Menuisier

Scrap wood stool idea

2011-04-16T06:57:00.000-07:00

Here is the first try I like the red strap. Wood comes from old fir baseboard. I think I want to make it tapered

Dr. Orders

2011-04-16T06:51:00.000-07:00

Just What The Dr. Ordered

Stuff I have been working on

2011-04-16T06:42:00.000-07:00

Plastic Red Pumps

2011-04-16T06:24:00.000-07:00

I found these Plastic Red Pumps for Nuit Blanche 2011

The idea is for our group to paint or modify a pair of shoes.These shoes will be separated with one shoe in the WhiteStone gallery and the other lost as it were around Guelph. The shoes will be reunited by the finder at the gallery during the Nuit Blanche event or maybe even kept by the finder.
I cant wait to see the results.

guelph jazz festival

2011-03-22T18:35:00.000-07:00

Ring 2011 wooden matches

www.guelphjazzfestival.com [FIND OUT MORE]

The Red Brick Café

8 Douglas Street Downtown Guelph

March 26^th, 6:00 – 8:00 pm.

The Hub Free

2010-12-20T13:08:00.000-08:00

Guelph Arts Council and MSAC present

Jury Preparation for Visual Artists

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

7-9pm

MSAC Lecture Room

358 Gordon Street, Guelph

FREE (Pre-registration is mandatory. Call 519-836-3280 519-836-3280 or email gac@sentex.net)

New Gallery in town

2010-12-20T12:55:00.000-08:00

Renann Isaacs, respected art consultant and former curator of the Alma Gallery, has opend a new gallery in downtown Guelph. contempoary art and fine craft in the same gallery.

Thanks Renann I know I am not the only happy one

I Think This Gets One Back Here

2010-11-19T11:57:00.000-08:00

Will have to test it..hope it works

New to Me

2010-11-19T11:29:00.000-08:00

I have been seeing these bar code things around and thought to myself..Wow I am getting old..I thought a bit more and realised that this is a good thing a way to let people know more about me and what I do..yet another social tool as it were..so I made my own QR code..this is apparently me..I have yet to test it to see if it works but I will keep you posted. Could be a new self portrait.

Abandoned in The Landscape

2010-10-31T06:32:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the finds for my September solo show at the

http://www.carnegiegallery.org/

My idea is to collect and reassemble found furniture into new hybrid pieces.A chest of drawers with a chair coming out the side to act as new legs. It should be lots of fun redesigning new pieces.

Expressway 427 has been included

2010-09-02T17:54:00.000-07:00

Title: THE ARTSINFORM SHOW
Exhibit Dates: Sept 1-30, 2010
Sponsor: University of Guelph Library
Venue: University of Guelph Library, main floor
Jurors: Martin Pearce, Faculty, dept of Fine Art; Dawn Owen, Assistant Curator at Macdonald Stewart Art Centre; Renann Isaacs, art consultant, curator and dealer.

I am looking forward to the opening Sept 8th 2010 6-8pm

http://artsinform.guelphartists.ca/home is the web site if you want to have a look see

EXHIBITION ASSISTANCE GRANT RECIPIENT

2010-09-01T18:41:00.000-07:00

I am happy to say that I am a Grant recipient for Exhibition Assistance from the Ontario Arts Council for my solo show REPURPOSED at the Whitestone Gallery exhibition dates 03/04/2010 to 30/04/2010.

2010-07-06T18:25:00.000-07:00

Juried by:
Virginia Eichhorn Director/Curator Tom Thomson Art Gallery,
Rhona Wenger Director/Curator Grimsby Art Gallery,
Laurie Carmount, Curator Agnes Jamieson Gallery

Opening Reception Friday July 30 at 4pm
A call for submission was sent out to artists in an attempt to rejuvenate this neglected genre, yet essential part of Canadian culture.
This exhibition takes a new approach by revisiting the aesthetic movement of traditional to the evolutionary non-traditional work of Canadian landscape art.

