Mike Johnson

Mike Johnson

Walnut Grove, MS

Wood

Canes

Guild member since 2007

As a boy, Mike often sat watching, fascinated by his father and the men who would sit, talking and producing thin, curls of cedar from sticks they were carving. He carved occasionally in his early adult years, though his efforts were less than an attempt to be a serious carver, yet more than just ‘whittling.’ Then he started carving jewelry and figures from found wood and began to develop a self-taught style. He became interesting in carving hiking sticks when he saw some that his sister had carved and others at craft shows and museums. Now, through his carving techniques and ideas, he makes pieces that are ‘story sticks,’ because they have a story, song, or theme. He hopes that his pieces might pique the interest of children the way his was caught by the whittlers of his youth.