Bowline Chair, 2022

Ash bent lamination/steam bending finished with shellac and paste wax

This chair is an exploration in woven wood bending. An object built to better wrap my head around new ways of thinking: the incredible ability of steam, the hidden softness of lignin, the brute strength of glue, the deceptive similarity of chipboard. Inspired by the study of knotting patterns in the marlinspike seamanship sailing tradition, this project started with scaled model making and form explorations in laminated chipboard. A marlin spike is a metal hand tool that has been tapered into a cone with the end rounded over. This tool, worn on the hip, would be used for all things related to marine rope work like unlaying rope for splicing, untying knots, toggle joining ropes under tension, and the list goes on. Seamen who mastered this work earned the right to be known as “marlin spikes” and this craft tradition lives on today. Using both laminated and steam bent elements the goal was to accentuate wood's ability to bend by tying it into a knot.