LEHI — Puzzle artist Eric Dowdle wanted to do something completely different for the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival's 15th anniversary art piece.
So he asked festival President Karen Ashton if he could create a hand-carved storybook "quilt."
"Why not?" was her response. Three months later, Dowdle could answer that question.
"It took me about three months, and it was hard work. When I was in the middle of it, I regretted it," Dowdle said, "But now that it's done, it looks great. It's very collectible."
The result is a wonderful collection of stories and folklore all wrapped up in a quilt, Dowdle said, stories that include pioneer stories, Mother Goose tales, some Aesop's Fables like "The Little Red Hen," stories from history like those about George Washington and Abe Lincoln, Bible stories and even a few stories from Dowdle's childhood.
"There are a few personal stories in it. We had a little farm here when I was little, and the first day of kindergarten I wanted to show my teacher my pet chicken. I took it to show her, and when I was done, I didn't want to go all the way back to the chicken coop so I put it in the mailbox and left it.
"It was about 100 degrees that day, so when the mail lady came to deliver the mail and opened the box, it jumped right out at her. She told my parents she wasn't going to be delivering any more mail if they couldn't stop that kind of thing."
There are a number of flying books in the quilt and a host of witticisms that Dowdle has carved in.
"I carved it to look three-dimensional, and the box looks like an old-fashioned book," he said. "The original is stunning."
Dowdle's art will be for sale in puzzle form at the Festival for $19.95, and prints will probably be available later on.
Dowdle is known for his inventive puzzles that reflect life in a number of Utah communities and activities at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.
He has just opened a new studio and retail shop in the University Mall in Orem.
E-mail: haddoc@desnews.com