Helsing Report post Posted October 24, 2012 Hello all! I am a complete beginner in leatherwork and want to learn carving the sheridan style. To get it looking right I need a mental picture of what it is I am trying to make a stylized image of but I can't seem to find any pictures of acanthus flowers that look like they are the origin of the sheridan style pattern. Can someone please point me to some pictures of "the real thing" and possibly even name the species often used? Cheers /Helsing Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Spinner Report post Posted October 24, 2012 Hello all! I am a complete beginner in leatherwork and want to learn carving the sheridan style. To get it looking right I need a mental picture of what it is I am trying to make a stylized image of but I can't seem to find any pictures of acanthus flowers that look like they are the origin of the sheridan style pattern. Can someone please point me to some pictures of "the real thing" and possibly even name the species often used? Cheers /Helsing http://www.google.com/search?q=acanthus+flower Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Helsing Report post Posted October 24, 2012 Thank you! Yes I have googled but I can't find anything that actually looks like the sheridan pattern with veiners and swirls. They actually look more like ferns to me... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TwinOaks Report post Posted October 24, 2012 An artistic representation is typically highly stylized so that the viewer can identify the subject, and possibly the artist's work by that style. It wasn't until pretty recently that we, as people, had the ability to click on a picture and print it out in the comfort of our homes. Before that,....and way back before that....artists and artisans would portray an 'idyllic' version so the viewer could tell what it's supposed to be, without the onus of trying to visually replicate each and every detail of the real thing. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billybobg Report post Posted April 25, 2013 F.O. Baird's Secrets of Leather has examples of around 18 leaf patterns that he calls acanthus. His statements sort of point toward the leaves being filler and that the style is dependent on the overall design of the pattern. I'm not sure if this is any clarification to the OP, but might relieve the urge to find and attempt to reproduce the perfect acanthus leaf. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlHobbyist Report post Posted June 6, 2013 I think it would be an amusing tale to find out why the acanthus florals are called acanthus. They don't look like the pictures shown in google, they don't grow in the US, or if they do they aren't that common, and the word isn't a very common one. I'll bet there is quite the tale pinning the tag acanthus on the flower carvings someone was carving back in the day. I had always assumed the flowers were ferns and squash blossoms. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirtclod Report post Posted June 6, 2013 Try this link. https://www.google.com/search?q=acanthus+line+drawing&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a Then put your own spin on how you think they should look. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlHobbyist Report post Posted June 6, 2013 Try this link. https://www.google.c...lient=firefox-a Then put your own spin on how you think they should look. Very interesting, I would never have suspected they were a cross over from other, much older, art forms. To a degree this clears up the confusion in my mind about the term. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
electrathon Report post Posted June 6, 2013 If it helps any, western floral use acanthus flowers. Sheridan uses real looking flowers. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
