An exhibition comprising 72 green-turned and ebonized forms by Richard Raffan will open on March 13 at Framed – The Darwin Gallery, NT.
Richard Raffan is a Contributing Editor to Australian Wood Review and over the last 20 years has written no less than 75 articles for the magazine. He’s not just a legend for us at Wood Review – he is literally known the world over from the books and DVDs he has authored and the demonstrations he continues to regularly give.
As artist Richard continues to develop, as this upcoming exhibition of new work demonstrates. This body of work was turned entirely from green timber, mostly casuarina and pin oak.
‘Green-turning is the art of turning freshly-felled wood in full knowledge that the objects will warp as they dry’, explains Richard. ‘Not all species of tree are suitable, and those that are need to be felled at the right time of the year. By aligning the grain carefully within a form, the way in which the form warps is predictable.
‘My interest in using green timber began in the mid 1970s in Britain when seasoned boards for bowls became unavailable. I soon realised that green timber yields far more useable material than seasoned and that it’s much more fun to turn.
‘Woodturners tend to have a preoccupation with both wood grain and glossy finishes, rather than form. My main preoccupation has always been with form, so ebonizing or the use of verdigris and/or rust finishes on the profiles and acrylics internally, creates objects of uncertain provenance. The latter might seem to be ceramic, but are the wrong weight. They might be metal, but are the wrong temperature. Ebonized forms have to be visually strong to survive.’
Warped and Twisted runs from March 13 to April 6, 2015
Framed – The Darwin Gallery is situated at 55 Stuart Highway, Stuart Park 0820
Tel (08) 8981 2994 or email framed@framed.com.au
See more about Richard Raffan here