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Tag: wooden spoon

Woodwork by Jarrod Dahl: “The New Wood Culture” of Connectedness

By:
Ai Kanazawa
December 8, 2018Wood Jarrod Dahl

Woodwork by Jarrod Dahl in our shop ->

Jarrod Dahl is dedicated to creating woodware for daily use and to share its beauty as widely as possible. The woodworker, writer, and teacher from Ashland, Wisconsin says that at the heart of his philosophy is the idea that “good design is tied to utilitarian function.”

Soup noodle spoon designed and made by Jarrod Dahl. His work has marks and textures left on the surface from his hook and knife.

Jarrod’s woodenware and utensils are beautifully designed and honest to use. It is clear from his work that he has admired and researched many forms of woodenware from all over the world. As Yanagi Muneyoshi, the Japanese founder of the Mingei movement also pointed out, “we do not admire work because of the past but because of its enduring present,” Jarrod thinks that good design is timeless.

Jarrod’s noodle spoons are perfect for soup noodles and chunky stews. It was inspired by older style Japanese soup spoon and also remind of old Welsh cawl spoons.

Unlike the contemporary Japanese woodenware that I’m familiar with, which is usually sanded smooth and is pristine, Jarrod’s work has marks and textures left on the surface of the wood from his hook and knife. I found these aspects to be very attractive because I felt that they provided a sense of connectedness to the natural world around us and to the hand of the maker, which is becoming more and more difficult to feel in our increasingly technologically driven lives.

Woodworker Jarrod Dahl turning a wooden mug on a pole lathe
Photo courtesy of Jarrod Dahl

I discovered Jarrod through a YouTube video of him turning a bowl on a pole lathe. A pole lathe is a primitive, foot-powered wood turning machine that uses the spring of a wooden pole to pull a cord that spins the wood being turned. Curious to find out more, I searched his name on the Internet, and found that he also teaches woodworking and spoon carving at Gifu Forest Academy in Japan. I was impressed about his earnestness in learning about woodworking in Japan, which I later found also applied to many other cultures.

Besides creating work, Jarrod spends a significant amount of time teaching woodworking. In 2019, Jarrod will return to Japan to teach, and he is currently fundraising for his trip. In the US, he regularly teaches at the North House Folk School and Port Townsend School of Woodworking. He is especially well known for his popular spoon carving workshops in which students can learn to make a spoon from a greenwood log by using only an axe, a saw, a hook knife, and a straight knife.

A few simple tools used for carving spoons
Photo courtesy of Jarrod Dahl

When I asked the reason for the popularity of the spoon carving workshops, Jarrod observed that it was because “people in our modern world don’t get to use their hands as much as they would like.” Spoon carving can be done even in a small apartment with a few tools, and he said that it “can provide a very rounded experience of creation within the bound of creating something utilitarian.” After teaching abroad many times, Jarrod thinks that people’s desire to make things is universal, and that spoon carving is uniquely rewarding and healing.

Jarrod Dahl carving a spoon at his studio in Ashland, Wisconsin.
Photo courtesy of Jarrod Dahl

In terms of selling woodenware in the US, Jarrod finds it to be quite challenging. As a Japanese growing up regularly using wooden bowls and chopsticks, I was also surprised at how little wood vessels or utensils are used on dining tables in the US, so I asked Jarrod why he thinks this is the case. His view is that because the US was born in the Industrial Revolution era, American people viewed woodenware as from the past that only poor people used. He added that people also came to America to escape that “idea of poverty from their old countries.”

An important part of “The New Wood Culture” is the idea of reconnecting to many aspects of our lives and circumstances through the use of wood

But Jarrod also thinks that nowadays this traditional image of woodenware is slowly changing. He thinks that people are starting to remember the beautiful experience of eating with wood, and the American woodenware world has great potential to become more appreciated. Jarrod calls this “The New Wood Culture,” and he is playing an active role in promoting this wood culture renaissance.

This takes me back to the connectedness that I feel from Jarrod’s work and its significance. I think an important part of “The New Wood Culture” is the idea of reconnecting to many aspects of our lives and circumstances through wood: to our past, future, people, hands, and our natural surroundings. Because when we feel connected, it makes us feel a little more whole, and it’s a wondrous feeling.

Please Use Often: The Philosophy of Wood Artist Maeda Mitsuru

By:
Ai Kanazawa
November 27, 2012Wood Maeda Mitsuru

Woodwork by Maeda Mitsuru in our shop ->

Wood artist Maeda Mitsuru strongly believes that the special beauty of wood is only achieved after repeated use. He strives to make his designs as simple and utilitarian as possible to encourage continued use by the owner. “I create things that are used everyday so I hope that people grow to love them more as they use them.” He says.

Wood artist Maeda Mitsuru at his studio in Tokyo
Photo courtesy of ki-to-te

As a young boy, Maeda-san spent many hours carving wood at the workshop of his uncle who was a carpenter. He also had a mother who enjoyed making things by hand so it was only natural for him to eventually become a wood artist after growing up in such practical and creative environment. After graduating from university and spending 15 years working in furniture companies, Maeda-san started creating his own work with wood at his studio in Tokyo in 2005.

Maeda-san’s selections of carving knives
Photo courtesy of ki-to-te

Maeda-san’s care for his work is evident in the beautiful lines and slight but elegant curves that he adds to each item with a carving knife. He carves the spoons so they are easy to scoop and extremely comfortable to hold, while the spouts on his bowls never dribble. “Each piece of wood is unique, so I look at their grain and consider their quality before deciding what I make out of them” Maeda-san says.

Carving the spout of the bowls
Photo courtesy of ki-to-te

 

I have been using one of Maeda-san’s wooden spoons for a while now to taste as I cook. The spoon never leaves my coat pocket as I move around the kitchen and is ideal because the wood does not slip even when my hands are wet, nor does it get hot when I pour boiling sauce on it to taste.

Apart from tableware, Maeda-san also makes custom-made furniture at his studio in Tokyo called “ki-to-te”, which means “wood and hand”. I think it is such an apt name for his handmade work and his wish that his wooden creations never leave the hands of their owners.

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