KETCHIKAN, Alaska (AP) - Members of the One Good Turn Woodturning Club are showcasing their creations this month at the Main Street Gallery.
The show, titled “Knot Your Father’s Woodshop,” features a collection of handmade items ranging from bowls, lamps and kitchen items to a magic wand and an archer’s bow.
Standing out from the myriad beautiful items is the club’s use of the gallery ceiling.
In a previous show, the group hung a variety of small blocks painted in various colors from a net clamped to the ceiling. This year, the group created a variety of butterflies and dragonflies to hang from the ceiling.
The bugs were created during a workshop, serving as a canvas to practice different finishing techniques. The result is a whimsical collection of critters in a variety of colors and finishes - each one unique.
Gary Werner shows on Wednesday a maple bowl he made for the Main Street Gallery’s May show. Staff photo by Hall Anderson
Many pieces in the show’s collection are turned - carved from a block of wood rotated at a high speed - using a lathe and special tools. Denise Jausoro, a founding member of the club, said nearly every member of the group has their own equipment, and some have multiple machines and sets of tools.
Jausoro’s husband taught her how to use the lathe a number of years ago after she saw a picture of a magic wand in a catalog. The self-described “Harry Potter fanatic” decided she could make one too, and quickly began making magic wands and pens for friends and family.
As her skill improved, the tips of the wands became more slender and fragile. She said that when her husband purchased a sturdier lathe, she challenged him on what equipment she was going to use.
“I told him, ’What am I going to use while you’re working? I need my own,’” she said with a laugh.
She said she gave the supplier quite a shock with the phone call.
“I told him that we needed to talk, and he got kind of nervous,” Jausoro said. “He thought I was going to cancel the order, but I just needed to add to it.”
Jausoro said the woodturning club meets once a month to share tips and techniques, and do a little show-and-tell.
“We share pictures of our projects and talk about what we’re working on,” she said.
She said the level of skill within the club has increased steadily over the years.
“If you look at pictures of the show from a few years ago, there is a marked difference from then and what we have now,” Jausoro said. “Everyone has improved a lot, and it’s been fun to be a part of that.”
A section of the show features of a collection of lamps created in memory of Gail Person, who died two years ago.
“She gathered drift wood and other items from the beach, and she would create lamps and lamp shades with it,” club supporter Anna Shaffer said. “After she passed away, her husband gave some of her collection to people in the club who he thought would use it and appreciate it.”(backslash)
Shaffer said a number of lamps were created in her memory, using wood received from her collection. A plaque with a portrait of Person will hang on the wall during the show.
Ketchikan High School students also got in on the fun, submitting a handful of items created during class. Shop teacher Steve Thomas said the students worked hard to produce quality pieces.
“I tell them that their mothers will love anything they bring home,” Thomas said. “They worked hard to produce something they could be proud of, that someone else would appreciate as well.”
The Kayhi students participate in the woodturning club’s annual Winter Arts Faire table as well, with some success.
“A few of them have realized that they have the ability to produce something that someone would pay money to have,” Thomas said. “It’s caught their attention, and their working hard to improve.”
Club member Gary Werner has been working with wood for many years. He submitted three large bowls for the show, featuring different techniques. One features a black, green and blue border created with a small texturing tool and airbrushing. Another bowl depicts an alder tree burned into the surface.
“That’s what the group is all about,” Werner said. “We’re all helping each other and learning new things.”
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Information from: Ketchikan (Alaska) Daily News, https://www.ketchikandailynews.com
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