AWR Studio Furniture 2018: Meet the Entrants 12

Shortlisting for AWR Studio Furniture 2018 has now taken place. You can read about the process and rationale here. From eligible 105 entries we now have 73 shortlisted entrants, most of whom are now engaged in producing original and exceptional works for the exhibition which will open on October 20, 2018 at Bungendore Wood Works Gallery, NSW.

Winners of awards valued at $20,000+ will be announced on the night. The exhibition takes place during Wood Dust Australia, however it will run until January 31, 2019.

We will continue to introduce the entrants in a series that will take us up to the opening. You can also see work by shortlisted entrants in the lead-up on our Instagram and Facebook pages.

We are grateful to our sponsors for their support: Bungendore Wood Works Gallery, Felder Group Australia and Branch 95 Timbers.

Peter Evans, Aus Wood Design

I am a shipwright that decided to move into the custom made furniture business. I started Aus Wood Design about 18 months ago and on a recent visit to the Bungendore Wood Works Gallery was motivated to submit this design. This camphor laurel dining table is 1960 x 1200 x 755mm high and can seat six to eight people. It has a 6mm toughened glass inlaid to the surface. I call this contemporary design ‘forest furniture’. Website: www.auswooddesign.com.au

Amichai Lankri, Mandrake Workshop

An appetite for distilling form through materials has been present throughout my whole life. I have been making furniture and creating with wood as Mandrake Workshop in Melbourne for the last four years. These creations are always a dynamic conversation between function and expression, asking questions of materials and context. As a craftsperson I am young, as are my skills, though I find limitations can often be an interesting parameter within which to explore creating. All works in images provided are my own designs and creations, except the Geosphere installation which I did not design and created in collaboration with Moyshie Elias. Website: www.mandrakeworkshop.com  Instagram: @mandrakeworkshop

Robin Cromer, Innovative Woodcraft

My interest in woodcraft began in my teens, making wooden skis with my father, both for personal use and for sale in local Canberra sport stores. I went on to a successful career in forestry research, initially with private enterprise and later with CSIRO. During the 1980s I was involved in establishing the ACT Woodcraft Guild. After retirement, I found time to re-join the Guild (2005), becoming Vice President and President for two years (2009-10). I was made a life-member of the Guild in 2013. I have developed a broad range of interests and skills in fine woodwork, including boxmaking, woodturning, marquetry, some carving and furniture. The Woodcraft Guild holds an annual Exhibition of recent work by members. I have been a consistent prize-winner in the members section since first entering in 2006. During the past 12 years, I have been awarded a total of 17 Firsts and 18 Seconds in various sections of the Guild Exhibitions. I have also entered the Crafts Section of the Royal Canberra Show for several years and in 2016 I was awarded Show Champion. In 2017 I was awarded Reserve Champion for a jewelry box in Mackay Cedar. My work is currently featured at the Bungendore Wood Works Gallery and includes boxes with marquetry and turned items. I have entered the Radford College Art Show in recent years and have sold a significant number of quality jewelry boxes and turned pieces at the show. I like to develop innovative and creative designs by combining a variety of skills including turning, traditional joinery, marquetry, carving, pewter inlay and pyrography. I like to share my skills through encouraging and teaching other members of the Guild, through the sale of one-off items and by taking on interesting commissions.

Ash Pollard, RP Craftsmen

RP Craftsmen is a Melbourne based business specialising in handmade veneered furniture. Using modern design packages and traditional woodworking techniques we produce high quality heirloom furniture. From humble beginnings in the back shed of the family home in Sunshine, Victoria, two young men were mentored by family patriarch Lee Kisler in the fine hand craftsmanship of woodworking. Skip ahead 15 years to 2009 and RP Craftsmen began in a to produce its first custom designs in Brunswick, Victoria. Upgrading to larger facilities in Essendon, RP Crafsmen has emerged as one of Australia’s finest furniture makers. Every piece produced by RPC is a bespoke one of a kind designed and handcrafted with precision. From design concept through sketches on pen and paper to using the most modern design packages to create 3D renders each piece is crafted and adapted to give a clear understanding of what the final piece of furniture will look in its new environment. Website: www.robertpollard.com.au

Alby Johnston, Designer Maker, Byron Bay, NSW

Alby Johnston's work is inspired in form and concept by both natural and industrialised environments and our relationship with them. The sensitivity required to successfully work with wood attracts Alby to placing an emphasis on handcrafted elements in his work. With the confidence and joy of using hand tools comes a broader scope of possibilities when coupled with modern day technologies. This ever evolving course of learning and perfecting the design and making process drives Alby to expand his skills and knowledge base. Working with and learning from masters of both traditional (Velimer Dragisic, Brisbane) and contemporary (Robert Howard, Brisbane), (Tony Kenway, Byron Bay) backgrounds has given Alby a strong foundation from which to begin his own path as a designer and maker. He feels he is left with a challenging benchmark as he strives to come close to the legacy left by the masters that precede him. Website: www.bayspokestudio.com

Wiliam Matthysen, Will Matthysen Clocks

Will Matthysen is a designer and maker of furniture who works from his workshop in Warrandyte, Victoria, Australia. Since setting up his workshop in 1989, he has produced a range of handcrafted clocks, made largely from wood, but also including other materials such as brass, steel, and glass. He designs and manufactures all the components of the clock movement, including the wheels, pinions, escapement and clock case. Will has produced over 190 clocks, each one is hand built and unique, and integrates the mechanism and the cabinet into a unified contemporary design. Will's work is now represented in collections throughout Australia and the world. Described as tomorrow’s antiques, his clocks are made to achieve heirloom longevity. Website: www.willmatthysen.com.au

AWR Studio Furniture is proudly sponsored by: