Anne Tansey
Having grown up in rural western North Carolina and then a short career with the U.S. Forest Service, I have spent a great many hours in the woods, observing the interesting shapes and tangles limbs and branches can weave themselves into---- imagining how and, why they came together in such a manner. All of us have noticed a root, limb or rock that suggests part of a chair or table. I began collecting such pieces from the wild and making the suggestion become reality ----using balance and symmetry, yet in a style the table might naturally have followed while growing. On the practical side of my process, I feel I am on solid ecological footing. All my table legs are found dead in the forest. Locust and several other species have lost the battle competing for light in a maturing hardwood forest. The dogwood is a victim of dogwood anthracnose, common in our area. Mountain laurel is taken from land being cleared for housing developments and the like, also common in our area. Boards for the table tops come from small local sawmills. I enjoy the physicality of all aspects in my work; time spent in the woods collecting, matching legs to tops and the unique and characteristic smells of the various types of wood. I find satisfaction creating a functional table from organic shapes that perhaps evoke a memory of time spent in the forest, bringing harmony and peace to the eye and mind. |