Carving the Grand Tiara Pillar

An Elegant Floral Tradition

Richly carved pillars with flowers and Acanthus leaf patterns have been timeless themes on Classical style pedal harps. Add a solid gold finish and the results are stunning.

These closeups of the Grand Tiara show intricate details and workmanship that makes this harp a unique and rare work of art among the typical selection of lever harps.

I use maple for its strength and resistance to minor dings besides its close grain for carving fine details. Once the pillar's profile is turned, the carving begins.

Flowers, beads, and Acanthus leaves are features on this pillar that never lose their appeal. I also like musical symbols like lyres and treble clefs artistically blended into the overall style of carving.

Balancing the artwork on a cylindrical surface presents a unique challenge as it must flow from any angle of view. After lots of trial and error in the drawing stage, the final artwork is then transferred to the pillar with carbon paper.

Maple is hard wood!!! It takes up to a week to carve a single pillar with this level of detail. I choose maple for its strength and resistance to minor dings besides its tight and even grain that permits crisp carving details and smooth finishes.

When satisfied with the carvings, the pillar is given numerous coats of primer to sand as silky smooth as possible. The smoother the surface, the more fluid and metallic the gold paint looks. People have asked what the pillars are made of and are surprised to find out that it is actually made of wood, not metal!

The more intricate and detailed the carvings are, the more the gold paint highlights the depth and beauty of the design as seen above. This is important as these details show up better from a distance when performing on center stage.

Here the bottom of the pillar continues the theme and workmanship of the top of the pillar. The graceful vase-like contours on this section compliments the floral theme and enhances the overall lines on this harp. Although the artwork is not quite as complex as the top floral section it was tricky to transfer the design accurately to the curved surface.

Gold paint really pops out the carving details. It is important to make the carvings as 3D as possible even though the carving is not as deep as the main feature of flowers on the top section.

With a customer's input I like to add personal touches to their harp. Here the initial "R" for the customer's name is featured in the cameo. These finishing touches make you and your harp ready to step out and give your best on center stage.

Click to view the Grand Tiara

Carving the Grand Tiara Pillar