Artists: Al van Mil, Alan Glickman, Alex Jack, Amy Bagshaw, Annie Sakkab, Aurora King, Barbara Amos, Bob Pennycook, Bruce Livingston, Cameron Kuntz, Daniel Durocher, Daniel Tofach, David French, Debra Lees, Denis Larouche, Dennis Austin Reid, Elaine M. Carr, Elizabeth Siegfried, Gunhild Hotte, Heather Carey, Helen Utsal, Ian Winton, Jachen Mueller, Janusz Wrobel, Jerre Davidson, Jessica Watchorn, Joel Sinclair, John Ashbourne, John Deal, John Graham, John Lennard, Judith J. Leidl, Judith McCarvell, Karen Bigelow, Kathleen Weich, Kim Atlin, Leanne Baird, Liz Minard, Lori Sokolvk, Maria Whiteman, Marie Timbers, Mark Marasco, Pat Hertsberg, Patricia Whittingham, Richard Watts, Robby J, Robert Achtemichuk, Rod Prouse, Ryan Szule, Stefan Berg, Stephen Brookbank, Sybil Goldstein, Thea Jones, Theordora Pica, Wendy DesChene, Wendy Trusler

Agnes Jamieson Gallery

176 Bobcaygeon Road

Minden Ontario Canada K0M 2K0

705-286-3763

gallery@mindenhills.ca

www.mindenculturalcentre.com

My new Subaru Forster

2010-07-03T11:22:00.000-07:00

2.5X Sport-tech 2010 this is what I made room for at least its still black and allwheel drive

17-inch aluminum alloy wheels
Pioneer AVIC in-dash navigation/audio system
iPod®/USB audio integration with text display
Bluetooth® hands-free system
Sport-tech badge

17-inch aluminum alloy wheels

Pioneer AVIC in-dash navigation/audio system

iPod®/USB audio integration with text display

Bluetooth® hands-free system

Sport-tech badge

My 1993 Mazda B2600i 4X4 is gone

2010-07-03T11:17:00.000-07:00

I needed to make room for our new car in the laneway and it was time to let her go

Expressway on the way to Agnes Jamieson Gallery

2010-07-02T08:09:00.000-07:00

Canadian Landscape Juried Exhibition
July 27-September 11, 2010
Opening Reception Friday July 30 at 4pm

A call for submission was sent out in January to landscape artists in an attempt to rejuvenate this neglected genre yet essential part of Canadian culture. This exhibition takes a new approach to Canadian landscape. Divided into two categories, this exhibition revisits the aesthetic movement of traditional to the evolutionary non-traditional landscape work.

2010 Biannual Juried Exhibition Miss Stumpy hits the road

2010-07-02T08:02:00.000-07:00

2010 Biannual Juried ExhibitionJuly 23 – August 22Opening reception Friday July 23 7 – 9 p.m.

Every two years the Grimsby Public Art Gallery hosts a juried exhibition to showcase new works by artists from across Ontario. The call for entry was widely advertised earlier this year and by the May 28th deadline we had received about 250 entries. From these, the three jurors will select 35 - 40 pieces that will be in the show. The 2010 Biannual Juried Exhibition will be on display in the Main Gallery from July 23rd to August 22nd.

The jurors for our 2010 exhibition are Hamilton-based artist, Tor Lukasic-Foss, Zhe Gu, the Director of Gallery Stratford and David Taylor, now retired but formerly Curator of Gallery Lambton in Sarnia. As well as selecting the artwork, these arts professionals will have to decide which three pieces are of such significant merit that they will be awarded the first, second and third prizes, worth $500, $300 and $200 respectively. Visitors are encouraged to vote for their favorite work of art during the exhibition; the winner will receive the Viewer’s Choice Award, to be announced at the end of the exhibition. The jurors will also be asked to write a brief statement, expressing their thoughts about the juried process in general and the works selected for this show.

2010 Jazz Art Auction

2010-04-24T19:25:00.000-07:00

2010 Jazz Art Auction

Sunday, April 25, 2010, 2—6 pm

The Bookshelf's Ebar, 41 Quebec Street, Guelph

Tickets: $50 available at the The Bookshelf or by calling 519-763-4952

http://www.guelphjazzfestival.com/2010_season/2010_jazz_art_auction

Celebrate one of Canada's premier jazz festivals with food, drink, music and art. This year you can bid on a curated collection featuring 40 stunning works by emerging, mid-career, and established artists who are locally, nationally, and internationally recognized. You can also participate in a silent auction of some of the finest crafts from the area and beyond. View the collection on-line or in person at both locations of the Red Brick Café, 8 Douglas St. and 77 Westmount Rd., Guelph until April, 24.

