Michael J. Galovic

I became fascinated with birds when I received my first Golden Fieldguide at a very young age.  My suburban Northwest Indiana neighborhood offered me the possibility to get a regular view of the most common backyard birds.  It wasn’t until later in life that I began to explore all the possibilities of birding. After moving to Cocoa Beach, Florida, in my late 20s, I began to regularly attend birding fieldtrips at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge nearby.  I was captured by the beauty of the birds I had previously only seen in pictures.

My birding continued for the next 2 decades before seeing an invitation to take a bird carving class to help with bird identification skills.  I took the class and became hooked on carving. Bird carving is more than a hobby or personal interest. My carvings are all very personal to me. I enjoy making each and every one of them. They take many months to complete and during that time I’m in regular dialogue with myself over its design and the techniques I’ll use to bring my vision of that bird into the created piece.

I design my carvings to capture a specific gesture that can be observed in the species being presented. Most birds I carve are ones I’ve seen in the wild.  I strive for a realistic impression—while fully aware that I cannot duplicate the intricate beauty inherent in a bird.

It is my hope that viewers of my work can feel a bit of that passion and beauty that emerges in me as I bring these carvings into being. Thank you for your interest in exploring birds in art.

Michael

Asheville, NC
10/29/2022