{"id":1818,"date":"2015-03-12T11:40:38","date_gmt":"2015-03-12T11:40:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/?p=1818"},"modified":"2017-06-12T11:42:33","modified_gmt":"2017-06-12T11:42:33","slug":"six-questions-with-a-watermelon-carver-dustin-evans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2015\/03\/six-questions-with-a-watermelon-carver-dustin-evans\/","title":{"rendered":"SIX QUESTIONS WITH A WATERMELON CARVER: DUSTIN EVANS"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The 2015 Watermelon Carving Contest is still in the planning stages (it\u2019ll kick off in June), but the folks who will be submitting masterpieces for the competition are busy carving watermelon as we speak. Okay, maybe they\u2019re not carving watermelon <em>right now <\/em>\u2014 although some of them might be \u2014 but they\u2019re probably at least <em>thinking <\/em>about their carvings.<\/p>\n<p>One of those carvers is Dustin Evans of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Dustin was one of the biggest winners in last year\u2019s carving contest, taking home the first place prize in the \u201cFunniest Carving\u201d category, the first place prize in the \u201cStar Spangled Watermelon\u201d category and a third place finish in the \u201cAnimal\u201d category.<\/p>\n<p>The most amazing thing about Dustin\u2019s watermelon-carving story is that he\u2019s only been carving for about one year. Actually, the carvings you see in this blog entry \u2014 including the gorilla below \u2014 were created by Dustin when he had about four months of watermelon-carving experience under his belt. I took some time recently to chat with Dustin about all things watermelon, including his plans for this year\u2019s carving contest.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF. WHEN YOU\u2019RE NOT CARVING WATERMELON, WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO?<\/p>\n<p>When I\u2019m not carving watermelons, you can usually find me at the drawing table in my art studio. I\u2019ve done freelance illustration and graphic design work for comic books, kids\u2019 books and websites for the last 10 years. If I\u2019m not drawing or carving, then you will most likely find me in the kitchen. I have a passion for food, and I love to cook, especially for my family.<\/p>\n<p>WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO START CARVING WATERMELON?<\/p>\n<p>I feel like me carving watermelons was an interesting mix of destiny and happy circumstances. About one year ago, I began working at the Tulsa, Oklahoma Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in the banquet kitchen to supplement my freelance income. I\u2019ve always had a passion for food, so it made sense for me to get a job in the kitchen.<\/p>\n<p>I began working in the banquet kitchen, and once my chef learned about my art background, he said he would like me to try my hand at fruit carving. I wasn\u2019t quite sure what that involved at the time, but I started researching the topic, and I was blown away by the amazing creations you can make out of watermelons, fruits and veggies. I gave it a try, and I was instantly hooked. This was a totally new medium for me, and I began learning with each carving I created.<\/p>\n<p>WHAT SORT OF CARVINGS DO YOU LIKE TO CREATE?<\/p>\n<p>I really like creating portrait etchings in watermelons. I wanted to push the limits of what I had seen examples of, so I started creating portrait carvings of the different celebrities that come to town like ZZ Top (below), Dolly Parton and Joan Jett.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>WHAT\u2019S BEEN YOUR MOST MEMORABLE WATERMELON CARVING?<\/p>\n<p>The most memorable watermelon carvings for me so far are the two carvings I created for Chef\u00a0Robert Irvine. He came to Hard Rock to do his live show, and I created a portrait carving and a\u00a0replica of his logo. When Chef Irvine saw the carvings I created, he was so impressed, he wanted\u00a0to meet me in person. Who knew that carving watermelons would lead to such an incredible experience?<\/p>\n<p>WHEN IT COMES TO EATING WATERMELON, DO YOU PREFER CHUNKS OR WEDGES?<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m a wedge guy! There is nothing better and that wedge of watermelon. It comes with a nifty\u00a0rind handle that you can hold, which leaves your other hand free to add shake the salt on top. I\u00a0also really enjoy adding watermelon to smoothies. It just gives you that delicious and refreshing flavor that makes you feel like you\u2019re on vacation.<\/p>\n<p>WHAT\u2019S NEXT FOR YOU AS A CARVER? WHAT WILL YOU BE CARVING THIS YEAR?<\/p>\n<p>I feel like I have progressed from just carving single watermelons to creating entire displays out of watermelon. I really want to push the boundaries of what is possible and create displays that leave people thinking, \u201cI never thought that was possible!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of my BIG goals is to eventually have my carvings featured on Food Network. I want to bring watermelon carving to the forefront of food entertainment. Why not? This year I will\u00a0continue carving watermelons for the different shows that come to Hard Rock as well as doing\u00a0some elaborate displays for different holidays.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>UP NEXT: <\/em><\/strong><strong><em>Spring has sprung! \u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The 2015 Watermelon Carving Contest is still in the planning stages (it\u2019ll kick off in June), but the folks who will be submitting masterpieces for the competition are busy carving watermelon as we speak. Okay, maybe they\u2019re not carving watermelon right now \u2014 although some of them might be \u2014 but they\u2019re probably at least [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[229],"tags":[464,465,418,228],"class_list":{"0":"post-1818","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-watermelon-carving","7":"tag-2015-watermelon-carving-contest","8":"tag-dustin-evans","9":"tag-watermelon-carver","10":"tag-watermelon-carving-2","11":"entry"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>SIX QUESTIONS WITH A WATERMELON CARVER: DUSTIN EVANS - What About Watermelon?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2015\/03\/six-questions-with-a-watermelon-carver-dustin-evans\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"SIX QUESTIONS WITH A WATERMELON CARVER: DUSTIN EVANS - What About Watermelon?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The 2015 Watermelon Carving Contest is still in the planning stages (it\u2019ll kick off in June), but the folks who will be submitting masterpieces for the competition are busy carving watermelon as we speak. 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