Old Folk Art Cat (Early Weathervane Fragment Folk Art Cat) Collection Jim Linderman

Wood doesn't last long outside, which is why most weathervanes that remain are metal. This one was made by hand, likely using a pattern from a hobbyist magazine. Traces of the original gray paint remain. Traces of the attached mount remain as well. One can tell if a wooden folk art weathervane is authentic by the age and wear...as there are prevailing winds (and an imperfect balance) the wear should be uneven. I have seen some nearly destroyed on one side, but with plenty of paint and color on the other.

Wooden Weathervane Figure, circa 1920? Collection Jim Linderman

Folk Art Dancing Dan Limberjack Jig Doll Jiggerman Limberjim Dancin' Dan the Yankee Doodle Dancer Articulated Figure

A limberjack, AKA jig doll, slapjack, jiggerman, limberjim, dancin' dan, paddle puppet and yankee-doodle dancer (and articulated figure if it is mounted on a museum base) is actually a wooden musical instrument which consists of a doll with loose joints on the end of a long stick, the legs of which the human performer causes to tap rhythmically on a thin wooden board like a clog dancer. The one here happens to be tied to a ruler, thus giving a measure of the man while he dances. The photograph of a REAL limberjack is an original snapshot from the 1930s.


Clog Dances ARE like songs...trace them to Ireland or Africa, take your pick. Wiki says clogging may even be traced to the Cherokee. John Lee Hooker did it sitting down like a stationary tap-dancer. "Buck dancer" is probably the most common term, or flat-dancing, foot-stomping and like the whittled doll it is also known as jigging, hence the jig doll name. Whatever, it is the percussive sound made by clogging which is important and also why the dance itself looks ridiculous. Stay loose!

Original photograph and carved wooden figure, both circa 1930, both collection Jim Linderman

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The Big Folk Art Head of Peter Fuoco Carving Sculpture

CLICK TO MAKE BIG HEAD EVEN BIGGER


Peter Fuoco of Revelstoke, British Columbia discovered a big head in a tree trunk and spent some time bringing out the features, then added an equally giant hat. Dubbed "Ol' Woodenhead." A sign was placed next to it which read: "Don't be Wooden Headed. Drive Carefully. You'll live to enjoy the scenery more and longer." So beloved, the giant fellow was moved to his own "Woodenhead Park" next to the Trans-Canada Highway bridge. The second photograph here belongs to the Revelstoke Museum.
Snapshot, circa 1940 Collection Jim Linderman

Birdhouse Pre-loaded! Whittled Bird Carvings Perched Forever Folk Art

Anonymous snapshot "around 1940 Albert Lowenblum's daughter's house West of Big Rapids" Collection Jim Linderman