UNIQUE AND UNUSUAL WOOD BOWLS - WHY I LOVE TURNING WOOD
A tree is a beautiful gift from nature, and
my goal as a wood turner is to preserve this natural beauty long after the tree
dies. I try to make bowls that best show off the grain, bark, and figuring of the
wood, including the stains from fungi and tracks from insects. All of my bowls
are hand crafted on a lathe. This means the cutting tools (gouges, scrapers,
and chisels) are held by hand and steadied on a tool rest while carving a
rapidly turning piece of wood. I prefer making natural and bark edged bowls
from old spalted pieces of wood and from burls. The shape of a bowl is mostly
determined by the piece of wood (its grain, bark, size, and feel).
I take time to try and understand the
wood as I carve its shape. My bowls show the natural beauty of the wood and are never embellished or given a shiny plastic-like finish. My bowls are sanded to 800 grit, sealed with at least two coats of tung oil (dried and hand sanded between coats), and buffed after application of a thin coat of beeswax/mineral oil, giving a satiny luster and smooth feel. Sanding and oiling helps bring out the natural beauty of the wood. You would not see the flaming figuring in a burl or the amazing curly grain if the wood was left unfinished. All of my wood is from Minnesota, mostly from the North Shore of Lake Superior, and healthy trees are never cut solely for making bowls. Below is an example of the type of bowl I love to turn.
ASPEN BURL BOWL
top view
Imagine the process of turning the burl (below) into this bowl and you will become hooked on wood turning
Take my class at the North House Folk School in Grand Marais, Minnesota, to learn how to turn a burl into an amazing bark edged bowl.
My bowls are on display and for sale at art shows on the North Shore, at the New Scenic Cafe near Duluth, at the Hovland Arts Festival, and from me in Hovland. Check out the Examples of My Work and Bowls for Sale pages on this website.