Master decoy carver Grayson Chesser, left, and apprentices Drew Sturgis, right, and Mark Ross photographed in Chesser's carving studio at his Jenkins Branch home on 1/23/18.
Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
Master Artist
Grayson Chesser
Apprentices
P.G. Ross, MArk Ross, Drew Sturgis, and Andy Dunton
The Eastern Shore of Virginia, a narrow peninsula stretching roughly seventy-five miles between the Atlantic Ocean and the Chesapeake Bay, has long nourished the artistry of waterfowl decoy carving. The area around Chincoteague Island has been particularly fertile ground for carving over the years, and is home to the eminent carvers Ira Hudson, Dave “Umbrella” Watson, Delbert “Cigar” Daisey, Delbert Hudson, and Miles Hancock. Grayson Chesser can trace his family’s roots on Virginia’s Eastern Shore back to the mid-1600s. As a young man, Grayson learned his craft from Hancock and other Chincoteague masters, at a time when the wooden duck decoy tradition was being threatened by the development of plastic hunting decoys. The homemade wooden decoy, traditionally a self-taught craft of the waterman made for the specific purpose of hunting, has become a coveted art object among collectors, and Grayson’s decoys are continually in high demand. While many of his decoys end up on the collector’s shelf, Grayson, himself an avid hunter, still intends for each one to be a working decoy. A returning Master Artist in our program, Grayson will take on four apprentices with whom he hunts and carves regularly: Eastern Shore natives (and brothers) PJ and Mark Ross, Drew Sturgis, and Andy Dunton. Together they will share tricks of the trade and plenty of stories in Grayson’s workshop beside the house and lodge where Grayson and his wife Dawn, master of Eastern Shore cuisine, live and operate the Holden Creek Gun Club in Jenkins Bridge.
Gallery
Master decoy carver Grayson Chesser, seen here, took apprentices Drew Sturgis and Mark Ross hunting on Chesser family land during the last week of duck season on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on 1/23/18. Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
Apprentice Drew Sturgis places decoys on Pettit Branch. Master decoy carver Grayson Chesser took apprentices Drew Sturgis and Mark Ross hunting on Chesser family land during the last week of duck season on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on 1/23/18. Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
Master decoy carver Grayson Chesser, right, took apprentices Drew Sturgis, center, and Mark Ross hunting on Chesser family land during the last week of duck season on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on 1/23/18. Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
A dead teal in the hands of Grayson Chesser. Master decoy carver Grayson Chesser took apprentices Drew Sturgis and Mark Ross hunting on Chesser family land during the last week of duck season on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on 1/23/18. Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
Boomer fetches a dead duck. Master decoy carver Grayson Chesser took apprentices Drew Sturgis and Mark Ross hunting on Chesser family land during the last week of duck season on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on 1/23/18. Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
Boomer fetches a dead duck. Master decoy carver Grayson Chesser took apprentices Drew Sturgis and Mark Ross hunting on Chesser family land during the last week of duck season on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on 1/23/18. Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
Photo by Pat Jarrett/The Virginia Folklife Program
The five apprenticeship teams represent artforms with centuries-old roots in Virginia—African American storytelling and music, as well as old time fiddling—as well as the dance and music of Bolivia and Puerto Rico.
Join us on Saturday, July 8 at the Library of Virginia for an afternoon of performances, displays, and activities highlighting old and new Virginia musical traditions including blues, fiddling, shape-note singing, and more.
July 8, 2023 | 12PM – 4PM | Library of Virginia, Richmond
Join us on Friday, July 7 for a reception, film screening, and stage program honoring four teams from the broader Richmond area who completed a Virginia Folklife Apprenticeship in 2022-23.
July 7, 2023 | 5:30PM – 8PM | Library of Virginia, Richmond
As a result of profound climate change, newly revealed archaeological and paleontological finds are surfacing along the banks of the Rivanna River. We are creating a scientific field journal cataloging these incidences in a fictional case study. Lost treasures unearthed, lost landscapes exposed, lost life forms revealed or revived, lost memories recovered – we are moved by these unexpected finds. Our fictional field journal will contain many examples of these newly uncovered discoveries.