Any that have ever used a chain saw can attest to the fact that it is not always easy to make straight cuts let alone work the tip of its whirling blade to get to difficult areas. Watching Jarrett Dahl work his magic in Keystone, South Dakota, about two miles from Mt. Rushmore National Memorial, is fascinating. He took a five foot tall Ponderosa pine log, bark and all, and in a half-hour had an eagle carving roughed out in perfect form. Jarrett made it look easy.
Visitors to Mt. Rushmore and Keystone, SD pass by Dahl’s Chainsaw Art. One cannot help notice the lawn above Battle Creek is planted with carved sculptures. Some are two stories high, some exotic, some, like the eagle he just finished carving, decorative. They are all fascinating and well made. It is the creativity of two brothers Jarrett and Jordan Dahl.
“My brother and I grew up in southern Minnesota. We started working with chain saws in Alaska. Here we are just two miles from Mt. Rushmore. In three months 2 million people drive by here,” Jarrett said.
It was an excellent site for any business, right on Highway 16 A. The same driveway led to the Rushmore Borglum Story at the Borglum Historical Center. There is ample free parking and the brothers are affable and willing to share their art with visitors.
“We run the saws ten hours a day,” Jarrett smiled, pausing to let visitors see the partially completed eagle he was creating out of a pine log. At first it was hard to tell how it would develop. Jarrett took a slice off the log at the top, then another, then another until details and shape began to emerge from the wood.
“Those are my designs,” Jarrett pointed to tall sculptures resembling totems. “I changed the design nine times because of soft spots in the wood. Most of it is Ponderosa pine.”
One fascinating sculpture was made of dolphins. Unusual to see in South Dakota. The carving is intricate and beautifully proportioned. “They are made from maple. I also use black walnut and western red cedar. When they are done I seal them with polyurethane,” Jarrett explained.
When asked what he liked to carve best he said eagles. “They are always challenging.” The sculptor in wood used his chain saw tip to make a crevice between the eagle’s feet then level and shape more intricate pieces of the carving. He worked so fast it was amazing that the artist could exercise such precise control of the heavy chain saw he was using.
When asked how he priced his sculptures, Jarrett replied, “About $100 to $125 a foot. It changes with the level of difficulty. The double eagle there is $500.” wandering around what is really a sculpture garden, carvings of all kinds adorned the lawn. Cute little bears predominated along with the artist’s favorites, lots of eagles. There were sculptures of all sizes. Some are so intricate it is hard imagine the work that went into carving them from one solid log.
“I never really know what I'll get into with the wood. We do about eight a day of this size. If we really had to we could do more. Everything here is high power.” The sculptor went over to an array of chain saws on the ground near his outdoor workshop.
When asked how he was able to realize the carvings he said, “The first two weeks it was hard for me to see it. Then it came to me. If you can see it, you can do it. Every tree, when I look at it, I can figure out what I can make from it.” He went back to the eagle he was carving and in ten minutes more had it finished except for the sanding, polishing and coating.
“Most of the stuff goes to Cabella’s. No way could I keep up with the work. I can do ten of these eagles a day but can’t keep doing it day after day. I did fifty bears in two weeks. Then I said, ‘No more of that.’” With the eagle rough cut and formed Jarrett walked around the sculptures on the lawn along the creek.
“I got it down so I know what cut goes where. We’ve been doing it almost ten years now,” he said, pausing in front of a larger than life sculpture of a motorcycle. “Get on it if you want. This is the only bike I want to ride,” he laughed, stepping up on a platform and sitting astride a perfect wooden carving of a motorcycle.
“It’s all one piece except for the handlebars.” The carving was made from a six-foot diameter cottonwood tree. The handle bars are maple. “It took two weeks to make,” Jarrett said.
Dahl’s Chainsaw Art makes a fascinating stop on any drive through the area. It is unique. More than likely one of the carvings will find more than fascination as a must for porch or den. Amazing creations by two enterprising brothers.
For more information call Jarrett and Jordan Dahl at 320-226-3582 or 320-226-3581.
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