Wayne Petrie, Mt Gravatt, Qld

In Transition
300 dia x 700mm high

In Transition is a furniture piece that seeks to find a balance between sculpture and furniture and to demonstrate sustainable resource usage.
The cylindrical form is intended to be observed and used as a free standing object. By its very form the cylinder has neither front, back nor side.
In Transition juxtaposes wood in its raw state with a more refined, finished form.
The piece also draws attention to the issues of sustainability in our craft. All timber used is either salvaged, recycled or plantation grown. There are three species of timber used. The cylinder is made from Tasmanian eucalypt (Eucalyptus delegatensis), the legs, drawer fronts and vertical patterning elements are weeping ti -tree (Leptospermum longifolium) and the drawers are hoop pine (Araucaria cunninghamii).
The legs in their natural branch form show the ravages of time and the environment. Where the structure of the branches has been modified for the furniture, the incursions have been refined and polished to contrast the natural character. The drawer fronts have been milled, shaped and finished to blend with the cultured form of the cylinder.
The linear patterning elements fitted to the face of the cylinder both enrich the surface with texture and a play of light and shadow. In a stylised fashion its patterning references the natural markings on the legs.
The cylinder has been formed from twelve identical elements coopered to form a prism. Once in its glued up form the edges of the prism were planed out to yield a cylinder. Drawer positions were allocated on each alternate panel. The draws slide within a Tasmanian eucalypt box fitted within the opening and supported by a ledge fitted to the opposite panel. The six drawers of very traditional construction spiral around the face of the cylinder. The drawers are finely crafted with dovetail joinery and slip bottoms. The hoop pine from which they are constructed is recycled, having come from a bed that was destined for land fill.
The bowl that sits atop the cylinder can be disengaged allowing the cylinder and bowl to be utilised independently or cooperatively. The detailing of the engagement of the bowl ensures that once it is in position it is secure.
The bowl is assembled from three elements that reflect the segmental geometry of the top and bottom to the cylinder. The feet of the bowl are from weeping ti-tree while the main body of the bowl is Tasmanian eucalypt. The bowl presents contrasting finishes, the underside being chip carved while the lining is gold leaf.
In transition is a progress in a personal study of geometry and the associated design and constructional challenges. The exploration of scale, proportion, colour and texture and its impact on the presentation of the finished item is an integral part of the challenge.

Glue
Titebond Ultimate. The segments of the top and bottom of the cylinder are biscuit jointed while the panels of the cylinder are just long grain to long grain glued joints. The cylinder was formed in a single glue up with the aid of two strap clamps.

Finish
Feast Watson Floor Seal, Fine Buffing Oil and Liberon Black Bison Wax.
Tasmanian eucalypt cylinder—sealed with Feast Watson Floor sealed and sanded back with 600 grit papers and finished with two coats of Feast Watson Fine Buffing Oil and one coat of Liberon Black Bison wax.
Drawers are kept natural but have been sanded down to a 600 git paper followed with a burnishing with a white scouring pad and a soft cotton cloth
Bowl—the underside is finished with three coats of fine buffing oil and one coat of Black Bison Wax.
The bowl lining is gold leaf applied by Graham Reynolds.

Photos: David Sandison