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Wally's small treasures

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Wally's small treasures

#1

Keith Tompkins

Wally's small treasures

Keith Tompkins

>Hidden in the post of Wally's small treasures is a very important lesson, which deserves further attention.

Judging by the photos, it would be difficult to judge the size of the pieces. Part of the reason, I feel, is Wally's meticulous attention to form.

While a large piece may rely on spectacular grain patterns or large proportions, a smaller piece must rely heavily on good form to be successful. That is part of the premise behind the "small treasures" exhibit at del Mano gallery.

The lesson? Learn to produce good forms. Buying a bigger lathe will not make you a better turner. All the fancy tools in the world won't do it either. Learn to appreciate good form and strive to produce it. It's not always how BIG a turning is, it's HOW WELL it is done.

I hope Wally won't mind me using his work as an example(again)

Re: Wally's small treasures

#2

Totally agree

Dominic Greco in Richboro PA

>Keith,

I totally agree with your comments. Form, above all is more important than overall size (I'll go one further here), and wood species used.

I've seen some items turned from exotic and expensive woods where the form is totally off! Just because you have a nice chunk of coccobolo, doesn't mean that the bowl you turn from it will be a hit.

Case in point; I turned (2) potpourri bowls. One was from cherry with as walnut collar, and the other from Zebrawood with an Ebony collar. On the cherry bowl, I felt I followed Wally's advice more and kept the widest piece below the center of the form. On the Zebrawood one, I hurried through it, and was never quite satisfied with what I ended up with. But I needed one more bowl for the show I was having. Guess which one was more popular with my customer?

I also learned a valuable lesson, never offer anything up for sale that you feel is below your own standards. The bowl in question now resides in my "expensive lesson learned" pile. Maybe I'll re-turn it one day.

See ya,

Dominic

Re: Wally's small treasures

#3

Re: Totally agree

George Van

>Dominic,

You don't by chance have photos of your examples?

George

Re: Wally's small treasures

#4

probably not

Dominic Greco in Richboro PA

>One was sold and the other is in the discard pile. And I really too embarrased to show ANYONE that one!

Re: Wally's small treasures

#5

Yes, Yes, Yes!

Molly Winton

>I couldn't agree with you more Keith. What makes a piece a winner, no matter the surface enchancement or beauty of the wood, is the form. As an example, while Art Liestman's and Andi Wolfe's surface enhancements are spectacular, their pieces would not be successful if their forms were not exquisite. I hope they don't mind me dropping their names, but their work illustrates this point quite well.

Re: Wally's small treasures

#6

Re: Wally's small treasures

Wally Dickerman at Green Valley, Az.

>Keith, thanks for using my work as an example to make your point on form.

When I'm teaching classes I put a lot of emphasis on the use of good form. Before we start turning we have a class discussion on using balance and proportions to create good form. While the students are turning their bowls or hollowforms, I like to work with each one, pointing out small changes that can be made to improve the form, and why. Oftentimes one or two small changes can be the difference between an ordinary piece and an outstanding one.

Wally

Re: Wally's small treasures

#7

Well said Wally

TDaniel

>

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