Repurposed

2010-04-09T12:55:00.000-07:00

my new Snowboard way too cool butters are near

2010-03-26T20:40:00.000-07:00

2010 FORUM Scallywag Snowboard 158cm

Make way for these tattooed rascals in the landing, because they will be stomping their tricks while flat-based riders are sweeping for the buried treasure of their goggles. It’s not the screaming, pillaging or drinking of ale—although that helps—but ChillyDog Continous Rocker that gives this board its mutinous grrrrrr. The continuous rocker floats the board either forward or switch, butters like margarine in the park and prevents hook on its way up and out the transition.

Well where is this show ?

2010-03-26T18:30:00.000-07:00

http://whitestonegallery.wordpress.com/

80 Norfolk Street in Guelph Ontario
hope to see you there..Owen and I brought some stuff over tonight, to make things easier for tomorrows install

RECENT WORKS BY DANIEL DUROCHER Opening Saturday, April 10th 7:00 - 9:00PM

2010-03-26T15:02:00.000-07:00

Over the last several years I have been looking at ways to repurpose objects and materials destined for the landfill. I assemble artifacts that I have collected into finished pieces by playing with the texture and pattern found within the material. Retaining its existing finish helps tell the story of the object and creates a history for the finished piece. I like the way the material helps define what can be made from it. The process of listening to the artifacts while creating the final piece is satisfying because a previous life is revealed in this recycled work.

Recall : SAC 25th Annual Juried Exhibition

2010-03-26T14:54:00.000-07:00

A visual exploration of things that shaped the past decade featuring the work of 33 artists in a variety of disciplines

April 7 – April 19, 2010
Mon-Fri 9am – 8 pm
Sat, Sun 12pm – 8 pm

Opening Reception & presentation of the Frank Faubert Memorial Award for Art: Thurs, April 8, 6 – 8 pm

The Corridor Gallery – The Centre for Creative Communications
Centennial College, 951 Carlaw Avenue, Toronto, ON

Participating Artists: Jaime Angelopoulos, Brian Barrer, Kevin Bishop, Linda Chalmers, Irene Cymbal, Colin Doyle, Daniel Durocher, Penelope Edgar, David French, Denise Jayawardene, John Kokkinos, Katrina MacKew, Quin McColgan, Christian McLeod, Liz Menard, Viktor Mitic, Laura Moore, Wesley Morris, Maryann Murphy, Liane Odze-Silver, Allan O’Marra, Derrick Piens, Alejandro Rabazo, Joanne Rich, Mark Stebbins, Ceilidh Stidwill, Aditi Swaminathan, Bai Ting Wun, Todd Tremeer, Charles Wakefield, Ron Wild, Catherine X. Blank, Xiaojing Yan.

Jurors: Erin Peck (Exhibitions & Outreach Coordinator at the Doris McCarthy Gallery, University of Toronto Scarborough) and Katrina Enros (Gallery Administrator for the Doris McCarthy Gallery, University of Toronto Scarborough).

Masterworks update

2010-03-22T18:29:00.000-07:00

I just got the final version of the invite and the booklet..... Have a look... I am in really good company... wow..is all I can say cant wait to meet all the group. met Mary this morning , that was really nice. she was dropping off invites

http://www.craft.on.ca/OCC_News/Southwest_Update#Masterworks_Southwest

GOOD COMPANY

Why You Should Buy Art by William Powhida

2010-03-06T19:20:00.000-08:00

Bow Tie Bumper is in Masterworks Southwest an Ontario Crafts Council Touring Show

2010-03-06T18:45:00.000-08:00

Congratulations once again on your acceptance into Masterworks Southwest! Each submission was judged according to technique, craftsmanship, originality/creativity, innovation and excellence. The jurors were faced with a difficult task—selecting only 39 works out of a grand total of 101 entries that ranged from elegant and sophisticated to unexpected and quirky. We are all absolutely thrilled with the final selection.

