Joel Hunnicutt | Woodworker
Brevard, NC
Approximately twenty years ago I signed up for a furniture making class at a community college. The idea was to learn how to make furniture for my home. As soon as I turned the pedestal for the table I was creating, I was hooked. Not on furniture making, but on using the lathe. I instinctively knew what to do. It felt right.
Over the years, I realized that I wanted to take my love of wood, give it the luminosity of glass while using the forms of ancient pottery. This led me to segmented wood turning. I cut many small segments of wood, assemble the pieces into a rough form and then turn it to the final shape. Through an additive process, I reinterpret the ancient and classical forms and couple these forms with 21st century surface treatments. These forms are made new again with vibrant colors not normally associated with wood.
I love the solitude of my work; it is what often feeds my creativity. My work is displayed in public and private collections throughout the United States, China, New Zealand, the Caribbean, Syria, Canada, Switzerland, Turkey and the Maldives.