Ames has 40 years as a Tree City USA and 40 parks. It's being honored with unique tree art

An articulate, nine-foot tree carving was unveiled last week in honor of a City of Ames milestone.

The tree, carved by chainsaw wood carver Gary Keenan, was commissioned to recognize Ames' 40th anniversary as a Tree City USA and to celebrate the city's 40 parks.

The sculpture was introduced to the public during an Arbor Day ceremony on Friday, April 26, at Homewood Golf Course. The tree, which is adorned by tiny animal carvings, a large, old face, and a colorful top, honors Virginia Stafford, former president of The Ames Foundation, who was instrumental in the organization over the years. She passed away in October 2023.

The sculpture will not be permanently located at Homewood. However, the city of Ames will post a series of "Guess Where the Piece will be Placed" on their social media platforms before revealing the sculpture's final location.

The City of Ames, The Ames Foundation, and Ames Chamber of Commerce collaborated to bring the unique art piece to the city.

Artist is familiar with work in Ames

Keenan worked with the City of Ames a few years ago to carve a dying walnut tree in Brookside Park. Similar to his newest piece, the Brookside sculpture features several woodland animals carved into the tree.

Keenan revisited a sketch he had done a few years ago for the 40th-anniversary sculpture, a concept that resembles the Treebeard character from the Lord of the Rings series.

"It's a tree that has an old man's face," Keenan said. "While a Treebeard in Lord of the Rings is rather serious - they go to war and that kind of thing - this is on the lighter side."

Because of the size of the piece, the artist spent nearly a week carving the tree, longer than he usually takes. He had to navigate variations quirks of the old tree while adjusting to a piece that was three feet taller than his usual work.

"It's more difficult than most because it was a portable piece, almost nine feet tall," Keenan said. "Most of the portable standing pieces I do are under six feet tall, so this is taller than most; it's tricky to stand it up and handle it, so that was part of the time consumption."

Wood carving artist turned passion into full-time career

Keenan found his passion for crafting wood sculptures as an adult. He already had an appreciation for art, but gravitated toward sculptures.

"When I saw a sculpture I liked, I'd say to myself, 'I know I could do that, what's the big deal? That'd be easy to do," Keenan said.

A friend of Keenan's told him about chainsaw carving he saw at the Iowa State Fair roughly 25 years ago, which caught the artist's attention.

"They described it to me and said it was really cool to watch," Keenan said. "I was intrigued by that. I made the comment that I think I could do that. They essentially laughed at me and said, 'Ok, let's see you do it."

Spurred on by his friend's challenge, Keenan used his homeowner-style chainsaw to carve a log that weekend. Though the process was slow and crude, he was intrigued and continued playing around with the artform.

Keenan eventually decided to pursue a career in wood carving, and after four years of success gave up his day job to go full-time.

His work now takes him across the country. He has even practiced his art at the Iowa State Fair, where his inspiration blossomed.

"I'm lucky to make a living doing something I enjoy," Keenan said.

Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com.