Stuart is a third-generation woodturner, being a full-time production turner and teacher in his father’s studio at age 16. At 19, he started working for Craft Supplies in England, at the time the world’s largest supplier to woodturners. During his 6 years at Craft Supplies, he was the in-house woodturning teacher and demonstrator. He set up Craft Supplies’ first sawmill and was in charge of their import business that sold more than 300 exotic woods around the world. Stuart also developed and tested woodturning tools for Robert Sorby, a Craft Supplies sister company. Stuart has taught more than 3,000 amateur and professional woodturners. He has demonstrated and taught in 12 countries and for more than 180 AAW chapters throughout the US. Stuart’s style of work is greatly influenced by his background as a spindle turner with precise cuts and sharp detail. He uses very simple tools and tool shapes to create his pieces. His work is pure lathe work, with no carving or surface texturing. Stuart’s artwork has been sold through prestigious galleries across Europe and the US. He also has artwork displayed in the permanent White House collection. Stuart believes we have only skimmed the surface of the potential of a wood lathe. With production woodturning as his background, his foundation in woodturning helped him perfect the push cut style and other useful techniques, such as negative rake scraping.

Clifton was introduced to woodturning in high school and quickly fell in love with the craft. Growing up in a military family, he spent much of his early life in Europe before returning to the U.S., finishing high school, and joining the Navy. Over the years, Clifton has worn many hats—cabinetmaker, sign builder, museum display designer, submariner, and retired firefighter—each experience adding depth to his creative perspective.

He joined the Tidewater Turners in the late 1990s and has been an active and passionate member ever since. In the early 2000s, Clifton began attending woodturning classes at the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. His first class, taught by the late Ray Key, led to invitations to return as a studio assistant for Ray and several other renowned instructors including Betty Scarpino, Jennifer Shirley, Kristen LeVier, and Curt Theobald.

Clifton has studied under some of the world’s leading woodturners—Ray Key, David Ellsworth, Mike Mahoney, Jimmy Clewes, Jacques Vesery, and many more. Eventually, he came full circle, teaching his own weekend class at Arrowmont.

He has demonstrated at the Virginia Woodturning Symposium, taught numerous classes for the Tidewater Turners, and helped lead multi-day sessions for local schools. One of his most meaningful experiences was teaching the children’s group known as “The Sprouting Spindleers.”

Today, Clifton continues to share his knowledge through the Myron Curtis Training Center, where he has led over 20 favorite classes to teach include stool making, pepper mills, boxes, thin-stem goblets, spheres, and off-center turning.

Notably, Clifton contributed to the restoration of the Point Lookout Lighthouse in Maryland by turning six newel posts for the staircase.

When he’s not turning, Clifton enjoys fishing, camping, sailing, and exploring traditional outdoor crafts.View Clifton’s work: AAW Gallery (https://www.aawforum.org/community/media/users/clifton-c.2382/

Our move to the USA in 1998 was a major boost to my turning as / was able to join the New Jersey Woodturners Association. I also traveled to the UK where I did Dave Regester’s first formal weekend course and was able to see some of the top UK turners in action at the Axminster show. My work has taken many turns over the years, but a few consistent themes are evident. The first is what I call classical hollow form vases. Here my focus is on aesthetically pleasing forms,
great curves and finials that work with the piece. In this same theme there are pieces where it is impossible to tell how the piece was hollowed out b y disguising the entry hole in the bottom or via
decorative groves at the top and matching the wood grain exactly. Many of my inspiration for these vessels come from ancient bottles/pottery and the artists in the glass blowing field
The second theme is what / call root forms. Here I let nature dictate what shape and feel the piece will have. An extension of this is what I call “Windows into Wood” where I combines the vase form but uses the openings which nature provided to allow the viewer accesses into the piece and adds that element of wonder and exploration. In many cases the work that the tree started is augmented by the attention of worms and ants, the voices of all the creatures of nature are respected and add to the beauty of the final piece. The next theme is what I call “Canvas Irreverence”. I was fortunate enough to spend a week at Arrowmont with Jack Slentz who taught me to take beautiful wood and treat is as my canvas on which to create my own artistic impressions by burning, carving, coloring, sand blasting and generally mutilating the wood to his artistic satisfaction. Many of my platters focus on the planets in the universe which allows my mind to travel far distant places. I also have a strong fascination for the human form, many times depicted as mermaids. After a tough day working in the pharmaceutical industry it is great to let your mind wonder and contemplate the vast beauty of the universe and all the creature that inhabit it. It is by taking time to wonder and dream that some of my best works have materialized.

Another theme is what I call “Multi Level Wonders” which takes all my technical expertise to create multi level deep hollow forms and then use them as canvases to create and express my view of the world. My darkest piece by far was created during the Afghanistan war when
there was a lot of talk about elaborate cave complexes and weapons of mass destruction. Not surprising the piece has three levels and inside there is a long range missile that lights the cave up at each stage. The cave is equipped with all the bells and whistles such as solar power, defensive missiles and radar detection. This piece reflects a lot about what was happening in my life at that time: I was between jobs and all the news was about the war in Afghanistan and the Axis of Evil. Many of my real breakthrough pieces come from telling the story of life around me.

