Sculpture
By Eddie Hales
Guest Writer
In our corner of the world here in Hayesville, N.C. where verdant canopies stretch to the horizon, trees are often a quiet backdrop to daily life. We enjoy their shade, breathe their oxygen, and appreciate their beauty perhaps a little too readily, until a fallen giant blocks our path. Yet each tree, like every human is a unique story etched in bark and leaf.
Our story began with a white oak, a venerable patriarch standing guard in our front yard. Its rings whispered of two centuries, a silent witness to generations. But nature in its unpredictable power demanded a reckoning. After Hurricane Helene’s devastating sweep across North Carolina the fragility of our beloved oak became painfully clear. Weeks spent volunteering with Samaritan’s Purse, clearing fallen timber from homes, drove home a stark truth: the magnificent tree, though cherished posed a dangerous threat.
The decision to cut it was agonizing. It felt like severing a link to the past, a betrayal of nature’s grandeur. With heavy hearts, we wrestled with the inevitable, each gust of wind a reminder of the looming risk. We knew however, that the oak’s story didn’t have to end with a resounding thud. We sought a resurrection, a way to honor its long life.
Enter Chris Lantz, a master craftsman with a chainsaw as his brush and a tree trunk as his canvas. This internationally acclaimed sculptor, known as “Extreme Sculpting,” arrived at our house with a vision, transforming our sorrow into art. For three days the air hummed with the whine of his saws, a symphony of creation. Unlike a traditional sculptor Lantz worked without sketches, intuitively shaping the wood, revealing the form hidden within.
“I use a style where form and finesse meet to create my work,” he explained, his words echoing the precision of his movements. These precise movements are evident both in his Mount Airy home base where he crafts many custom sculptures and across the United States, where he travels for unique projects like our Oak Tree.
From the mountain of sawdust a majestic eagle emerged, its wings poised for flight, its gaze piercing. The transformation was breathtaking. Our fallen sentinel had been reborn, its legacy etched in the intricate details of the sculpture.
“Our white oak, once a towering presence, tragically revealed the potential danger of large trees close to homes. It was a stark reminder that even the most majestic giants can pose a risk. Yet, every time we pass the eagle, we are reminded not of loss, but of resilience. It stands as a testament to the enduring beauty of nature, even in the face of destruction. Our white oak now lives on as a symbol of strength and renewal, a reminder that even in the face of change, beauty can endure, transformed but never lost.”