Neither Don Johnson or Roger Haight said they consider themselves artists.
Both Sheridan men just have a passion for wood to the point that their projects have taken over their homes. Haight got his start carving Ivory soap as a Boy Scout until two decades ago, when started seriously carving wood as a hobby.
“We have more than 400 carvings in our house, and it is set up like a wood carving museum,” Haight told Cowboy State Daily. “It has gotten to the point where we just don't have room for more so I started giving them away, and I've started selling a few.”
Johnson said that he started building birdhouses because they don't take up a lot of space.
“I was making furniture and my wife told me that I had to quit because we didn't have any more room in the house,” Johnson said. “I decided I had better find something else to do, so I started building birdhouses.”
Since they just considered themselves hobbyists, they were surprised and honored when asked to display their bird-themed projects at the Brinton Museum in Big Horn.
Previously, they only knew of each other and had not met.
The show has given them the opportunity to appreciate how each other’s unique talents — Haight with his carved birds and Johnson with his modern architecture birdhouses — complement each other.
Don Johnson, a geologist-turned-carpenter, started building birdhouses when his wife said they didn’t have anymore room for his furniture. His birdhouses are works of art and based on modern designs. (Courtesy Don Johnson) 
Roger Haight has been carving all his life but it wasn’t until he moved to Sheridan, Wyoming, that his carvings took on a new life. He started using wood instead of soap and discovered a passion for carving birds. He has over 400 carvings in his home which he describes as a wood-carving museum. (Courtesy Visit Sheridan) 
Roger Haight has been carving all his life but it wasn’t until he moved to Sheridan, Wyoming, that his carvings took on a new life. He started using wood instead of soap and discovered a passion for carving birds. He has over 400 carvings in his home which he describes as a wood-carving museum. (Courtesy Visit Sheridan) 
The Brinton Museum in Big Horn honored two Sheridan men with a display of their carved birds and modern birdhouses. Don Johnson and Roger Haight both deny that they are artists but the beauty of their woodworking says otherwise. (Courtesy Brinton Museum) 
The Brinton Museum in Big Horn honored two Sheridan men with a display of their carved birds and modern birdhouses. Don Johnson and Roger Haight both deny that they are artists but the beauty of their woodworking says otherwise. (Courtesy Brinton Museum)
For The Birds
Johnson builds his birdhouses to be displayed outside for small birds to really use, although he has had times when a picky bird will snub his birdhouse.
He said a small male wren had started building a nest in a concrete home and screamed and hollered for his mate to show up. She looked at it and, after a quick inspection, left. He was forced to follow.
“She said, ‘No, I'm not going to live there,'” Johnson said. “But eventually a couple of finch decided the place was suitable and moved in.”
Johnson said that the birds favor his hot air balloon birdhouse and he can always count on a family moving into that fun design.
He makes the holes only an inch and a quarter so typically he sees chickadees and other small birds using the homes he designs. This year, being a non-typical winter, Johnson discovered that a family had moved into one of his houses in mid-March.
Haight’s carved birds are much less picky and he lets the habitat determine who they become.
"When I get an idea of what bird I want to carve, I create a habitat first,” Haight said. “Then I carve the bird to fit into that habitat with a particular pose.”
He mainly carves Wyoming birds but has been known to create colorful toucans and other exotic birds to spice up the decor in their full home.
When Don Johnson of Sheridan first started building birdhouses, they were plain but he started studying architecture and designing modern homes for his feathered friends. Chickadees, wrens, finches and other small birds all call his birdhouses home. (Courtesy Don Johnson) 
When Don Johnson of Sheridan first started building birdhouses, they were plain but he started studying architecture and designing modern homes for his feathered friends. Chickadees, wrens, finches and other small birds all call his birdhouses home. (Courtesy Don Johnson) 
The Brinton Museum in Big Horn honored two Sheridan men with a display of their carved birds and modern birdhouses. Don Johnson and Roger Haight both deny that they are artists but the beauty of their woodworking says otherwise. (Courtesy Brinton Museum) 
When Don Johnson of Sheridan first started building birdhouses, they were plain but he started studying architecture and designing modern homes for his feathered friends. Chickadees, wrens, finches and other small birds all call his birdhouses home. (Courtesy Don Johnson) 
When Don Johnson of Sheridan first started building birdhouses, they were plain but he started studying architecture and designing modern homes for his feathered friends. Chickadees, wrens, finches and other small birds all call his birdhouses home. (Courtesy Don Johnson) 
The Brinton Museum in Big Horn honored two Sheridan men with a display of their carved birds and modern birdhouses. Don Johnson and Roger Haight both deny that they are artists but the beauty of their woodworking says otherwise. (Courtesy Brinton Museum)
A Hobby In Wood That Keeps Evolving
After talking to wood carvers at a show in Big Horn, Haight was invited to a meeting, and more than 22 years later is still an active member of the group.
Haight said that he enjoys the challenge of carving, especially trying to catch the motion of the birds.
He also still insists that he is not an artist but is pleased that people seem to appreciate his birds as much as he does.
“It was a hobby and kept me out of jail, so to speak,” Haight said. “I was a college professor and taught microbiology, which has virtually no relationship with carving whatsoever.”
Johnson also started his career in a different field. He was a geologist, but when Johnson couldn’t find a job in his field, he said he became a carpenter for the next 50 years.
Johnson explained that after he abandoned his furniture experiments, his first birdhouses were plain and nothing extraordinary. Then he started studying architectural designs.
That was when he adopted a more modern flare for his tiny buildings.
“I have about 10 different styles I build,” Johnson said. “I'm working on a new one from a 1950s architect that was a circular design from Oklahoma and will see how that works.”
Johnson said that each house is different because the wood itself determines the finished look.
“Wood has its own little character,” Johnson said. “Wood can have a disease or imperfection and I try to make the grain follow the design of the wood.”
Johnson, like Haight, insists that he is not an artist and just a carpenter who has found a fun niche, building designer birdhouses. On average they take him about nine hours to build though some take up to 13 hours.
While Johnson is consulting architectural designs, Haight said he spends his time studying the birds from every angle.
“I work from pictures to try to create a pattern,” Haight said. “I need a side view and a front view before I get out my bandsaw to cut out a block of wood.”
When Haight first started carving, he was using cottonwood bark and creating houses for the wood spirits and a few caricatures. After carving everything from fish to flowers, Haight discovered his favorite were birds.
“It was kind of an evolutionary process,” Haight said. “I enjoy carving birds, simply because I watch them a lot. I'm more familiar with them than the other forms of life, if you will.”
Both Johnson and Haight plan to keep experimenting and will see where the wood will take them. For now, they are just honored to be in an exhibit at the Brinton.
“Having Don Johnson's birdhouses show at the same time just really made the show impressive and complete,” Haight said.
Johnson agreed and appreciates having his birdhouses displayed with the carved birds, who definitely will not shun any of his creations like the snobby wren. Both men are already working on their next projects to see where the wood will take them.
Jackie Dorothy can be reached at jackie@cowboystatedaily.com.
