Artist Belle Ochs

Belle Ochs' scrimshaw of an Alligator with it's mouth open
Bell Ochs’ scrimshawed Alligator on ivory.

Belle has been a scrimshander since 1975, a few years after her husband began creating his own handcrafted knives (see http://www.oxforge.com/).  Working on both pre-embargo elephant ivory and mammoth ivory, Belle creates one of a kind artwork and jewelry by hand.  Her work is finely detailed and priced competitively.  Hailing from Florida, her work can be seen at http://www.scrimshawworks.com/index.htm.

 

Update 2013-11-15  Belle has just finished a display piece with a Viking warrior on a wood base.  More information on the exact materials soon.  It is easy to lose the detail in larger pieces such as these, but Belle has put a lot of time and effort into it and it shows.  The stance and the texture of the hair  as well as the shadowing makes this a stunning piece. Clicking on the pictures will bring them up to full size.

Viking Warrior Display Piece by Belle Ochs on wood stand
Viking Warrior Display Piece by Belle Ochs
Viking Warrior in horned helmet by Belle Ochs
Viking Warrior on Ivory by Belle Ochs

3 thoughts on “Artist Belle Ochs

    1. Hi Jim, thanks for writing! We can offer some suggestions starting from the “I need one right now” to “I’d like something that reflects the look and feel of the scrimshaw.”
      Quick and easy solution would be amazon.com, with a bit of sanding you can have a basic round base.
      Another great place to look is Etsy.
      For an inexpensive clear acrylic stand you may wish to look at Art Display Essentials site, though I have no idea whether there is a minimum order or any particulars.

      For a custom piece of scrimshaw, you may wish to contact “The Base Shop“.
      The best base for your scrimshaw though, would be one that was custom made for the piece. Scrimshaw comes in many shapes and sizes, from flat to curved, cylindrical to oddly shaped – and all have their own “personality”. One of the best examples of custom display bases we’ve come across is Rod Lacey’s collection. This shows excellent scrimshaw and a base that compliments the piece as well as the shape. Steel also makes a great display base, as shown at Ancient Artifax.

      Hope this helps. There was one artist who has since passed that made display stands exclusively for scrimshaw, and there may be others.
      Anyone else know of a crafts-person who does this work? Leave a comment below, we’d love to see their work as well.

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