Whimsy and depth best describe the exhibit of paintings by James Kuroda and sculpture by George Woollard at Koa Art Gallery.

A series of lacquered wood sculptures by Woollard were carved out of lychee wood taken from large trees that needed to be cut down.

"They have lots of twists and are very suggestive; they’re meant to be playful," the artist said.

Woollard likes the finished pieces to look like "fun, colorful toys."

The process is labor intensive; in fact, many of the individual pieces took several years to complete. Once the carving was done, Woollard used multiple layers of lacquer to create interesting color combinations.

The colors are created using cashew lacquer, which alters the hues as each layer is added. It is imported from Korea and dries into a hard surface that sands well and can be polished.

As an experienced painter and printmaker, Woollard views the wood as a 3-D canvas, mixing smooth and rough textures.

"It’s all about complementary qualities, finding a dynamic balance. As the colors change, it gets more and more interesting. It’s really organic," he said. "When people see it, I want them to be surprised and delighted."

Woollard finds inspiration in many things around him, including his flower farm and the students he teaches at the Honolulu Museum of Art School.

James Kuroda’s paintings are both simple and complicated.

"I always start with a color that I like that day; that dictates what happens next," he said.

Once he gets everything down on the canvas, Kuroda paints a layer of white paint over the images, a process that may happen many times before the piece is finished. The layers allow for ghostlike images to pop through. Many of the larger works took a few years to complete.

"When you draw a tree and fill in the colors, you know it’s done. Abstract pieces are more difficult," Kuroda said.

After becoming proficient in drawing decades ago, Kuroda began dabbling in abstract works, a foreign concept to him at the time.

"When I start with a blank canvas, it’s like visiting a new country. I get lost and just see what happens."

Kuroda also created a series on paper using graphite and colored pencils.

"I had some old templates laying around and used them to make shapes," he said of the collection of works.

Gallery director David Behlke says Kuroda and Woollard work well together.

"We’ve been trying to pair a 2-D artist with a 3-D artist at our shows," he said. "Both of them let the materials speak to them and offer a unique distortion of nature."