This Simple Method Helps Joseph Walsh Create Stunning Woodwork
Erosion I Low Table | Credit: Joseph Walsh Studio / Andrew Bradley
Even when your work is as stunning and complex as the “Erosion I Low Table”—it is the tried and trusted techniques that help you achieve your end result.
Joseph Walsh is a designer and craftsman who has established himself as a brilliant woodworker and artist. Although he doesn't describe himself as a woodworker; "While I work with wood, I don't necessarily think of myself as a woodworker," he says. "It just happens to be a material I can communicate well with."
Magnus Modus | Credit: Joseph Walsh Studio / Andrew Bradley
TECHNIQUE
Even in Walsh's earlier works such as the Erosion table he was clearly employing a very simple method to help his creation process. He would rip the wood into smaller strips and then build them back up into the form he needed. This very simple method has been used by woodworkers all over the world for years. It gives you the freedom to be more creative in what types shapes you can create with wood.
DEVELOPMENT
Walsh later built on this technique. His later work like Magnus Modus featured even thinner strips of wood which allowed him to bend and laminate the Ash that he uses.
He describes; “The works’ mysterious forms are a result of a technique I developed here at my studio, of working with and manipulating the Ash wood quite intuitively,” Walsh says. The process, he explains, “consists of stripping wood into thin layers and then reconstructing the wood into free-form composition.”
Magnus Modus | Credit: Joseph Walsh Studio / Andrew Bradley
CONCLUSION
For the majority of woodworkers, sculptural installations won't be on the upcoming agenda. But revisiting this simple technique and thinking about it in this way opens up a world of possibilities and should get your creative juices flowing.
LINKS
https://www.instagram.com/josephwalshstudio/
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