I’ve been working with wood since I was a teenager in Cincinnati.  I attended the University of Cincinnati where I received a BFA in Theater Design and Production.  Upon graduating I took a  woodturning class at Arrowmont and realized I was hooked on the process.  I currently live and work in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Saluda, NC.  The focus of my work over the years has been functional and decorative bowls and vessels.  Much of the inspiration for my work comes from my interest in African and Oceanic art as well as modern painting and ceramic design.  Consequently much of my work is embellished with patterns that are carved, engraved and burned into the work.  I also use milk paints to emphasize these patterns.

I teach woodturning around the country at craft schools and woodturning clubs.  My work can be found in many public collections including the Museum of Art & Design, The Museum for Art in Wood and the Yale Art Gallery.

At a very young age Rudy began to develop his creative eye through photography, his first artistic pursuit. and began his relationship with wood as a craftsman of fine furniture and cabinetry. With an education in drafting and design, and many years working as a professional photographer, the transition into woodturning has been a seamless flow into another creative endeavor.

Rudy’s energetic easy-going personality and his ability to explain woodturning techniques in a simple understandable manner have allowed him to share his skills and enthusiasm for woodturning through teaching and demonstrating at regional and national symposia and clubs across the country.  Rudy also conducts workshops in his Tampa studio and teaches at schools including: Arrowmont School of Arts and Craft, John C. Campbell Folk School, Marc Adams School of Woodworking, the Center For Funiture Craftsmanship and The Florida School of Woodwork. 

From Rudy:

“I have always had a love of natural objects and the environment in which those objects flourish. My adolescence was spent pursuing anything and everything outdoors and with that came my love of wood. I spent much of my life on my uncle’s cattle ranch near Tampa, Florida. All the many days spent with my father and uncles working cows and being in the woods gave me a great appreciation for the out-of-doors, and all things relating to nature. To this day, my greatest pleasures come from enjoying nature with my wife hiking, hunting, fishing, mountain biking, kayaking, and just being in the woods.

 I love everything about wood, rough or smooth; it possesses a warm welcome feel. Wood grows from the earth with its endless earthy color variations and the swirling grain patterns of burls and knotty woods. Wood has an unlimited potential for creativity but also flaws and faults, cracks, knots, and other defects which sometimes make it difficult to work with. This is my favorite kind of wood. 

 Wood is an imperfect medium, yet I never cease to be amazed by the incredible amount of beauty to be found in it as I create a new turning.  To me this is the beauty that God and nature has provided me with as a starting point, then it becomes a challenge to continue this and create something of beauty for others to  enjoy.

I feel my goal as an artistic woodturner is to bring out this beauty and enhance it to create something that invites the eye and beckons the touch. I prefer simple shapes with flowing lines that showcase but preserve and reflect the natural characteristics of the wood, thus becoming something of beauty for many to enjoy for years to come.”

I am a woodturner in Cookeville Tn. I started my Woodworking hobby at the age of 20 ( I’m now 75) when I was in the Air Force. I continued building all sorts of things over the years. When I started working for Tenn. Tech University my interests shifted toward woodturning. I worked for Tenn. Tech University as a Photographer for 27 years. During that time I was also working in wood mostly as a woodturner. I have won awards for my carving and for turning. I have had pieces in national shows and had a piece in the Best Of Tennessee show in 2022 and 2024. I won best of show at the 2023 Tennessee Association of Woodturners annual symposium. I have been writing for woodturning magazines for 20 years including the British magazine Woodturning. I’ve lost track of how many articles I have had published. I have been teaching woodturning at various schools including John C. Campbell folkschool, the Appalachian Center for Craft, and Arrowmont. I travel around the country teaching at clubs and turning symposiums.

I can be reached at johnclucas45@gmail.com or 931-284-7022

An Artisan in the International Guild of Miniature Artisans, I am a woodturner specializing in miniatures, specifically 18th and 19th century replicas in a scale of one inch to one foot. I teach woodturning at the John C. Campbell Folk School and at UNC Asheville in SkillSet, a community outreach program that began in 2018 as a shop class for girls and now expands its reach to all members of the community. I served 6 years on the board of Carolina Mountain Woodturners, 2 years as vice president and 2 years as president, the first woman to hold this position. I have demonstrated for clubs in Maine, Tennessee, northern Virginia, North Carolina, as well as the Southwest Association of Turners (SWAT) and online for the International Guild of Miniature Artisans.

Hello, I’m a woodworker and woodturning instructor with years of experience in crafting beautiful and functional pieces from wood. I’m passionate about sharing my knowledge and skills with others.  Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced woodworker Join me in my classes and workshops to learn new techniques and create stunning works of art. Let’s explore the world of woodworking together!

~I have made over 400 boxes, either by woodturning, bandsaw boxes or from flat stock (boards).

~Member of the American Association of Woodturners and Carolina Mountain Woodturners.

~I started teaching at John C Campbell Folk School in 2020.

~I started teaching at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in 2019.

~I have been assisting woodturners at John C Campbell Folk School since 2018.

~I have been assisting woodworkers and woodturners at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts since 2017.   

~I was voted Most Improved Turner in 2014.  

~I have been President and Program Director of Down East Woodturners and Wilmington Area Woodturners Association.