Meet the expert craftsmen and women who will be teaching classes at Open House 2016. Please check back often—we’ll be adding details and instructors as we finalize the schedule.
Notes:
• To participate in classes, you must buy a class pass.
• Some of these instructors will also have tables/booths in the vendor halls
• Some instructors are also Fox Chapel Publishing authors and will be signing books in the Fox Author Tent.
Instructors
Wayne Barton
How to Begin Chip Carving
Elements of Design for Chip Carving
Vendor; Fox Magazine Author
Wayne Barton is credited with introducing chip carving to the United States. He was named Woodcarving Illustrated’s Woodcarver of the Year in 2005. Wayne has written several books and is the founder of The Alpine School of Woodcarving, Ltd. For more of Wayne’s work, visit www.chipcarving.com.
Rolf Beuttenmuller
Building Wooden Gear Clocks
Fox Magazine Author
Rolf Beuttenmuller and his family came to the United States from Germany in 1955. His father was a toolmaker and taught him all about tools, and his mother, a seamstress, taught him to sew. As a result, working with tools and scrolling came naturally to Rolf. He started scrolling in 2004 after his wife, June, bought a scroll saw for his birthday. He joined the Long Island Scroll Saw Club and enjoys new and challenging projects. His motto is, “I don’t know that can’t, therefore I can.” Rolf recently retired from Brookhaven National Lab after 34 years of designing and building special devices used for high energy and photon science research. He lives in Bellport, N.Y.
Barrie Casement
Intro to Architectural Carving
Finishes & Finishing: What to Use & How to Apply It
Demonstrator with ArborTech
Barrie Casement started whittling branches and sticks with a pocketknife he found on a hike at age 11. He continued to improve his skills on broom handles until his mother found out and gave him a hockey stick to practice with instead. The hardness of the hockey stick slowed him down for a time, but did not stop him. Barrie is now the master woodworker for Kingswood Millwork where he designs and restores millwork windows and doors. Barrie also volunteers with Friends of the Carousel in Saint Catharines repairing and restoring an historic carousel, is the president of the Niagara Woodcarvers Association, and is a demonstrator for Arbourtech. Barrie’s latest project is the restoration of the woodwork and carving in Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan.
Dr. Bob Fontana
Introduction to Marquetry
Fascinated by the beautifully decorated period furniture designs of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, Bob Fontana directed his woodworking interests toward marquetry techniques. His interests took him far afield, however, from the flower and bird designs of the William & Mary period, and he began to specialize in incorporating mixed media techniques into his marquetry designs—inlays, pyrography, acrylics, crushed gem stones, and metallic gilding. With a love for Asian art, notably the Japanese woodblock prints of the Edo period, he has created marquetry reproductions of prints from the period, notably marquetry interpretations of the works of Hokusai, one of the more famous Japanese artists of the late 18th century. His “Tribute to Hokusai” jewelry box, incorporating four marquetry panels depicting famous works from the Japanese master, received both First Place and Peoples’ Choice Awards at the 2011Northwest Fine Woodworking Box & Container Show in Seattle, Wash. He retired in 2008 from a career as the president of an electrical engineering design firm specializing in radar and communications systems. He received a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Stanford University. He and his wife live in Potomac, Md., just outside of Washington, D.C.
Barry Gross
Turning a Pepper Grinder
Casting & Turning an Acrylic Pen
Vendor; Fox Book Author
Barry Gross is a best-selling author, a scroller, and a world-renowned pen turner. His pens are highly sought after and can be found in the pockets of Steven Spielberg, Jimmy Buffet, Greg Norman, and Dick Cheney. Barry owns BG Artforms, which sells pen kits and accessories, and scroll saw supplies. Visit www.BGArtforms.com.
Bob Hershey
All About Bark Houses
Carving a Bark Lighthouse
Fox Magazine Author
Bob Hershey is a retired truck driver who started carving in 1982. He is a member of the Conewago Carvers and Lancaster County Woodcarvers clubs. Bob carves everything from animal caricatures to full-size figures. He lives in Lititz, Pa., with his wife, Debby.
Tom Hindes
Five-Minute Wizard
Whittled Pocket Projects
Fox Book & Magazine Author
Anyone who reads Woodcarving Illustrated magazine or follows the WCI Message Board is familiar with Tom’s woodcarving artistry. His wonderful wizards, gnomes, Noah’s Arks, and Christmas ornaments are a joy to see and a delight to make. Tom teaches quick and simple ways to carve in less time with minimal cuts. He will show how to master his ingenious carving methods at two different classes during the festival.
Michael Kehs
Power Carving Leaves
Basic Bowls
Spindle Turning
Vendor
A resident of Bucks County, Pa., Michael Kehs has exhibited in several U.S. shows, including Challenge V: International Lathe Turned Objects Show, the National Speleological Society’s Fine Art Salon, and has a piece in the permanent collection of the Woodturning Center in Philadelphia. He turned an ornament for the Clinton White House during the Year of the Craft. Michael has won awards in many art shows and craft shows locally and nationally, including several Best of Show awards. He has also judged many woodcarving shows and has written for American Woodturner, the journal of the American Association of Woodturners, and Woodcraft Magazine. Active in both local and national turning and carving clubs, he also demonstrates and teaches both woodcarving and woodturning in his studio. Michael has been turning and carving since 1980.
Chris Lubkemann
Whittling Twigs and Branches
Demonstrator; Fox Book & Magazine Author
Chris Lubkemann of Lancaster, Pa., has been carving since age 7. He has published a number of books with Fox Chapel Publishing, including Big Book of Whittle Fun and Whittling Twigs & Branches. See more of his carvings at www.whittlingwithchris.com.
