{"id":6787,"date":"2015-11-16T11:45:16","date_gmt":"2015-11-16T18:45:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/?p=6787"},"modified":"2017-03-01T21:30:03","modified_gmt":"2017-03-02T04:30:03","slug":"the-top-10-projects-from-the-wall-art-woodworking-contest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/woodworking-projects\/the-top-10-projects-from-the-wall-art-woodworking-contest\/","title":{"rendered":"Congratulations! Top 10 Projects from The “Wall Art” Woodworking Contest"},"content":{"rendered":"

First thing’s first. A woodworking contest is never fair. You build things out of wood usually to make your home (or someone else’s home) beautiful and unique, not to get a prize. So it takes a lot of courage for people to take a project they’ve built, hand it over to us to display, and let strangers come look at it and form an opinion. That ain’t easy! Everyone who entered deserves to be commended for\u00a0marshaling the spirit to put their hard work out there. So browse through all the pictures here, and hopefully you’ll be inspired by the works.<\/p>\n

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“The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.”
\n– Aristotle<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

What was this contest about?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The theme was simply “Wall Art,” and from there it was left up to interpretation so long as it fit within a 36″ x 36″ x 12″ space. We enjoy holding a competition mainly just to see what our customers are making and how they’re bringing a touch of beauty to\u00a0the world. With that, we were floored by the\u00a0astonishing amount of creativity. In the images below you’ll find everything from abstract sculpture\u00a0to straight-forward furniture. There’s even a paper towel holder<\/em> – and\u00a0it’s like nothing you’ve ever seen before.<\/p>\n

How did the judging work?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Voting was open to the public, so anyone was welcome to cast a ballot. We didn’t ask for critiques, just a selection of 5 favorite pieces. If you voted, you had to choose 5 projects, no more and no less. So while you could, of course, vote for your own project or for the project of someone you know, I didn’t want the pool of ballots to get bombed unfairly. So pick five\u00a0to keep the playing field level. As one entrant said, “I voted for the four I loved, and mine.” The voting was open for 3 days, and 207 people logged a vote.<\/p>\n

Enough\u00a0of that business!\u00a0Here’s how it all added up.<\/p>\n

Enjoy:<\/p>\n

1st\u00a0Place: “Bees” by Barry Richardson<\/h2>\n

PRIZE: 14″ Oliver Bandsaw (value $1499)
\n\"oliver-machinery-logo\"<\/p>\nngg_shortcode_0_placeholder\n

Size: 21″ x 32″ x 8″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods: Eucalyptus, desert ironwood, bubinga, ash, walnut, poplar, sugar pine, African mahogany<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish: Lacquer<\/strong><\/p>\n

Barry’s fascination with bees led him to create this impressively sized wall hanging that incorporates, sculpting, turning and flat work.\u00a0In the end his 3-dimensional exploded \u00a0rendering of a real life small scene caught the eye of nearly every person who came to the show.<\/p>\nngg_shortcode_1_placeholder\n

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2nd\u00a0Place: “Loving Us” by\u00a0Charles Taube<\/h2>\n

PRIZE:\u00a0Festool CXS Li Drill
\n\"FES_LOGO\"<\/p>\nngg_shortcode_2_placeholder\n

Size: 34″ x 34″ x 7″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods: Mesquite<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish: Varathane floor finish<\/strong><\/p>\n

This sculpture by Charles Taube exhibits extraordinary patience and skill. He laminated a blank from numerous pieces of desert mesquite and simply shaped, scraped, sanded and polished it flawlessly.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\nngg_shortcode_3_placeholder\n

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3rd\u00a0Place: “Harrison Clock” by Gary Tricka<\/h2>\n

PRIZE:\u00a0Kreg Large Toolboxx Filled with Goodies
\n\"\"<\/p>\nngg_shortcode_4_placeholder\n

Size: 28″ x 16″ x 7″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods: Baltic Birch & aircraft grade plywood<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish: Polyurethane<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gary cut the working gears and parts using a scroll saw. Considering the level or precision necessary to make the gearing operate correctly,\u00a0Gary put in a lot of time and energy into this project.<\/p>\nngg_shortcode_5_placeholder\n

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4th\u00a0Place: “Chess Set & Frame” by Richard Switzer<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_6_placeholder\n

Size:\u00a035″ x 28″ x 7″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods:\u00a0Mahogany, walnut, hard maple, olive<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish:\u00a0Tung oil & paste wax (board and frame); gloss lacquer (chess pieces)<\/strong><\/p>\n

What a challenging piece! Rick’s anniversary gift to his daughter and son-in-law was this immaculate wall hanging that first serves as a large magnetic chess board – hidden magnets allow the game to be played while hanging on the wall. He included several nice detail such as a drop down tray to hold the pieces as they’re removed from play, and a sliding “turn indicator” so a game can be played \u00a0 Or, special hardware lets the chess board to be detached from the frame and set down on a table.<\/p>\n

