Carving begins on 120 year old historic Bellbrae Estate tree

AN ARTISTIC transformation has begun on a 120-year-old Monterey Pine tree at Bellbrae Estate, with local artist Brock Fidler revving up his chainsaw to kick off the exciting new project.

Last week, Mr Fidler chipped into the wood for the first time, tasked with carving an ocean landscape out of the humungous tree which fell during wild storms in October last year.

Having carved sculptures from trees of a similar age, Fidler said he was excited to have commenced crafting what will arguably be the biggest carving on the Surf Coast.

“It’ll be one of, if not the biggest in the area,” Fidler said.

“This ocean themed carving will be a bit abstract… the flow of the ocean is the idea… trying to get this flowy style in the wood.

“I’ve worked with Richard from Bellbrae Estate on the design and he’s given me a bit of freedom of expression which is great.

“I’m thinking the project will take me about a month and then we will have a big bonfire opening evening when it’s finished.”

 

Fidler has already begun carving lines and patterns into the tree to get showcase the motions of the ocean, while any major offcuts thus far have been smoothed out and will be used as seating for the winery.

“I’ve done about five days so far… I had a guy come in and help me chip out the debris and it’s only just gotten to the stage to properly start.

“The tree is a lot bigger than I thought and the pieces are about as heavy as what I weigh… not until you get right to the core of it is when you figure out what exactly you can work with.

“I plan on putting a few steps in so I can climb to the top to spray it… and that way if kids are playing there is some easy access for them to do so.”

Once completed, Fidler hopes to have a community unveiling event with wine, cheese and a bonfire.