Steve Rogers

Steve Rogers
St. Charles, MO

I have been carving for over 35 years having seen an example of carving in a college bookstore window and was instantly hooked. While I have carved any number of different styles of wood carving from relief to chip carving, bird carving and many other these bark houses have grabbed my heart like no other. The carvings are made of cottonwood tree bark . The tree has to have died before the bark can be recovered usually falling off the trunk after one year. I saw this tree down in farmers yard and knocked on his door to ask about the bark. He proceeded to tell me his great great grandfather planted that tree in 1846 so they could find their way home through the prairie grass. The farmer agreed to call me if the bark fell off the trunk. He called me one year later as the bark had fallen off the trunk and I carved him and his 3 sons houses in the round that their ancestor had planted. I carve these houses because they touched my heart as no other carving has. I hope they also make you think of home as they have for me.