Continuing their commitment to studio furniture, Chicago's famed Function+Art Gallery will open an exhibition called "Fruit and Flowers - the Furniture of Mark Levin" on Friday, April 22, with a reception from 6-9pm. The exhibition will continue through May 31. There will also be an Artist Talk on Saturday, April 23, at 2:30 pm. Originally from the Chicago area, Mark learned woodworking at the hand of Bobby Falwell of Northern Illinois University (who had in turn been taught by Wendell Castle). As a result, Mark's work has always been "about the wood", while at the same time pushing the limits of form. The design foundation for his work is based on both natural and man-made forms - leaves, flowers, butterflies, women, automobiles, machinery and architecture. He visualizes the piece in a black, monolithic material rather than wood, knowing that if the form has visual impact in this "black dress", it will be that much more potent when executed in wood.

For more info, visit the gallery online at http://www.functionart.com

We've been talking about the Sand-Flee(R) sander here at Woodezine ever since last August, when we saw it demonstrated at the big woodworking show in Atlanta. RJR Studios LLC, the manufacturer, has just announced that, beginning this month (March 2005), the machine will be available from Woodpeckers, Inc.

The Sand-Flee is a portable drum sander designed to save hours of tedious hand sanding while improving the finish of woodworking projects. Its 18" wide, precision machined aluminum drum is covered with hook & loop material, making it a snap to change paper. Scroll sawyers like to install two or three different grits to save time and achieve progressively smoother finishes.

In March, Cook Woods, a hardwood dealer based in southern Oregon, has three container loads of high quality exotic hardwoods coming in from all over the World. Among the species are Flamed Bubinga, Black Ebony, Mediterranean Olive, African Shedua, Amboyna burl (perhaps not quite as large as the one shown at right!), Thuya burl, Cocobolo, Verdecillo, Bocote, Ziricote, Redheart, Chakte Viga, Mahogany and Granadillo. The company carries figured, colorful blocks, lumber and squares, and they specialize in Oregon Myrtlewood, as well as wide slabs of exotics. They also import Tigerwood flooring, decking, lumber, Brazilian Cherry, African hardwoods and rare species like Ziricote from the Yucatan peninsula. They stock genuine Mexican Cocobolo in large quantities, too.

PostPicasso.com is a Richmond, Virginia-based online community designed to promote the visual arts through information, education and innovative opportunities. The organization has just announced a call for entries for an online (Internet only) furniture exhibition from May 6 through June 17, 2005. The exhibition is designed to coincide with the theme of the Furniture Society's 9th annual conference in San Diego. It will be called "The Other Side; a Tradition of Alternatives". The word "alternative" is being used loosely to encompass not only alternative materials but also conceptual and functional alternatives as well. The deadline for entries by mail is an April 4th postmark. Online submissions have to be in by April 11th. The Best of Show award is $500. This is open to furniture created in the past two years, and slides are acceptable.

For more info, visit them online at http://www.postpicasso.com