Benjamin Reddan, Forever Starts Here (BOWLS, BOXES 2022)

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Benjamin Reddan

‘Forever Starts Here’ is the second chapter of the four part series of hand crafted art works dedicated to my wonderful partner and now wife Hannah. This chapter has two parts to it. Both these art pieces were gifted to Hannah on our wedding day which took place in early February this year. The first segment of the continuation of this story is the wedding box. An intricate box crafted to house items that we used for our special day. Such items were a signage pen hand crafted by David Lim which he generously gave as a gift, my cufflinks and family makers mark brooch which were crafted by me( they are about the size of a dollar coin), our written vows and wedding rings. The wedding box also holds a brass key which will be used to open the next piece in chapter 3. After the wedding, the box was used to safely store all of Hannah’s wedding jewelry. The second segment of this chapter was a hand crafted wedding gift box that held a precious locket. This box is slightly bigger than the engagement ring box which was chapter 1 ‘Love her like you’re going to lose her’ which was my entry piece for the Australian Maker of the Year competition in 2021. The magnetic amulet which was one of the items in chapter 1 opens some sections in both these pieces. Both these pieces continued to express my love for Japanese veneer patterns and continued to challenge myself in pushing the boundaries of my wood work machines in creating tiny, intricate parts. I wanted this chapter to not just express my love for creating tiny intricate pieces but to show my keen interest in crafting a body of work which flows and connects with one another and tells a story. Without a story you just have a made piece. When you have a story to go with it, you now have a crafted heirloom piece which will last for generations. Timbers: -Figured American Black Walnut, American White Ash, Tasmanian Oak, Plain American Black Walnut, Wenge, Tasmanian Blackwood, Jarrah and Stained Pine Beads. Other Materials: -Substrate- Birch Plywood, Velvet Suede, Brass, Sterling Silver, Decorative Cloth, Paper and Faux Suede Finish: Livos Kunos natural oil sealer. Size of pieces (Main body) Part 1 Wedding Box: Length- 180mm, Width- 120mm, Height – 65mm Size of pieces (Main body) Part 2 Wedding Locket Box: Length- 80mm, Width- 80mm, Height- 45mm (In image 5 entry photo Chapter 1 ‘Love her like you’re going to lose her’ can be seen with the other boxes)

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.