Richard Judd

Richard Judd Furniture Ltd.

"Reading about Zen Buddhism created the desire to become a craftsman. A passage described how your day could be an active meditation if you were properly focused on your work. I chose woodworking as a profession that would allow for this attention."
When the Dalai Lama came to visit south-central Wisconsin, he slept in a cherry bed that Richard Judd made. Judd's goal is to create artwork that reflects the meditative process of creation, the beauty and unique contributions of the human mind, heart, and hand. The spirit of the maker.

His efforts are guided by the orders of architecture (in which he has a degree and many years of training) and the proportions of nature. With a bit of the spirit of the divine tossed in for good measure.

David Ebner

David N. Ebner - Artist/Craftsman

"I approach my art intuitively as well as intellectually, drawing inspiration wherever I find it."
With the pursuit of an elegant simplicity in mind, David N. Ebner has been creating furniture for the past three decades. He approaches his designs as a craftsman dedicated to the medium of wood. (His thoughts on chairs, for instance: "They should be structurally sound, simple, comfortable, and healthy as well as beautiful. They should be good enough to be appreciated for at least the next hundred years.") The function and beauty of any one of Ebner's pieces will always result from the feel, smell, and shape of the particular wood from which it has been crafted.

Ebner finds inspiration in the local landscape, as well as in the rich history of his chosen medium. He continually searches out new perspectives through which to explore the traditional forms of furniture design.

Chris Horney

"To make my work more refined, more delicate while functional, more elegant and beautiful – these goals inform the evolution of my work and enrich my life with both the process and the result."

From his shop in a converted tobacco pack house, Chris Horney builds handcrafted wood furniture that shows a respect for tradition while reflecting his own personal design sense. Things as diverse as acorns, tribal rugs, architecture, and Audrey Hepburn influence his designs.

Careful wood selection is key to establishing the feel and character of Horney’s furniture. He looks for interplay between the wood types and tasteful contrasts, as well as good proportions.

Horney’s designs are simple, delineated forms. But he achieves this result by first embellishing a piece: carvings and corbels, beading and bowfronts, inlays and arches. He then reduces these embellishments to get the simplest expression of his initial form – keeping a few striking details to accentuate the lines. His goals remain the same: subtle, sinuous forms, elegant curves and delicate details.

"I keep a quote by Antoine de Saint-Exupery near my workbench. 'Perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away.' "

Chris Martin

Chris Martin

"I create because I have to. It is as essential to my being as the food I eat and the air I breathe."
"My process begins with visions of shape and line. As an object begins to take form, I draw loose sketches of my vision. The forms then begin to take on more distinctive characteristics, and I go over the original drawing with heavier, more defined lines. Once this design has taken form on paper, I chart out the journey I will make with the raw materials. I leave openings in my plan so I have the opportunity to explore avenues that may not have been visible on the original route. I navigate through the process, trusting my instincts as I go. While I keep an eye on the map, I retain the right to be impulsive, to change, and to improve my route along the path of reaching my final destination."

"The process of creating is as important as the finished piece. I find it spellbinding: the hypnotic powers of manipulating hot steel, the meditative draw of hand-finishing a beautiful piece of wood. In my work, I choose to leave some signs of the maker behind. More than just a signature, these rasp lines and grind marks are the visual signs of the process. They help to tell the story of its creation. They also give clues about the maker. These 'fingerprints' are there to be experienced and help the viewer/participant to achieve a richer connection with the work. I am part of the piece, as are the inspirations and influences that came before me."

Peter Pierobon

Peter Pierobon

"I want my work to be around for generations, absorbing the history of and growing old with the family that uses it."
Peter Pierobon finds inspiration in the indigenous art of the Inuit, African, Northwest Coast Indian, and Aboriginal Australian cultures. He's impressed by the ways they integrate artistic objects into daily life. And he wants to incorporate those values into American culture. To create furniture with parts that slide and open with delicious ease and effortlessness, making the act of using them a pleasurable part of our daily rituals.

Each piece is carved, sanded and finished entirely by hand. By combining contemporary styling, traditional craftsmanship, and the ritualistic use of decorative elements, he produces a distinct relationship between the primitive and the sophisticated.

David Coddaire

David Coddaire

"All items in this line are produced with a relationship to the human figure."
The first part of David Coddaire's production takes place in his forge on the ground floor of his warehouse, where two welders work in darkness illuminated by arcing flames and the sizzle of a mig welder. In this space defined only by the glow of metal, Coddaire draws his shapes directly onto steel or bronze and cuts them out with a torch. The four pieces that determine the dimensions of the nascent object are then welded together to form a complete work of art ? vase, pedestal, cabinet or table.

