A new view -the mountains of Howe Sound - from a new studio near Langdale may have helped an unusual artisan win an international competition recently.
Peggy Vincent, or Peggasus as she is known by her artist's name, has taken a first place win in the experienced category for her artwork, Owl Magic, in an international egg carving competition. The winning entry, a detailed transformation of an emu egg, depicts a snowy owl in full flight, wings outspread. Vincent explains that the owls need this magnificent wingspan for braking power and also to help them lift off while carrying their prey. She had seen the snowy owls in Gibsons -an unusual sight since they usually fly farther north - and she became inspired while staring from her window at the mountains and forests in hopes of seeing another one. She's fond of using birds as her images: everything from loons to seagulls. In some mythologies, snowy owls mean good fortune. The promise certainly came true.This unique talent, the intricate carving of a real egg shell using an etching instrument like a dental drill, has a small band of practitioners. But the contest, sponsored by a U.S. based magazine, The Eggshell Sculpture, drew 30 contestants and 58 entries from all over the world.
The carving of emu eggs, which Vincent prefers, has a special category since it is quite a different style from that of carving ostrich, rhea or goose eggs, all of which she has tried in the past. (Other contest categories included filigree carving and relief work.)"I prefer emu," she says, "because I'm fascinated by the green colour and what you can pull out of it." The first layer is a dark green. When this is chipped away, it reveals a grey green, then a teal colour and finally a thin, white layer that must be carved oh so gently so as not to break through. It is this white layer that creates the outline of the egg design. The artistry lies in making each layer paint a picture, yet there is no actual paint used on Owl Magic; the colours are the natural colours of the egg.
The prize-winning egg sits on a base of wood, rather like the stump of a tree, and Vincent has surrounded the egg with a carved shell in the form of acedar rail fence. The result is still fragile. Vincent demonstrates how to hold the egg, always by the base. She usually secures the egg to a stable stand made of natural materials. Care must be taken with the emu eggs, but the sturdy, huge ostrich eggs are not so breakable. Vincent also decorates tiny quail eggs and embellishes goose eggs with decoration, hinging them to open up and reveal a miniature surprise inside, in the Fabergé style.
Egg carving is a detailed, painstaking procedure. The artist must first drain the egg without breaking the shell, though the contents can be used for an emu omelette. Vincent uses a magnifying glass to see the layers while carving and must contain the egg in a dust box since breathing the shell dust is hazardous to the lungs.Vincent has won in this competition before. In 2001, she was considered in the novice category she came in third for her carving of penguins, also on an emu egg. After living in New Zealand for three years, she has had an opportunity to see penguins close up and fell in love with them immediately.
Much of her work is custom ordered and she has sent eggs, packed for shipping, around the world. Currently, she has a number of her eggs on display and for sale at the Woods store at Sunnycrest Mall in Gibsons, and she is open to requests.
