Artist Talk: David Ellsworth, woodturner

http://www.ellsworthstudios.com/blackpots.html

David Ellsworth’s first woodshop class was about 55 years ago, and he has been working with wood ever since. I really liked that during the talk, he explained the evolution of his work: At first, he mentioned that he was really interested in ceramics, and wanted to incorporate that into his woodwork. This got him to start using the lathe, with which he began making hollow forms, such as bowls, vases, and pots. He later became fascinated with Native American ceramics, which led to the experimentation of wood textures in his work. After finding out that each texture had a different effect on the pieces he was making, he tried out each one that he could get his hands on. He also discovered the importance of color in his pieces, which drove him to his Black Pots series. The contrast between the light and dark colors in this series, combined with the textured lines that cover the hollow forms really gives body and shape to his work. He also started to incorporate little fragments of wood into his work, where he would take a tiny piece of wood and put it on a piece or cover just part of it, which I thought was different, but impressive because even though it was technically out of place, the fragments looked like they belonged to the final piece. The fragments then led to bigger pieces that actually looked like pots made out of fragments of wood; This would be the Solstice Series. The shapes were so irregular, but the patterns that he puts into his piece brings the individual pieces together, let alone the entire series. Overall, I was really impressed with his work. I know how hard it is to make bowls out of clay, but I could only imagine how much harder they would be when they are made out of wood. The fact that he makes so many of them, and makes them all look flawless is also very admirable.

Anderson Ranch Arts Center - August 12, 2014