Betty Padden
Carving a Christmas Ornament
Carving and Painting a Flower
Fox Book & Magazine Author
Betty Padden and her husband, Bob, own the Wooden Apple Signmakers in Auburn, Mass., and have been professional sign carvers for 35 years. They have been teaching their craft to students in their studio for more than 30 years. In addition, they created SantaCarls®, a unique figure that has been sold at Disney parks and Busch Gardens. Betty also designs and paints for Ne’Qwa Art and Blossom Bucket, among other companies. See more of Betty’s work at www.woodenapplesignmakers.com.
Michele Parsons
Leather Pyrography 101: Burn a Bookmark
Wood Pyrography 101: Burn a Mandala
Vendor; Fox Magazine Author
A frequent contributor to Pyrography magazine, Michele lives at the base of the North Carolina Blue Ridge Mountains and teaches pyrography regionally. See more of Michele’s work at www.ParsonsWoodArtistry.com.
Judy and Dave Peterson
Diabolical Puzzles
Pattern Adaptations
Vendors; Fox Book & Magazine Authors
Judy Peterson is a former teacher and librarian who found her niche in life as a woodworker. A winner of many design awards, she sells her puzzles at art shows around the country. Her husband, Dave, runs the record-keeping side of the business. Together they have written several books, including Animal Puzzles for the Scroll Saw and Making Wooden Dinosaur Toys and Puzzles.
Harley Refsal
Carving a Scandinavian Flat-Plane Caricature
Scandinavian Wood, Wood, Wood
Vendor; Fox Book & Magazine Author
Harley Refsal is an internationally recognized figure carver specializing in Scandinavian-style flat-plane carving. Since the 1980s, Harley, who speaks fluent Norwegian, has shared his knowledge of, and skills in, Scandinavian flat-plane carving with thousands of carvers through classes and presentations in the United States and Scandinavia.
Floyd Rhadigan
Carve a Reindeer Ornament
Carve a Santa Ornament
Fox Book & Magazine Author
Floyd Rhadigan is the past president of the Caricature Carvers of America. He entered the world of woodcarving in 1970 with the help of a family friend. He started teaching carving in 1976, and has yet to stop. He is the author of two books from Fox Chapel Publishing, Carving Fantasy Characters and Carving Fantasy Creatures, and is a regular contributor to Woodcarving Illustrated magazine.
Carole Rothman
Advanced Scrolled Bowls
Boxes Without Joinery: The Creative Scrolled Box
Vendor; Fox Book & Magazine Author
Carole Rothman of Pawling, N.Y., is a retired psychologist and college professor. She is also an award-winning cake decorator. Carole is the author of two books from Fox Chapel Publishing, Creative Wooden Boxes from the Scroll Saw and Wooden Bowls from the Scroll Saw. See more of Carole’s work at www.scrollsawbowls.blogspot.com.
Jeff Schucker
Wood for Woodworkers: From Lumber to Logs
Vendor
A fourth-generation lumberman, Jeffrey Schucker is the owner and president of Bailey Wood Products, Inc., which is located in Kempton, Pa. The company was founded by Jeff’s great-grandfather, Howard Bailey, in 1928. Educated in business management as well as hardwood lumber grading and kiln drying, Jeff established the kiln-drying operations at Bailey Wood Products and has dried more than 1 million board feet of lumber since 1992. He has also spent many years working in his company’s sawmill operation, and has been involved with the log buying, mill operations, lumber sales, and general management of the company. Bailey Wood Products is a manufacturer of specialty woods and wood products which are mainly sold in the eastern U.S. For more information about Bailey Wood Products, visit their website at www.baileywp.com
Janette Square
I Just Bought a Scroll Saw … Now What?
Intro to Intarsia: Learning the Basics
Intarsia Shaping: An In-Depth Look at Taking Your Work to the Next Level
Fox Magazine Author
Janette Square is an internationally recognized intarsia artist who lives in Yachats, on the Oregon coast. She is a regular contributor to Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts magazine. See more of Janette’s work at www.square-designs.com.
Robert Stadtlander
Basic Woodburning Techniques: Landscapes
Vendor; Fox Magazine Author
Robert Stadtlander’s fascination for woodcarving started at a very young age. He has been carving and woodburning more than 25 years, specializing in scenic relief carving and caricature carving. He has promoted the art of woodcarving by teaching woodcarving workshops around the country since 1994 and is a member of several woodcarving associations and clubs. In addition to teaching classes, Robert manages Stadtlander Woodcarving Supplies, which carries unique woodcarving products, such as Oar Pocket Carving knives. Born and raised in Northeastern Ohio, Robert currently resides in Mantua and has spent most of his life as a quality engineer. See more of his carvings at www.stadtlandercarvings.com.
Don Swartz
Carving a Santa Whistle
Vendor; Fox Magazine Author
Don Swartz of Lancaster, Pa., is the owner of Hillcrest Carving, a carving supply store near Lancaster. Don also teaches classes at his store.
Larry Welch
Making Patterns the Easy Way
Larry Welch is a partner/CFO of Carving Technologies, LLC. Visit online at www.carvingtechnologies.com.
Susan Zanella
Introduction to Gourd Craft
Gourd Pyrography
Fox Magazine Author
Susan Zanella lives in northeast Maryland, where she has owned a print brokering business since 1995. Susan began working with gourds and pyrography in 2005. She enjoys the variety of artistic expressions a gourd allows. Susan sells her work at local fairs and teaches at gourd gatherings along the East Coast. Visit her website at www.gourdmarket.com.