If you see Greg Owens with a knife in his hands don't be alarmed.  He's not dangerous, he's an artist.  

Greg says he carves simply because he enjoys the art.  "When I'm carving, I can take my mind completely off any problem," he said.  

"I also like the challenge of working with new techniques," he added.  "There's always something new to try.  I've carved caricatures, Santa's, cigar store Indians, dogs, all kinds of things."

Greg's donation to the 2001 club show raffle.  Two canvasback hens.

Greg's donation to the 2002 club show raffle.  A male and a female woodduck.

If Greg does have a specialty it is carving fish decoys.  In fact he's won awards at it.  Now for those of you who don't know what a fish decoy is, here's a short course:

A fish decoy is a wood carving used in a particular kind of ice fishing.  Usually the carving is a fish; but it can also be another animal, such as a frog, leech, duck, or turtle.  The fish decoy is weighted on its bottom and dropped on a string through a hole in the ice, where it acts as a lure for pike or muskellunge. When one of these fish comes to eat the decoy, the fisherman spears the fish.  Native Americans invented this type of fishing.  Today, it's legal in three states; Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

A few years ago, Greg learned of a major woodcarving contest held in Livonia, Mich.  

In 1996, Greg and his friend Pat Gregory, also a club member, each decided to enter a carving in the contest.  "We just did it on a lark," Greg said.

Greg was pleased when he found out that his carving took third place in its category, so the next year he submitted four carvings.  that year, he took home an honorable mention, two third place finishes and his first blue ribbon. 

But in 1998, he really ran away with the gold.  his four carvings earned him three first place awards and one third place finish.

An avid outdoorsman, Greg said he's always enjoyed working with wood.  He has carved for about 14 years now, and he sows no signs of stopping any time soon.

Article Reprinted with permission of ALFI News.