Full Circle Group Benefits "Moosehead"

The Full Circle Group Benefits' sponsored carving 'Moosehead' is located at 834 Van St. just a half a block east of Rectory in London. The carving is a little different than most of the others on London's Tree Trunk Tour. It isn't on a main street, or associated with a large institution. It was completed as a part of the partnership that created the other fifteen works on the tour.

It is a sculpture which is very straightforward in its execution, a lifelike, life sized carving of a moose's head, perched on the cleanly shaped and stained tree trunk bottom.









I was able to get in touch with the owner, Dave Broostad, and learned a lot about the carving. He is the owner of the property, and had a maple tree that he was going to have to cut down. In the fall of 2010, he researched the other trunks in London, and eventually was led to Robbin Wenzoski, who would end of carving this piece.

The Moose was chosen, according to Mr. Broostad, because he had just returned from a hunting trip, and it sprang to mind when Robbin asked him what he wanted on the tree. Due to the width of the antlers, it was necessary to carve the head out of a separate piece of wood, in this case, Black Walnut.







The trunk cuts quite and imposing profile on the street. And the blending is very smooth between the existing trunk and the add-on head. Being able to work on the head in the comfort of his workshop allows for much more precision in the final product.

Mr. Broostad also tells me that it has become a local landmark, neighbours referring to how many houses they are from 'the Moose' when giving directions.

The Moose is simple, but certainly stoic in his expression, and beautifully executed. The sculpture is in perfect condition, but it lacks Mr. Wenzoski's familiar signature.







This moose was also responsible for planting the seed of an idea. The idea of art being used to promote and identify a community has grown into what will become the Hamilton Road Tree Trunk tour. I will have more info on the growth of that project on this website in the near future.

Pride in a community can come from many different areas, good schools, well maintained streets and parks, and viable businesses among them. I would argue that having something unique and beautiful, available to everyone, is on that list too. Part of what I'm trying to do with this project is make sure that the attention stays with positive ideas like that, and these pieces in the community are not lost or forgotten.


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