A few pictures

Here are a few pictures that I have taken over the last few days. I take my camera pretty much everywhere I go and try if I can, to slow down and look at the beauty around me before I walk past and miss it.

Field Sparrow 

This Robin took a while to find, I could hear him but he took quite a while to locate. Picture taken hand held with 35 x's  zoom so I was pleased not to get any camera shake.

This fungi I found while photographing the above gate post which I believe is being used by a Little Owl as a perch. It was only after some studying of the post that I saw the fungi pictured which measured about 3mm dia each. 

This water droplet was found by chance as I looked around the bamboo in my garden.

A decaying disused barn which has been taken over as a retreat by local youths.

'Beyond Containment' Exhibition San Jose, California

Exhibition, San Jose, California. It would certainly be lovely if I was going with my family but alas not this year, I was hoping to be asked to be the bag man for Mark Baker, but apparently I am above the weight limit. :-).

Some time ago I wrote about having been invited to submit a piece for this exhibition at the Gallery of Wood Art Minnesota, USA, (click on the link below) which is then shown again at the AAW Symposium in one of the Exhibitions through-out the 8-10th of June. 

Today being slow off the mark I found the catalogue showing the work included in the exhibition, my piece being one of, and thought it may be of interest to show what is currently being produced around the globe by many of the makers using wood and the lathe as a way of expression.

2013 AAW Symposium is in Tampa Florida, and having relatives there I may well get across to see it.

'Beyond Containment' Exhibition Catalogue. 

Another exhibition worth looking at, also containing beautiful work.

'Walk in the Woods' Exhibition Catalogue 

A few forms and a bit of progression.

Today I have hollowed  a few forms and progressed slightly with a sculpture that was started some time ago.


A few pictures with the first being a 5 inch high rock maple hollow form, textured using a point tool and oiled.

6 inch high Elm hollow form taken to finish wall with the spigot being left in place so the hole can be trued in a few days for the fittig of a lid. The Elm was pretty much dry but I always allow my forms to settle for a few days before adding to them.

8 inch high Rock Maple form, again turned to finish wall with the entrance hole to be finished in a few days or so. 

This sculpture has been sitting on my shelf for months so I decided to work some more on it today. There is a huge amount to do but the general shape is now pretty much there. More pictures will be added as it progresses.

Dorset coast pictures

Here are a few more pictures taken at Lulworth Cove, Dorset.

School Outing

Today was spent with a class from my daughters school at Durdle  Door and Lulworth Cove, Dorset. It is an area that I have visited many times while living in Poole as an escape hole from work, by taking the ferry across from Sandbanks with a ruck sack and supplies for a few days hard walking to recharge the batteries.

Today however was spent rock pooling, looking at rock formations with a class of 26 students and teachers, I am sure that I did not cover such subjects when I was 9, or perhaps I should have paid more attention.

Here are a few pictures from the day showing how privileged I am to live in Dorset.

Dorset Holly Blue a rare butterfly.

What Sundays were meant for

Do you remembers the days when Sunday was a special family day. The corner shop opened until 1200 hrs if we were lucky, but it did not matter as back then we were organised and could work out that we needed to buy all of our weeks shop a day earlier. Television would show quality family entertainment in the afternoon and did not contain violence, swearing etc etc even after 2100hrs.

Now we get up and go to a hypermarket that is as busy on a Sunday as it was for the rest of the week as people panic that some how the world supply of bread will run out before Monday morning.!!!

Well Sunday trading and the lack of time that families interact with each other on this special day is one of my pet hates. So as a family we spend quality time together, carrying out strange rituals such as 'communicating' with each other via old fashioned means through talking, we even move our mouths instead of texing or grunting that dinner is ready, (not that we do text as I won't pay the 10p needed, ok I know I could have 500 free texts if I was on contract, but I have to pay for the contract, so 'they are not free, are they' !!. But I would rather just open the lounge door and speak to my daughters to inform them that dinner is ready.

But I am old fashioned I guess.

So today is my eldest birthday, Bella my youngest of 9yrs instead of buying a present wanted to turn a bowl for her sister. Bella was so excited the night before going into the workshop that she got me up early Sunday morning to go out with her to over see the making of her gift.

So it was up early and into the workshop with Bella turning a small beech bowl. Bella tells me that being a sculptor is her career choice when she gets older and has had me setting up a small demo lathe that I use for her to turn on. So I will be enjoying some more quality time together.

Here are a few pictures of Bella adding colour to grooves that she produced with a point tool.

So after the bowl we went out for our favourite Sunday outing which is to go to Sandbanks apparently the most expensive place on the planet to live, I use to be based in Poole in the Police and one of the most stressful beats I had to undertake was plain clothed foot patrol in the summer due to thefts and pick pockets, so I had to walk along the beech while blending in with the locals, well you have to take the rough with the smooth. !! :-)

Here are some pictures of from Sandbanks the first one is of a multi million pound house, I wouldn't give you tuppence for it, fancy paying all of that money and looking out of your window and seeing hundreds of tourists lying on the beech basking for free outside of your front door. Are these people mad. ?!!!The last time we visited the usual Ferrari's and Lamborghini's were parked up in a row, it is as close as I will ever get to one.

On the beach, combing (Philip you were instrumental in this regular family ritual), picture of what we found will be posted later, some interesting textures etc.

Then there was some chap racing up and down just in a high speed boat. It was quick and must have cost a packet.