Dave Flawse

Special to The Record

Two bald eagles battle in the sky. Their long wings clash like great swords while their quick beaks pick and tear at one another. They whirl and dance, press together and swoop apart.

Clasped in one of the raptorB次元官网网址檚 talons is each oneB次元官网网址檚 desire: a living venomous diamondback rattlesnake.

ItB次元官网网址檚 more than a fight for their next meal though. ItB次元官网网址檚 a struggle between birds of prey that will end in one eagleB次元官网网址檚 death.

In a desperate bid to preserve its life, the viper strikes its long fangs at the doomed eagle grasping it.

B次元官网网址淗eB次元官网网址檚 going to fall out of the sky,B次元官网网址� says Comox sculptor Wes Seeley of the envisioned battle. B次元官网网址淎nd once the venom goes through him, the other one is going to get lunch.B次元官网网址�

Seeley has had about 2,500 hours to consider their struggle. The life-sized wooden sculpture, which is really two eagle sculptures connected at the wings, took him a year to build.

From his working days on a boom boat, Seeley would observe the graceful movements of soaring bald eagles. He would listen to their guttural and shrill calls, and witness their ferocity and dominance of the sky.

Now in his retirement he brings those memories to life again. The representations are made from the trees on which eagles waited to spy their next prey.

Meticulously cut feather pieces of yellow and red cedar add a texture to the broad wings. Two-toned aromatic cedar adorns special parts of the wings, B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檙e nice and dark,B次元官网网址� explains Seeley. B次元官网网址淎nd [they] have a little blonde in there too.B次元官网网址�

The aroma of sawed cedar is pervasive in his 20-by-30-foot workshop. A squat black woodstove burns his reject pieces on cold winter days. Seeley estimates around 1,800 individual pieces go into one eagle project, but says heB次元官网网址檚 never counted.

He recently sold two other eagles to custumers in Wyoming. One completed eagle sells for around $70,000. As for his latest sculpture of two eagles fighting over a rattlesnake, Seeley hasnB次元官网网址檛 set a price.

B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 open to offers,B次元官网网址� he says.

Selling the sculpture would allow him to build a bigger shop on his Comox property. He only has room in his garage-made-workshop for one project at a time.

B次元官网网址淢y ultimate goal is to have two or three pieces I can work on simultaneously,B次元官网网址� he explains.

The local artist grew up on Quadra Island and learned to swim around Rebecca Spit. He began sculpting eagles in 2011. Before that, he created detailed fish boat replicas.

Seeley has ingrained himself in the artistic community and feels positive about the ValleyB次元官网网址檚 art scene.

B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 so many great artists around,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e all so supportive of each other. ItB次元官网网址檚 just such a creative community.B次元官网网址�

If his garage door is open stop by and check out his sculptures for yourself at 2211 Gull Ave in Comox. He might be blaring Michael JacksonB次元官网网址檚 Number Ones but welcomes visitors. Maybe heB次元官网网址檒l tell you about his next ambitious project.

B次元官网网址淐an you imagine four eagles in a globe shape?B次元官网网址� he says with a smile. B次元官网网址淭he skyB次元官网网址檚 the limit now.B次元官网网址