Bon Secour Sand Scrawl - The Story

I’ve always been enchanted by The Master Artisan’s scrawling sand sculptures displayed 24/7/365 across the world’s beaches. These ever-shifting works of art are marvels of form and color. Their interplay with water, light, and shadow makes them come alive with every passing glance. Long beach strolls often meet lingering moments of wonder as I delight in a sand scrawl sculpture being formed within a tidal pool’s watery womb. Bon Secour Sand Scrawl was inspired by just such a moment while strolling the beach at Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge on the Gulf Coast of Alabama in January, 2025. 

I created this piece using Baltic Birch Plywood which is famed for its stability and beautiful wood grain. I used seven different carving and sanding techniques (and A LOT of elbow grease!) to reflect the beauty of my inspirational subject matter. As I carved deeper into the Baltic Birch, the beauty of its numerous natural wood layers joyfully surprised me. Happily, I was able to incorporate the beauty of those layers in the overall composition. The layers and the overall composition give a sense of water flowing over the entire piece creating smoothly-flowing ridges and layers in sand; hence, “Sand Scrawl!”

It’s a great joy to linger with this artwork. Doing so transports me back to those tidal pool “wombs” where The Master Artisan is constantly creating His inspiring sand scrawl sculptures accompanied by the soothing soundtrack of softly-lapping waves. It’s my great hope that you’ll experience this beauty, too.

This is the "original” artwork by The Master Artisan. The photo below taken at Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge Beach in Alabama in January, 2025, served as my inspiration for this work of art.

The sculpture is very dramatic when well-lit!