New book chronicles chainsaw sculptures of local artist

After 30 years, friends Edwin Smith and August "Gus" Birk have published their first book together.

The book, titled "The Wood Sculptures by August W. Birk," is a compilation of photographic essays compiled by Smith of Birk's wood carvings, which he does with a chain saw.

Smith first met Birk in 1984 after reading about Birk and his unusual craft in a news article. Birk classified his hobby as making chain-saw sculptures, and Smith immediately reached out to him to help expand people's knowledge of him and his craft.

Birk is a native of Cape Girardeau, having operated A.E. Birk & Son Plumbing & Heating until its closure in 1993. Smith, however, was new to the area when he came to be Southeast Missouri State University's first sculpture teacher for the art program in 1973.

The two had talked for years about working together, Smith said, but things never really took off. Smith said Birk was always willing to work with him, but never pushed for it. Birk was happy with whatever recognition he received, and that fame was never a factor in Birk's sculpting, Smith said.

"He did a lot of it for his grandchildren," Smith said. "His artwork is mainly here in Cape Girardeau County, but pieces have been sent as far south as Florida and all the way up north to Minnesota."

After getting scooped on the story of Birk's woodcarvings by a local news station 20 years earlier, it took until August for Smith to achieve his goal of sharing Birk's story.

Smith composed 90 photographic essays for Birk, of all his carvings, and had the 65-page booklet published by Concord Printing in Cape Girardeau at the end of the summer. He had worked for months with Birk, documenting his carvings and putting them in chronological order, then compiling photos and drafting an introduction and summary for the piece.

Before publishing Smith took the book to Birk. "He read my introduction and he read all the way through the 65 pages, and I just didn't know what he would think of the summary," Smith said. "But he liked it, he said it was very very nice, and that he didn't know it was going to be quite so elaborate, but that he really appreciated me doing this for him."

The book is not available for public purchase, but Smith made sure to distribute it to many local libraries. He said he donated it to Kent Library at Southeast, the Cape Girardeau Public Library, the Riverside Regional Library in Jackson, school libraries in Scott City, Jackson and Cape Girardeau, as well as at Notre Dame Regional High School and Saxony Lutheran High School.

Smith said the majority of Birk's carvings were done in the 1990s; two of Birk's earlier pieces even stand in his yard on Cape Rock Drive in Cape Girardeau. In the front yard there is a golfer carved out of a stump, and in the back there is an owl. Smith said an interesting thing about his book is you can really see Birk's carvings evolve with time.

"He's really become of veteran of carving wood," Smith said.

Smith said Birk's hobby didn't materialize until after he retired; but to this day he is still working with his chain saw.

Birk will celebrate his 90th birthday in April, and Smith hopes that through his collection of photographic essays Birk's wooden sculptures will continue to inspire for generations to come.

smaue@semissourian.com

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