This month our 26^th Workshop Season came to a close, and with it the season of potluck picnics, croquet matches, and Monday night faculty presentations. As we think ahead to next year’s schedule, we look forward to welcoming the instructors and students who will join us from all corners of the globe. The workshop roster is always fresh and changing, bringing both new and returning students to campus year after year. Yet, over the history of the school, there is one curriculum that has been offered annually without fail – Peter Korn’s two-week Basic Woodworking course.

Fall is a busy time in the Jackson Building, and the benches are full with a creative, dedicated group of Fellows. Read on to see the latest from the Fellowship Program, and meet our current group of furniture makers!

We were pleased when Tom Kealy, a highly skilled and accomplished furniture maker, agreed to join us for the Visiting Artist position. This program encourages professional makers to explore new directions in their work. Tom heeded the challenge and decided to depart from his work in functional furniture to explore a sculptural form during his one month with us. Employing his rich knowledge of technical skills and drawing from various inspiration from the natural world and artists’ work in other mediums, Tom set out on his ambitious path.

Our summer Furniture Intensive class is drawing to a close next week, and students are spending long hours in the shop in order to complete their final projects. The last weeks have been full of practical learning and design investigation, as students have advanced from the basics of hand and machine cut joinery to the development of expressive, curvilinear designs. Lead instructor Reed Hansuld, himself a graduate of our Nine-month Comprehensive, has encouraged students to innovate and explore.

Three of the buildings on the CFC campus house our classrooms and workshops, and students spend the vast majority of their time in those spaces. Most visitors, however, have their first exposure to campus through a fourth building, which is home to the Messler Gallery, the administrative offices, and the Fine Woodworking Library. Our library houses a large collection of books, periodicals, and instructional DVDs, and provides an additional and valuable resource to our students.

While our campus is always humming, the Workshop season keeps it truly bustling with activity. From June to October, students and instructors join us from all across the globe for one- and two-week workshops. Each year we offer our foundational course, Basic Woodworking, alongside a diverse and always changing assortment of classes. Many classes focus on furniture building and design, but we also offer more specialized topics in marquetry, carving, turning, finishing, and instrument making. This week, Tim Rousseau is teaching Classic Casework with Kendrick Anderson, and Kristin LeVier and Josh Vogel are co-teaching Carving Spoons, Carving Sculpture. Scroll through for a glimpse into Workshop Season!