Story

I was born on Bayou Plaquemine (down da baya).  My Dad, Paul Breaux, worked on tugboats on the rivers and bayous of south Louisiana and enjoyed working with wood.  I do not recall him cleaning cypress knees, but my older sisters tell me he would spend countless hours removing the bark with a small knife. I do have a vivid memory of the beautiful lamps that he made.  We moved to town when I was about 5 years old. At that point he no longer had a shed and stopped doing the woodwork.

I did not have the interest or skill to do woodwork like my Dad, but I always thought of his creations when I was in the swamp.  Several years ago my Dad’s lamps came up in a conversation with my daughter and I told her I would make her a cypress knee lamp. I decided to also make one for my son’s fiancée (now wife). The list would soon grow.

I was fortunate to have a friend, Interesting Character, who has property along the Amite River with an abundance of cypress knees and buried logs.  Some of his land was being dug up in connection with a sand and gravel pit operation. I got some knees from the site and started. I struggled at first to remove the layers of bark, but the more I worked with the wood the more I appreciated the natural beauty.

When the project started the focus was on making lamps.  It soon became apparent that many of the knees, although not suitable for lamps, were true works of art. Initially most of the pieces were given away as gifts but over time I accumulated my private collection.

Interesting Character also provided logs that were dug up on his property. The wood from the logs was used for various items including tables and charcuteries (aka trays).  One log was black and extremely dense.  Carbon dating revealed the wood was 2,225 years old, plus or minus 26 years, or about 232 BC, thus the name.

I was asked if I made the collection in furtherance of my Dad’s legacy. I don’t know the answer, but it has turned out that way in some respects.  Unfortunately, my Dad, and my Father-in-Law, Bill Crochet, who was also very skilled with such matters, died before the project started. Both men would have truly enjoyed working with the wood.

To provide an identity, and for fun, most of the pieces were given names. The moniker may be due to some feature in the wood, for example several knees that have large cavities are named after volcanos. Most names, however, were randomly chosen.  The character, shape and colors are natural–Mother Nature’s art. I hope you appreciate them.

I had some friends who assisted and encouraged me in this undertaking. They are: Vic Dunlap, John Fore, Adrian Waguespack, Richard Atkins, Bubbie Smith, Dale Hammonds, and John Atkins Morvant (website).  Many thanks to all.

                                                                                                        Phil Breaux