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woodezine - Volume
II - Issue IV - April 2004
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Turner of the Month
Alan Lacer
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Alan has been involved in the turning field for over twenty years as a turner, teacher, writer, exhibition coordinator, demonstrator and past president of the American Association of Woodturners. Over the last 15 years he has been actively teaching wood turning at major craft schools. |
| His work has appeared in a number of regional and national shows and he has been a regular instructor and demonstrator of the craft - having worked in over 35 states and 4 foreign countries. His writings have covered technical aspects of woodturning, historical commentaries and turning traditions in Japan and Germany |
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Teacher... "This class will include something for everyone interested in the art of wood turning. Alan will discuss everything from the very basics of spindle turning to natural edge bowls. Each student will have his or her own lathe and plenty of hands-on time to work on a wide range of projects. The week will begin with a detailed discussion of lathes, tool selection, safety, design, sharpening and wood selection. Students will be coached and encouraged to produce pieces in three areas: 1) SPINDLE TURNING, between center work such as furniture parts, tool handles, lamp columns, honey dippers, spinning tops, rolling pins, wine stoppers, etc.; |
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2) FACE PLATE WORK, such as bowls, platters, and plates.Students will be introduced to deep fluted bowls and how to reverse bowls and vessels in the chuck for finishing the bottom. Students will learn to use a variety of chucking techniques and how to choose the one best suited for your project; and 3) HOLLOWING END GRAIN, such as lidded boxes, goblets and scoops will be covered in detail as well. By the end of the week students will move into natural edge bowls and turning green wood. Alan will give considerable attention to tool selection, application, profiling and sharpening. Emphasis will be placed on cutting and shear scraping techniques. Sanding and finishing for all projects will be covered in detail." Click here for a list of Alan's classes at the Marc Adams School. |
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His love of teaching has found a new outlet in the electronic age: he has produced several turning videos, including... Woodturning: Getting Started Right! Skew Chisel: The Darkside & The Sweet Side Son of Skew - Sequel to: Sharpening Woodturning Tools
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Demonstrator... Alan has a pretty hectic schedule, teaching classes and giving demonstrations of his techniques and method across the country. He will be at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine from July 5th through the 9th, and he has five more dates at the Woodcraft Supply store in Minneapolis this year: Introduction to Woodturning May 3, 2004 Also in July (23-25), he will attend the AAW Symposium in Orlando. And he's off to Tokyo in October for the Far Eastern Woodturning Conference. Alan has four more dates this year with turning clubs Stateside, too: Lake Superior Woodturners in Duluth, Minnesota on May 8; the South Kansas Woodturners in Wichita on May 14 and 15; then he's off to the islands for the Honolulu Woodturners on October 9 and the Big Island Woodturners in Hilo, on October 16. Whew!
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A visit to Alan's Web site is a real treat for turners. He has published several articles online including Speed Zone (what speed does one turn at); Honing Woodturning Tools; Woodturning And The Vikings; My Friend the Skew; Learn to Sharpen-Progressively (two articles); Two Days Last Summer (kids and turning); Turning a Bocce Ball Freehand; and Spalted Wood. The image at left is titled "Bookends". |
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Please note that all of the images in this feature are copyrighted and remain the sole property of the artist. Use without permission is prohibited.
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