Unique, supernatural, root forms

There are people who can see more in the tree than the clean, beautiful wood obtained from the trunk after all the defects have been removed. After pruning remains, the roots that give beautifully drawn wood that I mentioned when I talked about nuc. The French artist Alain Maillan managed to discover beauty precisely in these... scraps. He works with roots and growths (bumps) that appear on tree trunks to create incredible sculptures, as if from another world.

Allain Maillan is a unique artist. He sees beyond the wood into incredible shapes. He is always inspired by nature and his works often look like aquatic creatures or alien forms.

Allain lives and works in the south of France. He was born in Paris, but at some point he found it too grey and moved south buying 2 acres of land. Here he built his own house and workshop using the experience as a carpenter and joiner he gained in his youth. The workshop is made at the base of a rocky area, half in the rock, so it is warm in winter and cool in summer.

Maillan works with wood using all kinds of methods that he masters very well: milling, carving, bending, sanding, structuring, sandblasting. As far as milling is concerned, he uses personal, unique techniques that you can't find in any manual.

And in terms of tools he is an innovator. He says that when he needs a special tool that he can't find, he starts the forge and makes it himself.

All his works show his love for nature, for plants and animals, a love instilled in him since childhood by his mother.

Allain usually starts his work by first making the drawing, then goes into the forest to find the right material: roots, fallen branches, bumps in the trunks of trees, etc. He brings the wood to the workshop where he immediately starts milling and carving it, then leaves it to dry. Drying takes place naturally, so it takes months, sometimes even years before he moves on to the other operations and the work is completed.

This is the usual way of working. There are times, however, when his woodcutter friend brings him a more special piece of wood that immediately inspires him, he drops everything and starts the new work.

Mailland says that to make a work, he spends 20% of his time milling the wood and another 20% carving it. The rest means bending, sanding, sanding, staining or varnishing. It's hard work that means inspiration but also a lot of rough work to bring out a true wonder.

Allain has unique techniques and many are eager to learn them. He organises one-week courses for 1 to 2 people, thus passing on his methods to his disciples. For many of them it means the beginning of their journey as artists and Allain supports them on their way. He has even signed works with some of the apprentices.

Allain Mailland is a special artist who has managed to bring out the hidden beauty of wood. The roots of southern France, true wonders, are his source of wood. The rest is inspiration, talent, hard work and a spark of genius.