Tom Borg - 1967
April 13, 2008
TOM BORG – Wood carved Duck
Tom Borg has lived in Phelps County for most of his life. He was a graduate of Holdrege High School, where he credits art instructor, Louise Mulliner, for helping him to branch out in a variety of art forms and to act on his abilities and interest.
An interest in antiques led him to wood carvings anddecoys. Tom feels wood decoy is one of the most extensively cultivated and evolved forms of folk art. It filled many niches in the lives of waterfowl hunters after the use of live decoys was outlawed. Not only did they need something to lure birds to them, it filled the long winter hours when there was little to occupy time.
This decoy has been hollowed out and the two body halves have been glued together. This technique was used to get more buoyancy and natural action from the decoy. The sleeping or ‘preening’ head position is this decoy was used to make the decoy look more realistic and calm and is decorated in the manner of a Mallard head.
Similar techniques are very evident in decoys from the same area of the country and help to identify the decoys and their carvers. There was a sense of competitiveness among the carver to create the perfect duck lure. This form of folk art was so popular that it created many decoy-making factories.
Tom hopes that the successful bidder of this piece gets as much enjoyment out of owning it as he had carving it.
Value: $200.00
