Erika Scheer

Born to immigrant parents in the city of Chicago. My father escaped from then communist Hungary 1969, mother left Mexico for a better life in 1970. My father was a third generation wood carver. Studied his art in Budapest Institute. He carved many commissioned works in Chicago. It was in his work shop where I naturally gravitated to the trade. Fast forward, we moved to Naples Florida when I was 11 years old. It was a difficult adjustment, not to mention puberty. In a way it concentrated my attention to art. Mainly a deeper dive into wood. The medium has a hold on me. As I made my way through High School I was becoming familiar with my dad’s work. I started carving one summer and it completely vexed me. I had everything intention to gain formal training through an art school. Mainly the goal was the Art Institute of Chicago. Which I decided to give a summer program a whirl. To my shock, couldn’t see myself there. The whole time I wanted to be in the shop. That was my school and my father agreed to take me on as an apprentice. My new name in the shop was Inas ( pronounced eenash) Appreciate in Hungarian. My father made no bones on how I was not to be coddled. I had to work my way up, sanding , drawing, and repetitive drills. I was learning how to read wood, sharpen chisels, learn shop lingo, tool and machine use and safety, and then I was allowed to work on his jobs as the clean carver. Some of it grueling and boring to be honest, but every time I stood behind my own bench I was entering a different realm. A realm of possibilities. As time passed my skills increased and had jobs pasted to me. Though my love for ornamental work was strong, I had an imagination that tugged. And then came marriage, and the children. 5 to be exact. It was time for my attention to go to my family. Which I did and still do with great joy. We moved to Ohio at the end of December of 2010. We lived right by Lake Erie and watched storms form over the water, but Ohio wasn’t for us. It just didn’t fit.Then when an opportunity came in the state of Wisconsin we jumped. We found ourselves in small town America. Such a different experience. I still am amazed at seeing farms surrounding Waupun, our newish home since 2018. With all kids at school age, it was time for me to revisit my bench. My new chapter in wood carving begins with my father’s passing. It was my tipping point in realizing my own mortality. Now I create and explore those dreams so long ago. I carve for the love, I carve for the adventure, I carve to see just how far I can go. I am the fourth generation.