The second part of the process gets underway in the light-drenched upper story where the ground metal is treated with oxidizing acids that color it an earthy green or red. Each piece is finally bathed in a pigment wash that renders an array of soft, dusty colors.

Kerry Vesper

"I am intrigued by forms that are asymmetrical and flowing. In each piece I strive to capture the flow and movement of nature that I find in flowing water, desert canyons and mountains."

Kerry Vesper approaches every wood piece he makes as a piece of sculpture. Inspiration comes from his home in the landscapes of the southwest desert. He equates his methods of layering and then shaping wood to the way nature builds up layers of earth and then shapes it with wind and water.

Vesper cuts out layers of plywood and solid woods. He stacks and glues them together to approximate the shape he intends to create. His work is not turned on a lathe. He shapes each piece by hand with carving, grinding and sanding tools and finishes them with a clear tung oil varnish. The color, texture and feel of wood appeals to the artist as does no other medium.

Tom McGurrin

"As a self-taught metalsmith, I enjoy exploring mixed metals, surface textures, and various forming techniques."
Thomas McGurrin is motivated by process and material. Creative influences vary from objects found in nature to basic geometry; however, all of his jewelry is characterized by clean lines and simple forms. His most recent work combines silver and high-karat golds to create subtle contrasts of color, surface, and form.

Jan Jacque

Jan Jacque

"Through my work in clay and wood, I try to express my deep admiration and concern for nature."
Jan Jacque begins her process of creation with a walk in the woods. After gathering fallen branches and stones, she hauls them back to her studio, where she studies the form each suggests. The shape of an interesting stick determines the form the clay will take to complement it.

All of Jacque's pieces are handbuilt from fine-textured white clay. Using both slab and coil building methods of construction, she slowly adapts the clay to fit the wood. In the final stages of both methods, she paddles, scrapes, and sands the pieces until very smooth; they are then airbrushed with colorants and pit fired. A long, complex process, but the results are well worth the effort.

Caryn y Susan Kinzig

''Traditional lighting with a twist-as we design each lamp our goal is to create beautiful and distinctive lighting that will endure the test of time."

After seven years as a graphic designer, Susan Kinzig began a career as a jewelry designer. Fifteen years later, her knowledge of jewelry design and metalworking had grown extensively, and she decided to expand her creative outlook to include lighting design. Caryn Kinzig, Susan's sister-in-law, had spent 20 years in an investment career when she decided to leave the corporate world and follow her creative passion. Susan and Caryn teamed up to form Kinzig Design Home.

Susan and Caryn work together to create each of their lamps. They incorporate proprietary elements with vibrant glass (blown by two glass studios) and solid brass and copper accents. The lampshades are deeply colored and sewn from embroidered silks and rich fabrics. The lamps are individually finished with patinated metals and surface textures that will not fade or discolor, and are topped with distinctive finials.

Blaise Gaston

"If I had to pin down the essence of my work, I would say that I'm offering soul."
Gaston's designs range from fanciful to formal and combine both grace and practicality. His commitment to the highest quality of craftsmanship is evident in his work. Inspired by nature, organic lines in his pieces suggest the curve of a deer's flank, the wing of a bird, the shape of a woman's leg.

Gaston's forms come to life though carving, lamination and traditional joinery. Sculptural elements serve as both decoration and structure. Surfaces are carefully finished to accentuate the natural warmth of the wood.

Brian Hubel

"I believe a piece of furniture should stand on its own. It should be graceful, yet strong, something you never tire of viewing."

The satisfaction of designing and creating furniture by hand is the driving force behind Brian Hubel's work. Much of his inspiration comes from the wood itself, and many of Hubel's pieces start from simply collecting wood for its natural beauty. This deep appreciation for his medium sources his ability to transform a raw natural resource into a functional and timeless piece of art.

Hubel avoids the confinement of detailed plans in his approach. His process begins with a mental image and a rough sketch, evolving the design throughout construction in order to maximize form and function. His work always features solid, tight construction with traditional joinery that is often exposed as a design element. The lines of Hubel's designs are clean and concise, and often reflect Asian design and architectural elements.

Andrew Muggleton

Andrew Muggleton

"Sharp, jagged edges do not make you feel at ease, but a field of straw bending in the wind, that is inviting."
English-born artist Andrew Muggleton worked throughout the world as a design engineer before settling in Colorado. Today he creates innovative, high-quality modern furniture by combining exotic woods with other materials including metal and glass. Always striving for simplicity, he finds inspiration in the curved shapes of nature, from eggshells to pebbles on the beach.

Making curved furniture is a complex, centuries-old process. Muggleton places many thin layers of wood on a mold. Next, a vacuum press exerting a cumulative pressure of almost four tons shrinks around the mold, contorting the wood over its shape. The artist repeats the process to apply beautiful veneer to the surface of the piece.