A Guelph man says he is disappointed that someone took a saw to one of his hand-carved sculptures in his yard that have been delighting children for decades.
Jack Barr said about 30 years ago he began carving owls, foxes and wood elves into the cedar fence posts on his Forest Street property, not far from the historic McCrae House.
A few weeks ago Barr noticed that one of the wood elf sculptures had been sawed off.
“They came at night and sawed it off and that was it,” said Barr. “It was deliberate. They were well aware that the carvings were here and he or she chose the one that would be the fastest to saw down.”
Barr said he can replace the sculpture but in the meantime he put a sign at the scene of the theft explaining why it was missing.
“That’s why I put the sign there, because I know some of the neighbourhood kids have already noticed it was gone,” he said.
Barr and his wife Joan moved in to the house in 1965 and over the years added an addition and changed the stucco exterior to wood siding. If you look closely some of the siding on the house has also been carved into animal shapes and Barr also hand-carved the window trim and front door.
“I guess I have been carving since I was five or six years old,” said Barr.
The fencepost animals and elves were hand carved into cedar posts in a process that can take several days. Barr said cedar is a softer wood, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s easier to carve.
“I use carver’s gouges a lot and more recently I have been using rotary cutters because it’s a bit faster,” he said.
Over the years the Barr’s house has become one everybody in the neighbourhood knows because it is so unique. They took the flat front lawn that came with the house and gradually sculpted it with stone, shrubs and plants.
The gardens on the property have been included in many garden tours and the large Black Maple in the front yard provides plenty of shade.
Barr said the theft of the wood elf sculpture is disappointing not just for himself, but also for the neighbours.
“Particularly for the little neighbourhood kids, because I know they enjoy it,” he said.
