Dentist turns postrocks into art

Fred Whitman, a dentist turned sculptor from California, carves Monday morning on a limestone post in a fence line 3 miles north of the dam at Wilson Lake. (photo by Tom Dorsey / Salina Journal)

Who says facebook is a waste of time? (OK, it kinda is) But...there are groups like Grassroots Art Center that actually do keep me in the know about regional self-taught artists.  Today was no exception.

Fred Whitman is an Ojai, California dentist whose bad back forced him to explore a different path. 

"A dentist is a skilled craftsman. Art comes from somewhere deeper inside," Whitman said.  Originally working with Italian marble, but it proved to be too time consuming, so he turned to the "softer" rock of limestone. Folks would ship postrocks (the limestone fence posts that dot the north central Kansas landscape) for him to carve.  

Recently, Fred decided to visit Post Rock Country and leave behind a gift to the region that inspired him.  Along KS Hwy 232, he turned a cattle farmer's fence post into a sculpture of a woman with long flowing hair.

To read more - please visit the Salina Jounal

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