Not to be left with an empty frame on the wall, removing the chess board also reveals a fantastic\u00a0family portrait. Fourth place in this contest, but easily first place in this family.<\/p>\n

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5th\u00a0Place: “Japanese Lantern Wall Sconce” by\u00a0Jason Musso<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_7_placeholder\n

Size:\u00a016″ x 9″ x12″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods:\u00a0African ribbon stripe sapele, Peruvian walnut, mappa burl veneer, black walnut<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish:\u00a0Mineral oil, Tried & True Original Wood Finish<\/strong><\/p>\n

True to traditional Japanese woodworking techniques, this light sconce is held together only by the integrity of its joinery with wedges and dowels.\u00a0It’s even impressive by the numbers:\u00a048 lap joints, 24 bridle joints, 24 miter joints, 4 mortise and through-tenons, and 10 dowel plugs and wedges. The bulb inside produces a gentle warm glow from behind the mappa burl veneer, and the wiring is entirely concealed within the mounting bracket.<\/p>\n

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6th\u00a0Place: “Soaring Eagle” by\u00a0James Butler<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_8_placeholder\n

Size: 31″ x 20″ x 2″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods:\u00a0Hard maple<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish:\u00a0Lemon oil, spray lacquer<\/strong><\/p>\n

This comes from a custom made pattern, so you’ll never see another piece exactly<\/em> like this one. The parts are\u00a0cut out with a scroll saw, then just a selection is pulled out and stained one at a time and glued back into place to create the nuanced colors in eagle feathers.<\/p>\n

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7th\u00a0Place: “Butterfly” by\u00a0Bill Barrand<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_9_placeholder\n

Size:\u00a016″ x 22″ x 3″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods:\u00a0Quilted makore<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish:\u00a0Pre-catalyzed lacquer<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bill’s project looks amazing thanks\u00a0first to\u00a0the 3-dimensional appearance of the wild figure found in makore, and second to his ability to apply an absolutely perfect clear finish. His project is creative and beautiful.<\/p>\n

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8th\u00a0Place: “The Carpenter Ant” by\u00a0Dale Schmitt<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_10_placeholder\n

Size:\u00a036″ x 36″ x 12″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods:\u00a0Poplar, maple, MDF, mahogany, walnut shells<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish:\u00a0Paint, lacquer & shellac<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here’s a project that will make you smile. It’s like an a still image snagged\u00a0from an animated Pixar short. Six hand carved ants (wearing painted walnut shells as hard hats!) are busy cranking out what might become a remodel project for This Old House. Dale crafted little hammers, saws, a wheelbarrow, even cups of coffee and sprinkle donuts for the crew. His project isn’t just creative and funny, it’s also extremely well executed.Time to get to work!<\/em><\/p>\n

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9th\u00a0Place: “Owl Eyes” by\u00a0Mike Davis<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_11_placeholder\n

Size:\u00a017″ x 17″ x 3\/4″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods:\u00a0Black limba, teak, wenge<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish:\u00a0Tung oil<\/strong><\/p>\n

It takes a lot of precision and patience to craft a mosaic like this one. Mike did one amazing job keeping it all together and looking good.<\/p>\n

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10th\u00a0Place: “Untitled” by\u00a0Brian Pliska<\/h2>\nngg_shortcode_12_placeholder\n

Size:\u00a036″ x 16″ x 2″<\/strong><\/p>\n

Woods:\u00a0Cherry, walnut, maple, canarywood, purple heart, poplar, sirari, osage orange<\/strong><\/p>\n

Finish:\u00a0Semi-gloss lacquer<\/strong><\/p>\n

Angled cuts and a pattern of color creates a 3-dimensional\u00a0optical illusion in this abstract art. Brian gave this project a virtually perfect semi-gloss finish, too.<\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n

If you’ve made it this far, you need to check out all the projects too. Take a look, these are in no particular order:<\/p>\nngg_shortcode_13_placeholder\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

First thing’s first. A woodworking contest is never fair. You build things out of wood usually to make your home (or someone else’s home) beautiful and unique, not to get a prize. So it takes a lot of courage for people to take a project they’ve built, hand it over to us to display, and …
Read More<\/strong><\/em> <\/i><\/small><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6975,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[81,4],"tags":[62,24,41,90],"class_list":["post-6787","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-woodworking-contests","category-woodworking-projects","tag-contest","tag-custom-woodworking","tag-furniture","tag-woodworking-shows"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6787","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6787"}],"version-history":[{"count":47,"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6787\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6988,"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6787\/revisions\/6988"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6787"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6787"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woodworkerssource.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6787"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}