Monday, June 22, 2009

Just in time for the AAW symposium

The American Association of Woodturners symposium starts this Friday. I just finished the three new pieces I'll have in the instant gallery, so I'm posting them here.

This first one is called "Parturition No. 2." It's 6.5 X 5 inches, made from Afzelia burl. This was a huge challenge to carve because the wood is so hard and dense. Parturition is a term in biology that means "the process of giving birth." This form reminds me of gymnosperm cones combined with shelf fungi. Both motifs focus on reproduction, so the title seems very appropriate to me.







My second new piece is the fifth in my sphere series. This one is "When I let go of what I am, I can become what I might be - Lao Tzu. No. 5."

It's redwood burl, has eight delicate wings, and is 5 inches in diameter. I also sandblasted the surface. This was another huge challenge for me.













This is an alternate view.
















Here's a detail pic to show the sandblasting.










My third new piece is called, "Bowl anatomy 101." It's cherry, 2.75 X 1.75 inches.

A fun little piece that, again, was a big challenge.

Should be fun to see if these pieces get any reaction in the instant gallery this year.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

andi -- my nsk presto bogs down under carving torque -- do you use your nsk electric and how's it's carving performance compared to the presto?
thanks

Andi Wolfe said...

The presto isn't for heavy duty carving - only for light detail work and piercing thin walls. I use the NSK Z-500 for all of my rough-out and heavy carving duties - that's what it's for and it works great.

My parturition and sphere series are carved exclusively with the NSK Z-500. The torque is fantastic, it's quiet, and it does the job well.

Anonymous said...

oh, thanks for the info -- i'm on the hunt now for one

thanks again
:>)

Andi Wolfe said...

Just an update to this post - My sphere received an Excellence Award from the AAW instant gallery, one of only half a dozen to ten or so awards given out of the thousand or so entries on display. What a delightful surprise and I'm so pleased to receive this recognition for my work.

Andi Wolfe said...
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