Peter Driscoll Artist's Statement

Through my art I hope to preserve the nearly lost art of scrimshaw. I create original pieces, as well as teach others through workshops, lectures, and hands-on demonstrations as I pass this art form on to others. It is also important for me to extend my choice of subject matter beyond what has been traditionally created. Many of my commissioned pieces are chosen by clients to add value and meaning to their lives. More than 1,600 individual pieces of my scrimshaw have been sold to art collectors across the United States and abroad. I have given numerous workshops and taught hundreds of students the fundamentals of the art of scrimshaw. In addition, I have given thousands of mini-lessons about scrimshaw at dozens of art shows throughout the Eastern and Midwestern United States.

Scrimshaw is the art of engraving on ivory. My art is created in the traditional manner of the whalers.  It is done completely by hand, without the use of power tools or machinery, and only on Antique Ivory Piano keys or other forms of recycled, antique or fossilized ivory, legally purchased.

Peter Driscoll, 2009