Sketch

The season of flying ants has returned.

Sketch

Sketch

More ideas to ponder.

Sketch

Sketch

Sometimes the head gets full and needs to be purged.

Sketches

For the next several days I will be posting sketchbook drawings. This is how I hone my ideas into final works. Not every drawing in these sketchbooks will be incorporated into a finished work but are equally important in the process of idea-forming. Sometimes drawings produced months apart from one another will be combined to form a new idea that can be realized into a finished work. I have begun to revisit old sketchbooks to see what was piquing my interest months and even years ago. I have noticed that my ideas for artwork are cyclical and my concerns for various subject matter have continued to be important in my thinking and have also grown to include new issues that I feel I should address. I am being vague about the subject matter as it will become evident to the viewer as I post the sketches and artwork. I can't give it all away! The viewer has to do some thinking and deducing as well.

Pallet Table

This table is constructed from reclaimed lumber. The top of the table once had the life of a pallet and was most likely destined for a landfill. The base is constructed of old shelving material.

I have been getting a guilty conscious lately from purchasing wood at lumber superstores such as Lowes and Home Depot. I know that most if not all of the wood that they sell is not from sustainable forests. There are some projects that require new wood to be purchased and I understand this need but there are also many projects in which reclaimed lumber is a great, and in some cases a more expensive, alternative. Reclaimed lumber can come in many shapes and forms. Some of it is sold with zero or two sides planed. If you have access to a table saw you can take the planing into your own hands and reveal some amazing wood that has been hiding behind 100 years worth of weather and grime. The beauty of it is that you can find really gorgeous woods that may no longer be available due to logging restrictions or lack of the tree resource due to unsustainable practices. The Rebuilding Center in Portland, Oregon, caters to this reclaiming need. They accept donations but will also dismantle houses from the basement to the roof and then offer the lumber to the public for sale. This is a wonderful opportunity for people to think creatively about reclaimed lumber uses.