TOUR SCHEDULE: MASTERWORKS SOUTHWEST

Tour stop #1
Tom Thomson Art Gallery
March 28 – April 25
840 First Avenue West Owen Sound, ON N4K 4K4
Reception: Sunday, March 28, 2pm‐4pm

Tour stop #2
Burdette Gallery
May 15 – June 20Burdette Gallery 111212 11th Line Rural Route #2 Orton, ON L0N 1N0
Reception: Saturday, May 29, 6pm‐9pm

Tour stop #3
Art Gallery of Windsor
July 10 – September 5

401 Riverside Drive West
Windsor, ON N9A 7J1
Reception: Friday, August 20, 6pm‐9pm

Tour stop #4
Greenwood Quiltery & Gallery
September 17 – October 30

275 Woolwich Street Guelph, ON N1H 3V8
Reception: Saturday, October 16, 1pm‐4pm

Tour stop #5
Station Arts Centre
November 12 – December 17
41 Bridge. Street West Tillsonburg, ON N4G 5P2
Reception: Friday, November 12, 7pm‐9pm

Stumpy

2010-03-06T18:33:00.000-08:00

Stumpy has made it in

2010-03-06T18:29:00.000-08:00

LOOK 2010 at Gallery Lambton, Sarnia

LOOK 2010, Gallery Lambton's bi-annual juried art exhibition will be featured from March 5 to May 2, 2010 and will feature a wide range of work and media by artists from southwestern Ontario and southeastern Michigan. Join us for the opening reception on First Friday, March 5, 2010 starting at 6:00 p.m. Many of the featured artists will be present. An award presentation will be held on First Friday, April 9, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. LOOK 2010 will close on Sunday, May 2 at 4:00p.m.

Works are selected by three jurors: Marla Botterill is a visual artist based in London, Ontario. Botterill teaches painting and drawing at FanshaweCollege and has served four terms on the Board of Directors at Forest City Gallery; she currently holds the position of President. Michael Waterman is a visual and audio artist whose work focuses on sound installation, improvisational performance, and radio art. Waterman's sound installations have been presented in galleries and festivals throughout Canada and in the United States. Mindy Bowls is currently the curatorial assistant at the Thames Art Gallery in Chatham Ontario. She has experience in exhibition programming, collections and conservation. Bowls has a B.A. in Art History from the University of Guelph.

Prize money, amounting to $1,500 will be awarded. Once again this year, the public gets to vote and choose their favorite piece. The People’s Choice Award is presented to the artist whose work receives the most votes.

Gallery Lambton
Bayside Centre
150 N. Christina Street
Sarnia, Ontario N7T 7W5
Tel: 519 336-8127
Fax: 519 336-8128

Artists Survey: The Greenbelt Exhibition.

2010-02-07T18:59:00.000-08:00

I got the call yesterday..Phil Anderson told me my work had been selected for The Greenbelt Exhibition.

1313A Queen Street West Toronto Ontario M5K 1L8 416.536.6778 Hours: Wed-Sun 1-6pm

Reception for the Gallery 1313 Exhibition will be on Feb. 18^th 6:30pm t- 8:30pm for artists and guests, 8:30pm -10:00 pm for public .
There will also be a panel discussion on Wed Feb. 24th with Christopher Hume of the Toronto Star and other panelists. It is free and you are invited to attend.
Works will be at Gallery 1313 until Feb. 28th.
The exhibition will be at the ROM March 3^rd for a gala luncheon and then travel to three other exhibition venues in the Greenbelt until March 28th.

Gallery 1313 is an artist run centre committed to the recognition of excellence in various cultural and artistic expressions. Gallery 1313’s embracing of equality, inclusion and celebration of diversity is affirmed through its broad representation of its membership, affiliations, programming and executive body. Gallery 1313 supports vital contemporary art practices by recognizing the work of emerging and established artists in a variety of mediums.

I have Monday to work in the shop

2010-02-05T18:35:00.000-08:00

I have been working for a contractor for the past few weeks. It slows down what I have going in the studio but I think I have a few new ideas to explore..I get this Monday to focus on my stuff ,I miss the time in the studio.

I will post images of what's going on soon.

So close but yet so far.

2010-01-30T18:10:00.000-08:00

Ok this thing is done..... really....... or so I think it is.

First a large scratch appears in the finish, how that happened I do not know (well I do but I will not point fingers) Ok, so I have to re do the top.

So I rub out the scratch a bit too much I now see bare wood, really light orange wood .

Now I have to re-lacquer the top.

Today I spray the dovetail keys with clear and the finish hazes over..guess what I am doing tomorrow. Refinishing the top again

THIS IS NOT FUN ANYMORE.

New leg ideas for the Blue Stump

2010-01-30T17:57:00.000-08:00

before paint the legs will be held off the base of the stump with 1/2 inch aluminum plate

painted the orange is very much fake carrot orange I am thinking a white leg with a orange leg with a single white leg across from the axe pair.

