After working more than five decades in science education, Jeffrey Herschenhous, of Merrick, didn’t slow down when he retired three years ago — he picked up a carving tool and started sculpting.
About 30 of his intricate wooden creations are now on display at the Freeport Recreation Center’s Art Alcove for the month of April, a source of pride not only for Herschenhous, 81, but also for his wife, Susan, and the Freeport-Merrick communities that have watched him grow into this next chapter of his life.
“I was a science director in public schools, and I taught biology as well,” Herschenhous said. “And then I finally retired, and I’m the kind of guy who, if I’m interested in something, I just go out and learn about it. So I always wanted to be able to carve and sculpt things, and I started to try this, and I started watching instructional videos on YouTube, and believe it or not, that’s how I learned.”
A longtime user of the recreation center’s pool and gym facilities — “maybe 20 years,” he estimates — Herschenhous would often stop into the Art Alcove to view the works on display.
But it was his deep, intuitive passion for wooden sculpture that eventually drew him in as a featured artist. Herschenhous began carving with a simple knife, but transitioned to using specialized power tools, including a high-speed rotary tool called a Dremel —commonly used by jewelers and dental technicians for detailed carving and etching work.
The transformation from biology teacher to artist was sparked just three years ago, after he left his final teaching role at the Allen-Stevenson School in Manhattan.
“I figured I could teach a few more years, not being administrator,” he said. “So I went down for an interview (at Allen-Stevenson). They offered me the job, and they said to me, ‘How many years do you think you’ll give us?’ I said, ‘About five.’ Twenty-one years later I left.”
Herschenhous’s wooden sculptures draw deeply from nature, and his background in science, particularly evolutionary biology, has been the inspiration for much of his subject matter.
“You’ll see a lot of my stuff, representations of animals … I like organic shapes, forms that are smooth and simple,” he said. “And my goal in sculpting is really to create a design that flows without ornamentation.”
To begin a sculpture, he photographs a subject, enlarges or reduces the image as needed, and affixes the photo to a block of wood — typically basswood, butternut, white pine or white ash. From there, the rough shape is cut out with a scroll saw, and the real work begins.
“Then I go to my workshop and dig in with my tools and carve away and go to work,” he said. “Honestly, this may sound silly, but the wood talks to you and it suggests where to go or what to cut next.”
Though visitors have asked to purchase his work, Herschenhous said he’s too attached to the sculptures to part with them.
“I’ve given to my friends and my family, and to tell you the truth, I haven’t sold one,” he said. “(I) like them too much. I’m too attached.”
A few standouts from his current exhibition include a sculpture of a cat walking down floating stairs, a flowing-necked swan, a bicycle, and a deer.
Herschenhous’s work was previously displayed at the
Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington, where one of his pieces was on display from September to January.
He’s also shown sculptures at
libraries in Freeport and Merrick.
Susan Herschenhous said the shift from educator to artist came as no surprise.
“When someone retires from a long career, you know, they really do need to find some kind of a focus,” she said. “I’m so proud of Jeffrey because when he retired he just decided he needed to do something that where he felt productive and where he felt he was using his skills, and the fact that he threw himself into wood sculpting, to me, is an amazing thing.”
His history backs that up — learning to ski in his 20s and becoming a ski patrolman for 30 years, long-distance cycling from Merrick to Montauk, and even sailing a 36-foot boat after deciding to learn the ropes.
The couple has a daughter, Nicole, who lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and three grandchildren.
Herschenhous said he’s actively working on a new piece. “It’s a series of three sailboat sails kind of overlapping each other ... while being blown by the wind heavily,” he explained.
“It makes me very proud and very happy,” he said of his exhibit at the
Art Alcove. “I’ve showed my artwork at other places … but they have been really relatively distant from my home, so to have it here locally, where … my friends go to see it, and it makes me feel very happy.”
