Prototyping a stool

I am learning about the making of multiples, and exploring jigs. I am also exploring my own aesthetic, pulling inspiration from the tori-i gates that stand in front of Shinto shrines.
Here are some photos of the process so far, basically I am setting the groundwork for more of these to be made easily.

Some of the models i made for brainstorming

The drafting table we set up

A taper jig to ensure all the legs are the same shape

The mold i used to vacuum form the seat

The seat - made of layers of 1/8 inch baltic birch

Finishing off the mortises by hand

The tenons - compound angles are difficult!

The piece starting to come together

Gluing up the cross pieces

New work from this semester

Kinsei, a stool inspired by Japanese architecture made from baltic birch plywood, ash, and a cushion.

More Zaisu chairs and a Walnut and Bamboo table to accompany them.

Tic - Tac - Toe bench made from Maple and Ash.

Walnut-Kozo Cabinet

This wall-hanging cabinet is made using Walnut and Kozo, a material used for making Japanese paper. I was inspired by Japanese design principals of asymmetry and austere beauty, embracing the imperfections in the wood and bringing them to the front of the piece.

Zen Room

 This is an installation I made taking inspiration from the principals of Zen Buddhism and creating a space inside a busy school for meditation. I filled the room with sand and gravel and made small cushions to sit on. I also made more of the lights you see below  which were the only source of light in the room. I was surprised at the amount of people that experienced this installation and who gave me positive feedback.

Japanese Lamps

I have been so excited about all the Japanese paper that I made, and wanting to incorporate it into my furniture. This here is an edition of eight lamps that I am making using walnut, handmade Japanese Paper, and battery-powered LED's. Here are some pictures of the process and the first artist's proof:





The first finished piece, then all the little pieces of the rest















All the little boxes. I really enjoy working in multiples like this, and working small is nice too.














They are too small to fit in clamps, so I am taping them up for pressure while gluing.













So many hours of sanding! I sanded them all by hand.















A string of 3 LED's is wired up to three 3-volt batteries. (hmm... thats a lot of 3's)













Finishing them with a clear satin polyurethane.














The lamp, all put together, glowing in my studio.














A nice studio shot of the first finished piece.

Making Japanese Paper

This semester I was taking a short 5-week class on Japanese Papermaking. Here are some of the shots of this process:






This is the plant fiber called Kozo that has been boiled and will eventually turn into paper.












Here I have beaten the Kozo for 30 minutes to break up all the fibers and make them manageable.









This container is called the vat it is filled mostly with water and the small Kozo fibers. I have thrown in some longer fibers in the mix to create dimension. The square object to the right is the mold for making the paper, it gets dipped into the vat and sheets of paper are formed.









Finally, the wet sheets are layered and sandwiched between sheets of plywood. It then gets pressed together to squeeze all the water out and laid out to dry overnight.

Welcome to my blog! I will be using this to document my process while completing my undergraduate degree in furniture design here at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design.
Here are a selected number of my previous works:


RIGHT :
Checker Table
Walnut, Maple
2008


BELOW:
Biotic
Epoxy Resin, Natural Found Materials
2009

RIGHT:

Ripple
Ash
2009

BELOW:
Mission Style Table (commission)
Oak, Leather
2009

RIGHT:
Jingle Rocker
Steel, Rebar, Vinyl
2009


BELOW:
Trivium
Fiberglass, Steel, Cotton
2009





















RIGHT:
Unshelf
Poplar
2009


BELOW:
Zaisu
Steel, Foam, Fabric
2009