There are walnut dovetail keys in the top of the stump.

I really do not like the date on my images, some times my A480 has a mind of its own.

playing with pattern

2010-01-29T18:55:00.000-08:00

its only about 4 X 4 I made a few and gave them a gallery frame, reclaimed fir with a oil finish.

legs for the next stump

2010-01-08T11:17:00.000-08:00

Some stuff on the way to The Whitestone CoOp

2010-01-08T10:50:00.000-08:00

Each of these pieces has a unique story to tell, where I found the material and the people I meet often shape how these new objects come together.

Its been a while

2010-01-08T10:17:00.000-08:00

Some new images of the orange stump #2......stand off jig and one with legs on ..Should be doing final assembly soon.

Duck Blind January 22 to Febuary 28 2010

2009-12-19T08:57:00.000-08:00

The 47th Annual Tom Thomson Art Gallery Juried Exhibition Convergence has selected my work.

Owen was pretty happy to get his Bedside table delivered

2009-11-11T19:06:00.000-08:00

The boy likes being organized

A Pittance of Time

2009-11-11T17:00:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYlrrAWCTRg

Owens bedside table " Its getting closser"

2009-11-04T14:52:00.000-08:00

Finally had time to get working on this one too,
I made metal pads to hold on the door knobs to the cabinet today..
Old glass door knobs remind me of my Grandmother.
Mitered drawer fronts, dovetailed drawers, that's just part of my day, its a good job.

I hope to clear coat it all tomorrow.

New work from the bench

2009-11-04T14:38:00.000-08:00

I finally got some time to clean up work on my bench.

Here are some process images..I hope to have furniture home by the end of next week..now how to make it all happen

I will keep you posted on how that goes.

TUTD

2009-10-14T18:46:00.000-07:00

I found this app ..its a Texting Dictionary "The Ultimate Texting Dictionary"

YGLTUTD! (You're going to love the ultimate texting dictionary!)

Do people really buy this one? They say it is the ultimate resource.

texting

2009-10-03T18:28:00.000-07:00

My new focus is on Texting. I am intrigued by this medium of communication...The more people I tell about this exploration the more I hear the phrase I hate texting, when I ask why the response I get is “all those stupid abbreviations.” The more I look into this Idea the more I realize that this is not a new medium for communication but one that is rooted much deeper.

Though I am interested in texts like ROTFLMAO (rolling on the floor laughing my*** off) I am more interested in where it all started. This is my attempt to bridge the gap between modern day texting and short form, as it was once called when my mother learned to use short hand as a secretary in the 60ies.

Stumpy

2009-10-03T18:14:00.000-07:00

I just had to post this image.

Stumpy

2009-07-13T05:11:00.000-07:00

This is the second in the line of stump pieces.

The orange stump blew apart while it was drying...
With this new yellow piece I have let in dovetail keys to keep the checks in balance.
I think that they add a certain element of contrast to the whole idea that I am reconstructing a tree.
We often lose sight of where the wood we use comes from when we and make furniture.
The end user sometimes does not consider the wood used but refers only to a certain color of stain that they associate with a particular wood.I think that this idea can use some more exploration.
I will keep you posted; I have more trees to put back together.

From The bench

2009-06-13T09:46:00.001-07:00

New work from my bench

I have had this idea for some time to reconstruct logs into seating, small stools, benches or even side tables.

This is the first go. The cast aluminum legs are from another piece that I was unhappy with. I thought that they looked good on this stump.

I am working on a red stump and an acid yellow stump as well. I rescued plastic legs from a dumpster near the studio for the yellow stump. The red job will get legs made of wood. I have not really worked out the fine details yet.

I hope to have more images of this project soon.

I think that this idea is worth exploring further.

Owens Side Table

2009-06-13T09:24:00.000-07:00

Owens Side Table is glued up

Here is an image of the case for O’s Bedside table. I still need to cut drawers and fit them. I hope to have time this week to work on that part.
I just picked up a Uni Saw that I am installing in a shop space next door. A Lee Valley bench that I got at the same time made its way to the Studio. It’s nice to have another rock solid work surface.

I Have Been Collecting

2009-05-04T06:28:00.000-07:00

I have been collecting lots and lots of used laundry detergent bottles.

