We have been keeping a blog since 2008. It is a chronological listing of many topics related to Wood that Works. You will find information about sculptures, inspirations, other artists, day to day life in the shop. The topics are many and fascinating. If you are an avid follower of David's work we encourage you to subscribe to this blog to receive the regular updates.
Monday, June 28, 2010 at 11:00AM Studio Lilica "create[s] custom architectural lighting and luminous fabric sculptures... [to] synthesize light, line and motion to transform conventional spaces into extraordinary environments." Beautiful!
Thursday, June 24, 2010 at 10:57AM Each WTW kinetic sculpture goes through an idea development and trial and error process to get to the final product. This is how new mechanisms are created, run-time is lengthened, and many other pieces are refined.
Four students at the Utrecht School of Art and Technology created the following cardboard mechanism. It took a lot of trial and error to get there. Go here to view the various prototype stages to get to the final.
Cardboard Mechanics Installation from Sasj on Vimeo via Dug North.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010 at 11:30AM Today David is introducing White Water, Avalanche, and Falling Water II, three sculptures based on a common module. This series allows you to combine modules to create larger, more complex sculptures customized for your own space. Extensive information on all three pieces plus other ideas are presented on the website today.
White Water is a single component sculpture which is a landmark design because of it's extended run time. David finally managed to cross the 24 hour time mark with this piece by simplifying the mechanism and modifying some construction techniques! (No perpetual motion yet!)
But what if you have a larger space? Simple! Add a second White Water to it, rearrange them, and a larger, more complex sculpture emerges. Above is Falling Water II, similar to the original with its constantly shifting yet relaxing patterns and quiet clicking sounds but it is shippable. It is composed of two White Water modules arranged in a vertical orientation and would fill an 11-14' tall wall.
But explore further, rearrange those two modules into a different orientation and a third sculpture emerges. In Avalanche, shown above, two modules are positioned in a diamond motif to create a sculpture version that works well on a horizontal wall.
Friday, June 4, 2010 at 3:27PM A sculpture doesn't have to physically move to communicate the essence of motion. I just found the website of artist Elias Wakan and lost of chunk of time as I explored with wonder his beautiful creations. He masterfully combines geometry and sculpture often creating visual motion.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010 at 10:32AM This is the fifth in a series of blogs about my history in the craft industry. If you missed the other posts start here.
Given the era of the early Wood That Works years, it was not a marketing priority to check the availability of our domain name but it was important to get business cards and brochures printed. The angst and cost associated with these tasks have thankfully been mitigated with new technologies but for the sake of recording a little of history we are sharing our experiences. I don’t feel old enough to be using the phrase, “Remember when,” but certain phases of business development today bear little resemblance to our options back then. It illustrates how rapidly the desktop publishing revolution (a term not coined until 1985) completely changed this process.
In the ‘70’s creating print material required error free copy (without the use of a spell checker), rub & press letters, offset printing, and large print runs. We literally cut and pasted using scissors and glue to create an original document. In order to keep printing affordable, we had to create a brochure that could be used for a long time. This, along with the impossible goal of showing motion in a still format, were our two main challenges.
The very first publishing endeavor reflected our inexperience. It was hand sketched and basic. We did have the text typeset (choice of four fonts) but as with other brochures, no matter how many times one proofed it, as soon as we got it home from the printers we'd find a typo. Oh, for the joy of a delete key!
We soon ventured into photography and made many attempts at showing motion in a still photo. Not only did we predate computers but consumer video equipment as well. Still photography was the available choice. All efforts produced photos that, although showing motion, always appeared as frenetic speed. Photography didn’t capture the rhythmic and peaceful motion of David’s work. We opted for still photographs instead although kept experimenting.
Our brochures and pamphlets went through ever-changing versions in search of the ideal presentation. David’s work has always been produced in limited editions and a minimum run of brochures lasted long after the sculptures did. Hence, 35 years later I still have stacks of original copies. I designed 3-fold brochures, 5-fold brochures, and multi-page insert brochures (a design disaster). For many years I spent evenings spray gluing colored photographs onto pages because that was the only affordable way to add color.
And then in 1984, along came a Macintosh, WYSIWYG software, soon to be followed by an Apple Laser printer. A revolution for small business was started and we rode the wave of early adoption.
A closing note: A willingness to learn new things coupled with teamwork was essential in establishing Wood That Works. David designed sculptures, I designed brochures. We learned wood working, photography, videography, computing and desktop publishing. We are still learning today. It keeps us young!
