AWR Studio Furniture 2018: Meet the Entrants 14

With only eight weeks to go until the opening of AWR Studio Furniture 2018 shortlisted entrants 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 $15,000 in cash awards, including a first prize of $10,000 sponsored by Bungendore Wood Works Gallery will be announced at the opening. In addition the Felder Award for Fine Woodworking, a Hammer N4400 bandsaw valued at $3166 will be presented, as will the $1,000 George Ingham Chair Award sponsored by Adrian Potter, and the $1,000 Interwood Award sponsored by InterwoodShop.com.au

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.

Simon Parsons, spFurniture

Simon Parsons attended Buckinghamshire College, located in High Wycombe, which is in the heart of the English furniture industry. Here, he gained respect for the furniture craftsmanship of old, but it was the contemporary work of the furniture designers that emerged from the modern Arts and Crafts movement to present day designers that steered him on a path towards design. Simon travelled to Australia in 1994, finally landing in Perth, Western Australia. Simon found the place refreshing in all aspects, the way of life, its newness and and saw the opportunities a young country like Australia offers to a likely lad. He soon discovered the plethora of beautiful, local hardwoods that were unknown to the furniture makers back in the UK. In Perth he started his own business where he could continue his journey in contemporary design and explore his ideas in furniture in a market that seemed less interested in traditional or reproduction furniture than in the UK. He found that clients in Western Australia were keen to use the local timbers in the feature pieces he designed for them which gave them a unique identity. His work has been featured in publications such as Homes and Living, Vogue Living, SCOOP, Australian Wood Review, The West Australian and Sunday Times lifestyle and design sections. His work has also been displayed at Fremantle Arts Centre, Margaret River Art Gallery, The Old Mill Gallery in York, Bungendore Wood Works Gallery in NSW. Website: www.spfurniture.com.au

Malcolm Bird

This table is made from rare Australian red cedar inlaid with even rarer Australian ancient redgum 8000 years old. The shattered name comes from an incident when the red cedar slab was driven over by a forklift during part of the production. I spent a lot of time rebuilding it like a jigsaw puzzle. I started work as a jet engine engineering apprentice but have taught Industrial Arts and Technology and Applied Sciences most but not all of my working life. I've worked with a range of materials but have always been drawn back to the wood lathe and love creating objects from native timbers. I love the bush and the Victorian mountains where I live on a property at Tawonga, under Mt Bogong. No exhibitions to date, although I sell my work privately and am aiming at my first exhibition soon. Website: www.malcolmbird.com.au

 

Daniel Guest, DGF Designs

Daniel Guest is a South Australian based designer maker. In 2011 he completed a Diploma of Arts – Fine Furniture Design and Construction at The Australian School of Fine Wood in Dwellingup, WA. He then completed JamFactory’s Associate Training Program in Furniture Design in 2013. In his work Daniel aims to blend form with function and traditional techniques with contemporary design. Website: www.dgfdesigns.com

 

Shinobu Kobayashi, Atelier Sumikko

Shinobu Kobayashi was born in Japan but started his woodworking career in Australia in 2002. The first turning point in that career was an unfortunate slip with a sharp chisel that severed three tendons in his arm. While recovering, he received shocking news of a massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan that literally wiped his father’s hometown off the north-east coast. His inability to help made him question how he could in future help people through woodworking and craft. Study at the Melbourne Guild of Fine Furniture, Capellågaden in Sweden, the College of the Redwoods in the USA and later being apprenticed to a designated master sashimono craftsman in Japan showed him the way. In 2016 Shinobu received a silver medal from the King of Sweden for an almost perfect examination score. In 2017, as an invited member of the Danish Cabinetmakers Association in Copenhagen, he exhibited at Design Museum Denmark. Now in Melbourne, Shinobu has recently become a resident of Montsalvat, Australian’s oldest continuously active artists’ community. He plans to create more art pieces while inspiring others to learn traditional Scandinavian and Japanese woodworking skills in a beautiful heritage area...and all over the world. Instagram @shino_bunny

Russell Davidson

My name is Russell Davidson. It’s funny how life’s twists and turns have led me here. The style I’ve acquired has a distinct Japanese aesthetic. I have always had a fascination with the Japanese culture and design as well as a passion for beautiful timber. My foundation of knowledge has developed from studying Furniture Design at RMIT, Art and Design, Gold and Silversmithing at NMIT, one year of Interior Architecture at Monash and a three year VWA tenancy. During the last five years I have established a dedicated woodworking workshop operating out of National Park,Tasmania. The piece shown is titled Sunset and made out of a Huon pine slab with a tiger myrtle and wenge inlay.

Andrew Ness, Andrew Ness Fine Furniture

Andrew Ness is inspired by beauty in simplicity and the honesty of handmade objects lovingly crafted. He has studied fine furniture making in Australia and New Zealand and has exhibited internationally. Andrew produces both client and self commissioned pieces. Photos: Cathy Taylor Photograhy

 AWR Studio Furniture is proudly sponsored by: