Tom Wirsing - demonstration and CMW meeting at Folk Art Center
About this event
Please join us on Saturday, October 10 at 10:30 AM
for a demonstration by expert turner
Tom Wirsing
in person in the auditorium of the
Folk Art Center, 382 Blue Ridge Parkway, Asheville, NC
Open to the public. Free admission.
About the demo
Elegance in Form: Platters
Every component of Tom’s process is designed with the end in mind. From selecting wood with incredible grain and figure, positioning the wood to show that grain off - to every cut and scrape is a design process.
For those planning to attend the demo or watch online Tom requests that you download and print out the following three files so that you can easily follow along
Tulip Bowl
Turn a Platter
Two Step Turning Process
About Tom
Tom Wirsing was born in Roanoke, Virginia, in the Shenandoah Valley, an historic center of American furniture building and woodturning. Tom’s dad was an expert on American period furniture and had a well-equipped workshop that included a lathe. Tom began turning wood as a young boy. After graduating from Roanoke College with a degree in Physics, Tom began traveling extensively. He lived and worked in Europe, Asia, and nine US States. The lathe in his dad’s workshop became a distant memory.
About 30 years ago Tom found himself working for the Hewlett-Packard Company in Chicago and living in a house with a spacious basement. He bought a lathe and began turning wood again. At first, he made mostly furniture but, almost by chance, he attended a demonstration by Richard Raffan, a well-known Australian woodturner. Richard took a rough piece of American black cherry timber and turned it into a wonderful bowl. Tom was hooked.
Thus began Tom’s interest in creating art pieces on the lathe. He now turns primarily platters and bowls from a variety of woods. His favorite wood is figured maple.
Tom is a member of the American Association of Woodturners (AAW), a non-profit organization of woodturners that has 15,000 members worldwide. Tom served two terms as president of the AAW. He also served two terms as president of the Front Range Woodturners in Denver. For more information on the AAW visit www.woodturner.org.
Tom has demonstrated at the AAW Symposium, the Utah Woodturning Symposium, the Dakota Woodturning Symposium, the Rocky Mountain Woodturning Symposium, Turnfest in Australia, as well as many AAW chapters across the USA and Canada.
In addition to turning wood, Tom enjoys building furniture. He has built tables, beds, chests of drawers, cabinets, and a variety of other furniture.
Tom is an avid traveler. He has visited all 50 US states, more than 80 countries, and all seven of the world’s continents.
Tom resides with his wife Melinda on a ranch in north Boulder County, in the foothills of the Colorado Rocky Mountains, where he grazes Angus cattle, builds furniture, and turns wood.
Click Here to visit Tom's website
Click Here to watch as Tim Tucker interviews Tom
Please consider volunteering to support the tasks required for our monthly meeting
Click Here to review the steps for volunteering.
Click Here to volunteer for the October Monthly CMW Demonstration and Meeting
Zoom access
CMW members unable to attend in person are invited to participate free on Zoom
Advance registration for the event is required in order to be provided online access.
To register:
1) Log in to your CMW account online
2) From the Event in the CMW calendar click the REGISTER FOR ZOOM button
3) Choose 'Sign up yourself' and click NEXT
4) Click COMPLETE REGISTRATION. You'll receive two emails from CMW –
one confirming registration and one providing the Zoom link
5) At the time of the meeting or shortly before, choose the CMW email that starts
'This message contains important videoconferencing information...'
Click the URL after 'Link to Event' halfway down the page. This will take you to Zoom.
6) Click OPEN ZOOM, and under that click LAUNCH MEETING.
- If you join before the system is turned on you should see the circling arrow.
- Once the system is on but the Zoom meeting not active you should see the CMW logo.
- When the cameras are activated you will be admitted to the meeting.
- If for any reason you're not getting in, reregister from scratch
Workshop
Ed will offer a day-long workshop on these topics at the CMW's Turning Learning Center in Arden on Sunday, October 11
More information and advance registration are available through the separate Event on CMW's event calendar.
A fee will apply.
Active CMW membership is necessary for registration.
Videoconference information will be provided in an email once registration is complete.
Event Contact(s)
T (Tim) J Tucker
Category
Folk Art Center Demonstration
Registration Info
Registration is recommended
Registration cancellations will be accepted
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