This is yet another idea in my recycling /re purposing train of thought.
The idea was to use the plastic from the laundry detergent bottles to make a large floor piece that glowed .
I plan on putting some lights in it and propping it up from the inside with threaded rods
I really wanted to have it made to put in a show with John Roberts a WhiteStone Gallery member but collecting the plastic has proven to be harder than I thought.So I had to back out of the show.
I do have a start to the project , I have made a 3’X3‘ semi cupped shape, It could be a wall piece, but I really want to continue collecting to make it sit on the floor.

Mock Up For Owen

2009-04-28T13:04:00.000-07:00

Here is the mock up for Owens bedside table.

Since it will be made of old doors, I thought that it would be nice to us
the glass knobs as feet; it’s the self referential thing,
The back leg detail is from an old piece of furniture I saw in Montreal by the side of the road in the 80ies.
It was a small dresser if I remember correctly, I wish now that I would have put it in the back of my truck and brought it home.
When saw it, I thought to myself that it was a very inventive way to make a back foot. They had used the side of the piece to create a foot.
At the time I was still in University working on my Fine Art Degree so I never thought that this design element would make its way into my vocabulary as a furniture designer maker.
I do not know if it is a Canadian design detail but I will assume that it is and quote the source as such.
I have since glued up the Bed Side Table. The inside and exposed edges are painted black. The rest of the carcass is mitred so that the finish that was on the doors originally wraps around the exterior surface.
It looks like a patch work quilt.
When there is a bit of down time in the studio, I will make a jig to cut out the back feet.
Right now I am working on panels and frames for shows that are coming up next month.

The View From My Bench

2009-04-28T13:02:00.000-07:00

Repurposed Wood

2009-04-27T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here is a piece that I was working on just before I moved to the Studio.

I repurposed some wood for this stool and also found a home for a sign that I have been carrying around for quite some time.

I also have a low stool that follows the same design principal of repurposed wood. Sadie has claimed that one for her bedroom.

The idea with this line of products is that furniture need not be made of the most expensive exotic hard woods to be considered furniture,I hope that good design can overcome what some may feel is a short fall when it comes to material choise.

I have seen rocking chairs made of hockey sticks and cottage deck chairs made from some water skis that looked really amazing.

I will keep exploring this idea and keep you posted. Next on the list is a bedside table for Owen my son. It will be made of old doors that I have resawn . I will try to post images soon.

A W O L

2009-04-27T13:14:00.001-07:00

I have been busy these days working on some new ideas around texting as a language.

After some research I found out that it is really not new nor is it an easy thing to do (invent a new language as it were)

Texting or abbreviations go way back to the war era and even further M I A (missing in action) R I P (Rest in Peace) AWOL (Absent Without Leave)

My work is about the use of language as much as it is in a way a record of how people use language. People often say that texting is breaking down language but it is I feel making language stronger.

I have settled in to my new shop and really enjoy going to work there; I have started to produce Frames and painting panels for some of Guelph’s local artist.

March First and a New Studio

2009-02-28T18:25:00.000-08:00

For the past few days I have been moving into my new shop space. The Shop/Studio is run by Adrian Ferrazzutti. I was put in touch with him via a fellow furniture maker who works at Sheridan College.
The Studio is at best a 20min bike ride from home. I just need to wait for warmer dryer weather.
I have a 16X16 space in a 3000sq foot shop. I share major tools with the four full time guys, there are a few space mates who seem to have just dropped stuff off in their space but have not really set it up yet.
I am pretty happy to be in this space it’s been a long time coming, it means that I can now start building all the out for reach ideas that were not do able in my garage shop space.
I am going to go in tomorrow to paint a small partition that Adrian wanted me to put up between my space and the special effects guy in the back corner, I do not really understand why it was needed but I thought that going in and helping out would further my inroads with the group . In reality I did not need to do this because everyone there is really nice to the new guy.

Marks comes through with a treasure trove

2009-02-23T13:09:00.000-08:00

We had a late lunch at our friend Mark and Alison’s place in Burlington. It was a wonderful afternoon spent catching up on how our children had grown and what we had been doing since we last got together at our place in the summer.

I have to tell you that both Ali and Mark are top notch crafts people in their respective fields. Ali works with glass as her main medium and Mark is one of the best woodworkers that I know. On another note, Mark has a tool collection that would make most grown men drool. Well, Mark and I got talking about what we were both working on and when it came to my turn, I told Mark that I was finding it hard to find material that I could use if my recycled pieces.

