We recently had the pleasure of working with Karen and Frank Lewkowitz on a wonderful artifact they found in the small town of San Antonio de Ibarra, Ecuador. According to Karen this 75-100 year old wood carving of Jesus, “is from the workshop of Luis Potosi, who is a master wood carver, and at least the third generation in his family to attain his craftsmanship to his level.” The carving was made by Luis’ father and according to Karen, “This family has done religious carvings for churches. The carvings that come out of this workshop are considered some of the finest in South America.”
This is how the piece looked when Frank first saw it. It was sitting with other faces ready for re-use and restoration. 
The faces are carved separate and added to a larger sculpture then painted. Before the face is added it is hollowed out from the back and glass eyes are added. The sculptures and restorations are in churches throughout South America. 
When held up to the light the eyes glow just a little bit, so mounting it on a post in a museum quality case was an awesome solution! Having to drill the piece for the post was a little scary to think about and had to be done very very carefully.
The Framing Department is proud to know that we are helping preserve this Potosi family artifact as becomes an heirloom for the Lewkowitz family.
Below: Frank Lewkowitz with 3rd generation master carver Luis Potosi in his workshop.
