Pte ky et FA

BERNIE MALACH is sitting

at the wheel of his ’°73 Duster

dressed in an expensive designer suit, freshly pressed shirt
and suspenders, conjuring Michael Douglas as the slicked-

back Wail Street attorney.

Propped: up against the dash is
one of his many business cards.
This particular one reads: ‘‘Bernie
the Attorney & Stonecarver,"’ with
the acronym ‘‘BTA’’ emblazoned
_on the upper right-hand corner.

There’s also “‘Bernie J. Malach,
Stonecarver,’’ and Bernie J.
Malach, ‘‘Stonecarver-Visionary”’
— depending what you're in the
market for.

Malach, you see, is a bit of an
anomaly. He's a high-powered,
wheeler-dealer corporate lawyer
whe has worked with some of the
top legal firms in town, —.

-He’s also'a creative thinker with

MOST OF Serie Malach's
stone. carvings take between
eight and 20 hours. to com-
plete. This particular sculpture
of a coyote was one of his
more difficult pieces.

an artistic bent — the art of
stonecarving in particular.
“It catches everybody by sur-

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News Reporter

prise,’? Malach, 47, says of his
two-pronged career as he leads the
“way to his private workshop where
he can be found most days after
business hours.

“People find it inconsistent that
one can be a Sensitive artist-type

- and an aggressive, competitive, and
sometimes obnoxious, Iawyer,’’ he
snickers.

Stepping back into the dining
room of his three-storey North
Vancouver home, Malach picks up

. a business story gleaned from the
Vancouver Sun.

He points out an accompanying
-photo’ of him shaking hands with
real estate investor Ron Shon,
taken just after the two had sealed
a $70 million toan deal involving

: Cathedral Place.

Business, he admits, had been
his life — until five years ago,
when he discovered stonecarving.

Now he can be found. chipping
away at pieces of alabaster, mar-
ble; soapstone and honey onyx,
and when he’s done with that,
sanding, polishing and buffing,
for hours on end. ,

“I like stone because it fits my
character: tenacious and stub-
born,"’ laughs Malach ashe ca-
resses one of his first attempts at
carving: a smooth alabaster face.
“1 like getting dirty and having
dust get into my hair.”

Malach’s cousin had always
-urged him to work with his hands,
but it was Port Alberni
stonecarver Babe Gunn who really
piqued his interest in carving.

“She invited me down to her
workshop, gave me two pieces of
stone and showed me how to
chisel and told me to go for it,”
he remembers.

Gunn's words of encouragement

| sass 983-2088 seavice 983-391 |

PEE CREUEERENTEY ART

NAME: Bernie Malach
BORN: Saskatchewan

AGE: 47

RESIDENCE: North Vancouver
OCCUPATION: Attorney,
stonecarver

EDUCATION: UBC Law Schoo}
FAMILY: Married; three children
HOBBIES: Creative thinking,
public speaking, soccer

“opened up a whole new world for

Malach.

He began spending every free
moment carving, and at the end of
four months, he had produced 24
pieces. .

“IT went crazy. [It became an
obsession. It surpassed sex as my
primary interest.’*

Most of Malach’s carvings are
simple, primitive forms. His sub-
jects include whales, ducks and
coyotes, but human heads — faces
in particular — are what he does
best. .

His largest work, an 80-pound
alabaster head called Three Faces,
is part of a joint exhibit this
month at the Crystalworks Gallery
in Vancouver. (His work will be
on display until Sept. 15).

Malach admits his initiation into
the world of stonecarving has been
fast and furious, but it’s not
something he ever takes for
granted. .

“It’s-more than just a good bit
of luck. All of this has increased
my spirituality and strengthened
my relationship with God.

“T fully realize that what I've
got I’ve been given, because |
didn’t go to art school, and |
could never draw very well."’

And since he’s. discovered his
vift, he’s pledged not to be
frivolous with his time.

“I was at a friend's culogy a
while back, and I remember all
the nice things that were said
about him. It was then I realized
that I wanted to be remembered
for something — something more
than just a lawyer."

NEWS photos Nell Lucente
PEOPLE ARE often taken aback to hear that Bernie Matach is

both a high-powered lawyer and a stonecarver. This month
Malach, shown on the steps of his North Vancouver home with
one of his carvings, launched his first exhibit at Crystatworks
Gallery in Vancouver.

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