sell itself. Currently I split my time between production carvings, furniture commissions and furniture and sculpture speculation pieces.
Jury Statement
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Kingston resident, Philip Savage has been selected as the 2015 recipient of the Sheila Hugh Mackay Foundation’s Nel Oudemans Award recognizing the pursuit of excellence in the field of fine craft and design by emerging New Brunswick artisans. A sculptor in wood as well as a landscape horticulturist, Mr. Savage creates both functional and sculptural works drawing inspiration from nature. He celebrates a medium that has been crafted by human hands for function, beauty and ceremony since primitive times.
The Foundation expresses gratitude to the following members of the selection committee for their professional assistance: Maegan Black, Director of Canadian Craft Federation; Weaver and sculptor, Jesse Davies; Strathbutler artist, Susan Vida Judah and Peter Laroque, the New Brunswick Museum’s Curator of N.B. Cultural History and Art.