July, 2005

Meeting Information: Saturday, July 16th, from 9 am to Noon

Special Presentation

Kevin Wallace:

Contemporary Woodturning: The Artist’s Eye/The Craftsman’s Hand

At Levi Mize Woodcraftsman’s Shop

162 Aviador Street #17+18, Camarillo, CA 93010

Aviador Street is N. of the Camarillo Airport and is reached from the Central Ave. exit off of US 101: go S. and turn left on Ventura Blvd. then right on Aviador St.  About three-quarters of the way to the dead end, on the left is a long building.  Levi’s  shop is the last two doors on the left on the S. side of the building.  Please park directly in front of or behind his shop or against the curb on the N. side of the building and not in front of other shops.

BRING YOUR OWN CHAIR OR SIT ON THE FLOOR

The meeting this month is again back at Levi’s shop, so remember to bring a chair.  Our special guest is Kevin Wallace of whom Al Geller writes: “Kevin Wallace is a nationally recognized curator of contemporary crafts. He worked for many years at Del Mano in Brentwood, one of the premier contemporary craft galleries in the US and one with a large focus on wood turnings. Kevin left Del Mano to pursue writing about contemporary craft and curating contemporary craft shows at museums. He recently curated a wood turning show at the Craft and Folk Art Museum in LA which many of our members attended. He has written numerous articles on turned wood in many magazines devoted to contemporary crafts. He has co-authored many books with Jan Peters and Ray Leier including “500 Wood Bowls” and “Contemporary Turned Wood”.
“We are delighted and honored to have him speak to us on where artists find their inspiration for their work. He will also critique any member’s work. This will be an opportunity to get insight on how a gallery reviews wood turnings and what a gallery would look for in a wood turning.” Al   [Be brave and bring several of your best or interesting pieces for him to talk about.  Kevin will be kind and you will learn how to improve your work. ED.]

Kevin describes his presentation: “I will discuss the role of inspiration, artistic exploration and design in relation to the creation of turned wood objects. I have written numerous profiles of woodturners, from legendary figures Bob Stocksdale and David Ellsworth to those on the cutting edge of contemporary wood sculpture and will draw largely from my discussions with these artists in addressing the relationship between thought and process. As I have also worked closely with museum curators, dealers and collectors in regard to contemporary woodturning, I will share how work is viewed in the larger market. I will use turned wood pieces by members of the group to discuss form, ideas and artistic expression. The talk will be structured in a manner that is loose and conducive to dialogue, so that those in attendance will gain as much as possible from the experience.”  Kevin

At the June meeting Sam Turner brought us up to date on our participation at the Ventura County Fair.  See the June 2005 newsletter for details on turning categories and entry dates.  He will continue to sign up members for rotations as demonstrators.  This is great fun so join in.  After the Shown -N-Tell session we started the hands-on mentoring in Russ Babbitt’s Shop.  The photos below are a montage of pictures that Ron Lindsay took to give you an idea of what took place and the work that members are doing at home.

The Annual Members Picnic will take place on July 9th at Jim Rinde’s home.  The members and spouses have already been called to arrange the potluck.  Remember to bring a few examples of your current work.

Gallery of photos from the April meeting: