July 2, 2019
This article originally appeared here.
“Wow.”
That was the reaction Kathrine Sluyter, from Fenton, had when she saw “Mac Fiche Werifesteria, the Giant of Little Crooked Lake.”
The 24-foot-tall sculpture is at the home of Jodi and Eric Cook on the 3000 block of Highcrest Road in Brighton next to West Crooked Lake.
“It’s cool. It fits right in. He has a great facial expression,” Sluyter said. “It doesn’t look out of place. It looks like it’s belonged there forever.”
Made of recycled pallets, fencing and cedar shingles, Sluyter and a small group saw the sculpture Monday that was created by Daren and Deanna Baker of DBaker Designs. The Cooks wanted something to commemorate the fact they’d lived at their home for 20 years.
The sculpture’s name means “the son of twenty years” because, in Gaelic, “Mac” means “son” and “Fiche” means “twenty.” The word “Werifesteria” is a made-up word but describes impulses to wander.
Cook said she giggles when she sees it in her home’s backyard.
“It’s awe inspiring,” she said. “It’s that child-like playfulness.”
The sculpture was inspired by Danish sculptor Thomas Dambo’s work, who also does work with scrap wood and other similar materials. Work on it started in March and took approximately three months and approximately 360 hours to complete.
“His are a lot more (like) ‘Where the Wild Things Are'” Daren Baker said. “We loved the idea and we loved the playfulness of it.”
Many thousands of pieces make up the finished product; for example, each finger is made up of 16 pieces of wood, Baker said.
Also, staggered legs were made by breaking up cedar shingles with an ax. Its belly is mostly hollow, Baker said.
“Most of it was built on-site,” he said.
The feet, hands, head and belly button were created at the Bakers’ shop in Fenton.
People from around the U.S. either have seen the sculpture or plan to see it, even from as far away as Washington state, Cook said.
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