Jordan Henderson Puts His Heart into the Work of His Hands

DAYTON - It may not seem like wood carving and gardening have a lot in common, but for 19-year-old Jordan Henderson they each provide a creative outlet and are steps on the path to entrepreneurship. Henderson has spent this spring and summer gardening and selling his organic produce from Deer Pond Gardens while the wood carvings he crafted over the winter are on display at the Wenaha Gallery. Both are businesses he's envisioned for some time.

Following his senior year in high school, Henderson headed to Alaska where he spent five months working in the kitchen at George Inlet Lodge in Ketchikan. He was lured by the promise of excellent hiking and fishing as well as the opportunity to sock away money to start his own businesses.

"The work was dull, but the hiking and fishing were great!" he said. "And it was one of those jobs where I could save nearly all of what I made."

With money to invest, Henderson returned home, added some high quality rotary grinders to his tool inventory and spent the winter carving. He began carving about two years ago and is completely self-taught. However, he said the skills he's learned from his father - local oil and watercolorist Steve Henderson - laid a strong foundation.

"I've been doing artwork since my Dad started teaching me when I was a little kid," he said. "I've done quite a bit of charcoal portraiture, some watercolor and a little bit of oil. The same skills carry through to carving. If I can't draw something, I know I won't be able to carve it." Henderson most enjoys carving animals, people, and faces and figures because they "offer an interesting challenge."

His carvings can take from a day (he doesn't track hours) to over a month complete. "It depends on how well I know the subject," he said."If it's something very different from what I've ever done it takes a lot of drawing it from all sides and studying it. For animals, a lot of times, I'll do drawings of their skeletal systems and at least basic drawings of their muscle systems to try to understand how they work. Once I know how the animal moves, it becomes easier to carve. So even though it takes longer on the first one, it really pays off."

Henderson says that he wouldn't pin himself to a specific style, but is drawn to carvings that are proportionally correct. "I really like it when the proportions are right. Then I'll do it slightly stylized. I try to keep things technically accurate, but I'll simplify some lines so they are more solid and flowing. At least that's my goal."

Henderson said he has been strongly influenced by his father Steve's dedication to quality and his refusal to take shortcuts. "I enjoy stylized pieces but I don't like when someone stylizes something not by choice, but because they can't do it otherwise. My dad is really dedicated to knowing how to do any style [of painting] that he wants and is constantly building his skill level, which is what I would like to do with my carving."

Currently, most of Henderson's inventory - with pieces ranging in price from $80 to $550 - is on display at the Wenaha Gallery on Dayton's Main Street. Among his favorites is a rockfish, based on the fish he caught in Alaska.

"Every time I fished one up I thought, 'these are just the most cool looking, monstrous fish - I've got to do a carving of one," he said. Other favorites include a gardener leaning on a shovel which stands at 19" high, and a Native American portrait based on an image by photo historian Edward Curtis.

Henderson says he knew he was interested in starting businesses in gardening and carving and when he considered getting a summer job, he decided to go ahead and start his gardening business this year as well. His goal for Deer Pond Gardens, which is keeping him busy full time through the summer, is "to deliver highest quality produce I can with no contaminants, whatsoever." He currently sells at farmer's markets and delivers produce boxes directly to customers.

Henderson is pleased with the progress of both of his initial business endeavors and has expansion plans for each. He's already working to increase his garden space which will be double in size next year. He is also looking into working with clay or bronze.

"People are willing pay more for a bronze than a carving and you can make several copies of the same piece," He said. "Plus, most of what I've learned is transferrable to clay, but clay is much easier and more forgiving to work with."

Henderson's carvings can be seen online at stevehendersonfineart.com and www.wenaha.com. See updates on his garden at Deer Pond Garden on Facebook or visit Jordan in person at the Dayton Farmer's Market on Saturdays.