By Benoit Averly's workshop

I am taking you to Saint-Point, to meet Benoît Averly, a wood sculptor.

Benoit’s workshop is located in the south of Burgundy. The road to Saint Point is leading to the Cluny Abbay, recipient of the European Heritage Label. On the way we would gladly stop by the  Chardonnay, Mâcon-Villages, or Pouilly-Fuissé vineyards, …and taste these marvellous wine products !




 But let us not get off track, and proceed towards the wooden hills. Benoît sources the wood material from these local forests to create his standing or wall panel sculptures. He mainly uses ash, oak, cherry, or walnut wood essences. These hardwoods allow a precise sculptural process.

In  his workshop, facing the woods and on the top of a hillside, Benoît Averly works with these different essences, each of them having specific wood grain and colours. Benoit turns this naturally grown substance into contemporary creation with a brand new visual appearance and a refined profile.

Benoit wants to respect and enhance the irregular pattern or unevenness of the material. 

Sometimes the specific wood grain is clearly brought to light: in his Cinq Colonnes or Three Wheels ash wood sculptures for instance.

But very often reinterpretation of the natural wood appearance is a part of the artistic process, such as in the Forme en U and Black Feather creations, 

or with Coquille blanche et Dionée blanche, carved, engraved and dyed ashwood sculptures.


We can see that the creative process requires several steps such as sculpturing, sawing, turning, engraving, burning and dyeing with pigments, ....




Benoît Averly not only enjoys working in the peaceful hills of Burgundy. He also very much likes sharing his passion with fellow artists or connoisseurs in art exhibitions or demonstrations in many countries worldwide.

 photo credits : Studio 120