Feature Stories

Carving for conservation

September 27, 2023

Louisiana Wildfowl Festival is where wood workers show off their winged wonders

ConocoPhillips has sponsored the annual Louisiana Wildfowl Festival since 1979.
One of the festival’s most anticipated events is the carving competition, where carvers showcase their talents and vie for prestigious awards.
The Wood on the Wing collection that graces the hallways of ConocoPhillips’ Houston, Texas, and Bartlesville, Okla., offices celebrate the festival's Best in Show winners.

BY RAY SCIPPA

When Richard Finch was a little boy, he would watch a neighbor feeding birds.

“She would come out with breadcrumbs and the birds would fly down and eat them right out of her hand. I was fascinated."

Around that time, the boy found a dead male English Sparrow on the ground.

“I inspected it and couldn’t get over the intricate beauty of its body, wings and color."

Years later Richard encountered a wooden carving of a bird at a Dallas gallery and decided he had to try his hand at it. His first attempt, an English Sparrow, was in his own words, “rough.”

“I had to get more information and the right tools to improve.”

Richard found the right tools, bought books on bird carving, and set out to perfect his newfound craft.

“My first competition was a mall show. I did quite well, so I looked into competing in the world show. I entered two pieces in the novice class and won first and second best of show. The next year, and full of myself, I skipped intermediate and went straight to the open where the prize money was awarded. Needless to say, it was years before I won any prize money.”

Over the years, Richard's work has been a staple at the Louisiana Wildfowl Carvers & Collectors Guild Festival, which ConocoPhillips has sponsored since 1979.

The annual festival showcases the intricate craftsmanship of wildfowl carving, the event an enduring testament to the power of art to inspire, educate and unite. Now in its 44th year, the festival fosters a deep appreciation for the region's diverse avian population and the delicate ecosystems they inhabit.

In 1989, Richard won his first Best in Show Award at the Louisiana festival for Eastern Screech Owls.

Over the next 34 years, Richard’s entries would go on to win best in show seven more times: Greater Roadrunner, Screech Owl with English Sparrow, Burrowing Owl, Red-tailed Hawk, Barn Owl, Cedar Waxwings and Snowy Owl.

Owls are Richard's favorite subject.

“Their faces, their eyes, that’s what captures me.”

Richard Finch's Best of Show winners at the Louisiana Wildfowl Carvers & Collectors Guild Festival include Burrowing Owl (2002), left, and Red-tailed Hawk with Western Diamondback Rattlesnake (2010).

To Richard and other wood carvers, wildfowl carving is more than just a creative endeavor; it's a means of storytelling, a tribute to nature's beauty and a way to preserve traditions passed down through generations.

Richard is looking forward to this year's festival, although he’s not entering the carving contest. Instead, he’ll be judging others’ work.

ConocoPhillips displays a collection of the festival's Best of Show entries at its Houston headquarters and at its Bartlesville, Okla. office. Known as Wood on the Wing, the exhibit is intended to heighten wildfowl appreciation and preservation.

Richard speaks fondly of Louisiana, the festival and ConocoPhillips' sponsorship of the event.

“They are keeping this art form alive.”