3rd Annual Decoy Carving Contest July 26-27!

The author shows off one of his award-winning decoys from the 2018 DCCE.

By Bruce Urben, President

This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s July, 2019 eNewsletter.

Waterfowling has a deep running heritage in Wisconsin. From market hunters in the 1800’s on lakes Koshkonong and Puckaway, to puddle duck hunters in the north and diver duck hunters on the big lake and bay. The tools our early waterfowlers used were simple and few. Decoys to lure the ducks close, calls to get their attention and a reliable shotgun to harvest the bounties.

Wisconsin has always been a hotbed for decoy carvers. Hundreds of carvers have been documented to have been active in Wisconsin over the years. Backyard carvers to large factory carvers thrived in the 1800’s through the 1960’s when plastic decoys became available and replaced the wood blocks. In the last 5 years there has been a resurgence of waterfowlers wanting to take a step back in time and shoot over a rig of handmade decoys. Waterfowlers get a sense of pride in fooling a duck with his or her own handmade decoys. And who doesn’t enjoy looking at a handmade decoy on their mantle during those cold Wisconsin winters, it brings back awesome memories.

2018 DCCE winners

Three years ago, WWA began a tradition of sponsoring the Wisconsin Decoy Carving Contest to celebrate both Wisconsin and the nation’s carving traditions. July 26-27th will see our 3rd annual WWA Decoy Carving Contest and Exhibition (DCCE) at the Cabela’s store in Richfield, WI. Hundreds of carvers from the Midwest and nationwide bring their decoys to be judged by some of the most talented and experienced carvers in the nation. While most decoys entered are “working” decoys, there are also divisions for Decorative and Contemporary Antiques. This year, WWA is proud to announce that we have been awarded the National Championship for one working Decoy Division under the International Waterfowl Carvers Association (IWCA) rules. Decoys from around the nation will be judged to be the best there is in 2019 in that division! Check out this video, below, of our 1st annual contest in 2017:

 

Come out to enjoy the competition in July, see the remarkable decoys by some of the most talented carvers around, talk with fellow carvers and waterfowlers. Watch a carver at work, carving and painting a decoy before your eyes and take in the nostalgia of the decoy carving tradition. If you are a carver; amateur, youth or advanced Carver Division are available to have you enter and compete for ribbons and cash prizes. Check out our website for more information.

You may even win a hand carved decoy in one of our raffles!

We are still looking for a few more volunteers to help staff the event, but there are other ways to support this contest as well! A fund raising auction is being held in August, thanks to ten Midwest carvers who have graciously donated one of their hand-carved decoys (floating sculptures). The auction is being run on-line and in person on August 4th in Cadillac, Michigan by Michigan Auctioneers Incorporated.

L.L. Bean decoys, one of the many you can bid on to support WWA in Auctioneers, Inc.’s online decoy auction! Photo courtesy Auctioneers, Inc.

Hundreds of antique and contemporary carved decoys will be auctioned off during this event. You can bid on WWA donated decoys from which all proceeds will support our Wisconsin Decoy Carving Contest. How will you know which are WWA’s donated decoys? Grant Cole, from Michigan Auctioneers, Inc. will document all decoys that will support WWA in their on-line auction catalog. We know that Grant will have the August Auction catalog on his website by July 10th and online bidding can then begin immediately. You can find the auction catalog on their website at miauctioneersinc.com and clicking on auctions on the top banner and then clicking on the August 2019 show taking place August 3-4.

You can watch all of your bids online and in real time. It is easy to bid once you are registered and the site is secure and insured. Auctioneers, Inc. is one of the top sporting collectible auction companies in the nation and we appreciate AI’s and Grant Cole’s support of Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s Decoy Carving Contest.

Come out to our event at Cabela’s, Richfield in July and support our fundraising efforts.

Thank you and I will see you at the show!