Since graduating from Pulaski Academy in 2011, Jarrod Flowers has played football, moved across the country, gotten married and had four children. He’s grown fresh food in his own gardens, built landscapes and traveled the country in a 12-passenger van.
And along the way, he’s also become an award-winning wood sculpture artist.
After a decade of adventure, Jarrod is back in Arkansas, ready to carve out a new chapter for his family.
After high school, Jarrod played football briefly at Ouachita Baptist before transferring to Mendocino College in northern California, where he met his wife Savannah. They stayed in the area and started a family, traveling often and selling vegetables and garden boxes at local farmers markets.
It was at one of those markets in 2020 that Jarrod met Mark Colp, a nationally recognized wood sculptor. Mark commissioned Jarrod with a backyard project, and when it wrapped up, his work had made an impression. With a push from his wife, Mark offered to be a mentor in the art of wood carving.
“I didn’t grow up with a father figure, and Mark became that for me,” Jarrod says. “His consistency as a person, as a man, someone who said, ‘I’m gonna do this,’ and he did it. That really struck a chord with me because I had never had that. He became my best friend at that time and someone who I really looked up to.”
After months of training, Mark invited Jarrod to join him at a prominent carving competition in Libby, Mont., an invitation-only event for the top carvers in the world. Jarrod could bring pieces to sell, but he knew he would be there primarily as an assistant to Mark and the other competitors, shoveling sawdust and delivering materials.
He completed that assignment with glowing reviews and was invited back in 2021 as a stand-in, only able to compete if someone dropped out. His opportunity arrived, and in his first-ever quick carve competition, Jarrod placed fourth, earned the People’s Choice award and sold his piece at the highest auction price of the weekend. In 2022, he was invited back on his own.
“[This was] before I was even good, just winging it,” Jarrod says of his debut. “I worked harder than everybody else. I was younger, I can hold a saw in my hand longer. I had really good tutelage and I prepped really well.”
Hardworking, creative and drawn to the outdoors, wood sculpture has turned out to be a natural fit for Jarrod. Since the 2022 event in Libby, he’s been invited to world-class events across the country, winning awards, selling work and gaining recognition within the carving community.
In 2024, Jarrod and Savannah decided to come back to Arkansas, and the move has been a great choice for their family.
“We love it; they love it,” Jarrod says. “[My wife] was skeptical and now she’s like, 'we’re not leaving.' She loves this place. I love the fact that my kids are really having a good time, making friends.”
As a new chapter begins, Jarrod has his sights set on cultivating new mediums and opportunities to continue his career as a sculptor.
Follow Jarrod and his work on Instagram @carvebyheart.