Words and photos by Linda Nathan, Editor, Australian Wood Review
Give Brisbane wood artist Steve Whitby a pile of decent sized tree prunings, some scrap structural ply or just about any other salvaged wood material and his mind will just naturally explore their creative potential. New Designs in Old Wood is the name and theme of his upcoming exhibition, and it’s obvious that using recycled wood is an inspiration point for Steve, and not only as a matter of ethical and sustainable usage.
Steve moved to Australia from Newcastle in the UK about ten years ago. Straight out of school he completed a City & Guilds certificate, and later on undertook some world travel before enrolling in a three year visual arts degree.
Close to home in Brisbane he came into contact with Logan Make and Do, a community workshop that he continues to frequent when machining needs to be done. Steve’s crowded home workshop space is small and at the back of his house. In fact as you approach it, his outdoor living area becomes increasingly populated with all kinds of artwork in progress.
Steve is currently preparing for a solo exhibition at Logan City Art Gallery, a council run space that has featured his work before. A quick tour around Steve’s home gives a clue to the diversity of work that might be expected. From wall mounted art to mirrors, tables, bowls, containers, and boxes, right down to fridge magnets, Steve’s work tends to include a sculptural element.
In his lounge room a large rectangular mirror features small inset panels containing seashell and stone collages. Each side of the mirror also has relief panels created by laminating and offsetting shaped sections of wood to give a stacked 3D detail. A nearby table shows a similar detail on the legs.
In the kitchen a diamond-shaped wall piece presents a harmonious arrangement of shapes, however Steve explains how it’s actually just the one machined component that is arranged in different ways. On the panels of a cabinet, running a series of coves in various directions into thick solid wood has resulted in a chunky sculpted look. Veneers and scrap ply have been glued into solid composites that Steve will then sculpt into before creating cabinets, boxes and more.
Having formally studied design Steve’s influences are many, but the geometric and visual illusions of pop art, an art movement of the 1960s are evident in many of his pieces as he details them with repititions of shapes and lines that create patterns of positive and negative space.
Where others are caught up in the current renaissance of hand tool usage, Steve’s work is a testament to his creativity with machining processes and the conversion of what others regard as scrap or superfluous material into contemporary works of art.
New Designs in Old Wood opens at Logan Art Gallery on October 30 and runs until December 5.
Below: ‘Only one machined shape is used to create this geometric wall piece,’ says wood artist Steve Whitby.
Below: Detail of a mirror frame by Steve Whitby, showing an inlay of shaped strips that have been offset to create a decorative feature.