Now Mark being the stand up guy that he is, said.... Hey I have scrap coming out of my yang yang. Feel free to take whatever you need. Let me tell you he has enough material to keep someone like me happy for quite some time. With Marks help I filled my van that day and I had to make room for Jen and the kids so that we could all drive home together.

Let’s hope good things come from the visit / scrap wood grab and all.

I am still looking for a good table saw, but for now it can wait, After all I will be in a shop with a few cabinet makers’ saws, and I just need a Junker to break out scrap material on.
Mark and I have made a pact for me to come out to his place to help with a second floor walnut floor installition and shop clean out with the intention that I can bring home more wood.
Just when I thought that I could not continue with this idea I come across more material.

New Start

2009-02-18T12:03:00.001-08:00

I have been quite busy of late. A recent trip into Toronto to see a friend’s show in December sparked my imagination. I drove home with a plan. It was time to 2 jump start my career, what I needed to do was get a shop and work with likeminded people. The second thing that was needed was to find locations in Guelph and the surrounding area to show my work. I also needed to get working my portfolio it was looking a little dated.

One day I was chatting with my neighbour asking her about shop space. She told me that her son was moving out of her Garage shop and that I could move in my tools and set up the shop as I saw fit, in return I would sharpen tools and help her with her woodworking questions, she is a very accomplished wood turner.

It did not take long for me to get my tools moved and set up. I was pretty happy given that I cannot get into my garage if you can call it that. In the winter the door which is already cut on a rakish angle jambs on the pavement when it opens 6 inches. I am quite a bit wider in the mid section than that. Think you can fill in the rest.

As you have probably all ready gathered, I enjoy working with recycled/repurposed material. I think that my father’s experience of livening through the depression taught me in a roundabout way that all materials are precious, and that working with ones hands is a very rewarding experience in its self.

Armed with a new idea, I pulled out all my recycled material and made two new pieces. One is called stacked (for now anyways) the other is well I do not have a name for it, let’s call it vertical. I milled all my material to a uniform thickness and stacked it together to form a cube 14X 14 X 16 tall end grain, painted material, recycled doors whatever wood I had on hand got stacked to make the piece. I am pretty happy with the outcome it speaks to me on many levels ,but it mostly says that furnishings need not be precious and made from the most exotic and rare woods to be worthy to be called fine craft.

For the other piece, I employed the same premise but arranged the material vertically. They are both born of the same idea but to me speak a slightly different language.

While I was working on these new ideas I joined an art collective called the White Stone Gallery. There is one other furniture make there but the majority of the 18 members are painters. This suits me fine because I can hang work and show floor pieces as well. It’s been good to paint and draw again as well. I have made new friends and feel that this direction is a good fit.

Icing on the cake

2008-11-15T06:51:00.000-08:00

On Friday evening we went to the opening at the Carnegie Gallery.
Mark a fellow woodworker hung the show .I must say it looked really good
I knew that I was going to win something because. I was called to make sure that I would attend the opening. I would have attended any ways it was the first time I had work in a gallery in eight years.
Allison Rose the person who organized the show was presenting the awards and when she took her turn at the front of the room I became quite nervous..I knew that would not win an award for best wood work because this piece is more mixed media.
Well there was no mixed media award for me so I began to wonder, best new artist to the Gallery something like that, Then Allison said and now for the last award Best of Show. I just stood there for a while when she called my name. I was a little taken a back but at the same time very excited.
The rest of the evening was spent talking with friends and making new friends, it was a wonderful way to end the process of making this piece.
This award has given me the boost that I needed to get going again; it’s nice to know that after a few years off I can still produce work that others enjoy.

Its done and with time to spare

2008-10-31T07:34:00.000-07:00

Bow Tie Bumper Daniel Durocher

With this piece I was interested in the process of making.
I was not interested in preliminary drawings or in controlled outcomes.
I did not exactly know where I was going and chose instead to let the material speak for its self.
In the process I let the unexpected things come from inside the material.
What became apparent in this piece of discarded bumper was a new use.
Maybe on some level it was because the truck that I was a passenger in hit so many birds on our trip from Edmonton to Yellowknife this fall.
Maybe it was the round hole on the section of the bumper that reminded me of a home for a bird.
Once I cut the section of bumper in two, it became apparent what it would be.

