Sap has had many uses over the years and so far in my research I have discovered two methods of sap collection. The first is simply tap the tree by carving a series of v-shapes into the bark. The second is called dry distilling and involves separating the wood into two elements; tar (sap) and charcoal. Although tapping the trees doesn’t harm them the process can take quite long and you really need your own trees to be doing that much carving. Sadly I don’t own any trees so my method of collection is a little more haphazard. I basically only collect sap from trees that are already releasing excess amounts. These trees are normally on the corner of trails, near fallen trees, or sometimes the trees the have been subjected to bears cleaning there claws!
I recently discovered that in the sixteenth century there was a great demand for pine tar (a mixture of charcoal and sap) as it was used for treating and waterproofing boat hulls. Since this discovering I have begun to pay more attention to naval architecture, pattern and construction. So it seems fitting that 2 days after this research, I find out that Winnipeg’s museum holds a life-size replica of the “Non-such”, a ship from England built in 1668. The Non-such as well as having an amazing name, also has much more cultural significance as it was the boat that started the now very established Hudson Bay company. The museum’s replica is huge and as a visitor you are welcomed to walk in and around the structure. A fact that I found really interesting is that in order to house the boat they simply built an extension on to the museum and around the boat. I really like the craftsmanship of old carpentry as you can see that it was built by hand. I hope to learn a little more about some of the methods as I would like them to influences my sculptural work.
My time in Winnipeg is coming to an end and now I am to board a train and travel east for 34hr to Toronto.
