By Paula Fraser

I would like to introduce to you, Wolfgang G. Mohaupt, who is a Wood Sculptor and member of The National Capital Network of Sculptures.  Wolf was born in Germany in 1940, his mother was a pianist and his father was in the German Navy.  He immigrated to Canada in 1953 where he attended high school in Cambridge, Ontario.

He attended the University of Toronto between 1959 to 1964 where he obtained a degree in Architecture.  After graduation Wolf worked in Ottawa for Hart Massey Architect and Minto Construction before starting his own architectural firm. 

 Wolf’s father was good at everything from music and painting to welding.  He followed his father’s path and is also skilled with his hands.  Water colour and plein d’air drawing was his first experience with art.  In high school he also took art, so it has been part of his whole life.  Wolf has traveled widely and has seen many of the major museums and art galleries around the world.

While working for Minto Wolfgang developed an interest for sculpting.  His inspiration came from working as a coordinator with various artists including Bruce Garner.  Bruce had a big influence on Wolf and eventually they became good friends.  After building a house on McGregor Lake in Val de Monts Quebec in 1980, Wolf started working on wood sculptures before retiring from architectural practice and built a separate studio a few years later.

Wolf likes to choose pieces of wood that have character.  His sketches are minimal and he likes to integrate the organic parts of the wood into his sculptures.  Movement is also a major aspect of his art as it draws the eye into all the interesting parts of his pieces.  Sanding the wood is his least favorite part of the process. 

For anyone who is interested in sculpture Wolfgang suggests experimenting with various media to see what grabs you.  Art school and learning from other artists are also very good avenues to start with.  A knife and a piece of wood to whittle away is a good way to begin wood sculpture.

You can visit his 20-foot-tall sculpture, called Timber, that he designed for a condominium at 808 Bronson Avenue.

Perhaps working with soapstone or doing more commissions are his next steps.  He is always on the lookout for new subject matter to keep things interesting and exciting.

Wolf would welcome anyone interested in more information or a studio visit.  Please see his website WMwoodSculptures.com. He can easily be reached by email at wolfmohaupt@icloud.com.

I also want to say that it has been an honor for me to meet and interview Wolf to be able to write this,

Paula Fraser