It's really a Chevy BowTie

2008-10-28T13:52:00.000-07:00

Ok ...I have been a little busy, trying to get a job.... these days that is job one, this piece that I am working on for the juried show has taken up allot of time as well.
I am in the process of painting it and writing an artist statement. I hope to have it assembled tomorrow and will work on a system for hanging it on the wall. I will post new images soon.

Dodge Bumper

2008-10-01T13:48:00.000-07:00

Ok.. I spent the better part of the morning, Fitting the top of the Bumper Bird House to the main section...lots of time spent with my pattern makers file, sometime later and I am ready to glue up the center leg section..I used Oak, Birch and Walnut paperback veneer to make up this section...it is good now, and fits the cross section nicely. Here are some pix’s of the glue up for the center section...It took some time to get here but I think that it is worth it...

Dodge Bumper

2008-09-28T07:58:00.000-07:00

Arts Hamilton along with the Carnegie Gallery has put a call of submissions. It is a juried show called "Designer Craft" The show will open November the 7th 2008. If I want to make the cut my work has to be in by the 3rd of November.

I started out thinking, that I would make a piece that would be made of recycled material, Mainly some lath that I pulled out of our 100 year old home the last time I did a small reno.

So I started with the premise, that I would make small bed side tables.

I glued up the lath to form the sides of the carcass but after assembling the last side, I realised that the piece would not look like I had envisioned it in my mind’s eye.

Back to the drawing board. Bed side tables would have to wait

I was looking at my material stash which has dwindled quite a bit and thought to myself that I was going about this the wrong way. I was trying to make something out of the material I had on hand,

This is not usually how I work. I usually draw and then decide what material will work best for my idea.

Then all of sudden I remembered a Bird House idea they would utilize a front bumper from a Dodge truck.

I was back in the game. Recycled material use and a more solid idea,

Here is what I have to date.

2008-09-15T08:24:00.000-07:00

Studio Furniture is a subfield of studio craft centered around one-of-a-kind or limited production furniture objects designed and built by craftspeople. The work is made in a craftsperson'studio setting as opposed to being made in a high volume factory. This conception of the site of production as being a studio links studio furniture to studio art and reflects its status as an individual creative process. Studio furniture objects often embody creative and/or communicative intent, a unique design, elements of functionality (either implicit or explicit), craftsmanship, and an intimate understanding of material in their creation. Studio furniture objects, perhaps because of their close association with sculpture and other fine art, are shown as often in art galleries as they are in furniture showrooms. As is the case in the Studio Crafts at large, this contested identity is the impetus for frequent intra-field dialogue and differing intellectual positions on the matter.

Elements of Studio Furniture

Studio Furniture incorporates the design process differently than IndustrialDesign or Product Design, but the designing of the object is an integral and important part of its creation none-the-less. Because of the requisite functionality (or implied functionality) of Studio Furniture, makers must design objects so that they fulfill their intended physical purpose. For example, a functional chair must be able to support the weight of the human body in a sitting position. After this requirement is met, other purposes may also be supported; the chair might also be designed with certain ergonomics considerations for user comfort or it might additionally be able to support the body while standing or reclining. While the meeting of physical requirements links Studio Furniture to other design fields, the expression of personal creative intent links the practice to theFine Arts. Design comes in to play in the realization of this intent as well; successful Studio Furniture must be designed to simultaneously meet conceptual needs without compromising its functional goals.
The practice of design within the field of Studio Furniture, as with other Studio Crafts, follows a trajectory that that is unique in terms of the process of making. The design process begins with preliminary sketches or models, but this is not a “preconceptualization of the finished work in all its elements and details” which would then be executed by a maker (separate from the designer), as it might be in a Product Design setting. According to Howard Risatti in “A Theory of Craft,” “instead of being separated into stages, conception and execution are integrated so that a subtle feedback system occurs when physical properties of materials encounter conceptual form and conceptual form encounters physical material" The design of the object, to a great degree, happens concurrently with its creation. The skill of the maker and his or her ability to work with the subtleties and variations of the material, allowing those variations to inform and exalt the conceptual and functional goals of the piece, is intrinsically tied in to the object’s design.

This defenation is from a Wikipedia article, which I feel sums up what is to be a Studio Furniture Maker.

As I become more versed in this medium of blogging, I know that I will need to be less reliant on others definitions.
Hopefully my work and the process will lead you through how I look at what I really enjoy doing.
This is the beginning of a new journey for me. I hope that we can share some discussions about what it is to be a Studio Maker