Three years ago, my first potential client, an 87 year old woman, loved my chair but said it was too hard to get out of. So, I changed almost everything about the chair except the curvature of the back slats. I tightened the radius of the rockers and the curvature of the back legs; I sloped the arms downward and I raised the back of the seat slightly, all to make the chair easier to enter and exit, and it works. Of all the people, of all ages and body types, who have since sat in the chairs at the festivals, no one has ever had any difficulty getting in or out of the chairs.

My process is always an evolving response to the material at hand, to the grain, to the shapes that emerge. I work mostly in North American hardwoods such as Beech, Cherry, Walnut, Maple, Oak, and Hickory. Each chair combines contrasting wood types. Eyes and hands behold and respond. Choices evolve and the result is always a unique creation.

 There are no straight lines in the human body. There are few straight lines in my chairs. Sitting in a chair, but especially a rocking chair, is probably the most tactile experience one can have with any type of furniture. It is a full-body experience requiring ergonomic comfort and a pleasant sensation as the whole body is captured.

  Each adult rocker takes between 100-120 hours to build and sculpt for unmatched comfort. The child's rockers are my own design, the Adult rockers are modifications/renditions of Sam Maloof's graceful, organic creations. I have also been influenced by William Kappel, Hal Taylor, Paul Limisky, and Charles Brock.

 

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