Daniel Mack

Rustic Furnishings

Working Rustic

workshops emphasizing the tools, techniques and materials

 

Working Rustic                            5 days 

Daniel Mack teaches the skills and attitudes of working rustic with ordinary hand and power tools. Dan introduces the traditional mortise and tenon joint and other forms of joinery with natural materials as you work on a variety of woodworking projects including chairs, tables and natural form sculpture. Both woodworkers and those new to woodworking will be intrigued by the challenges and delights of working rustic. Materials include driftwood, maple saplings, birch bark and slabs of interesting logs. 

Recent Versions      The Omega Institute        Summer 2012 version

Backyard Woodworking            1 or 3 days

This is a 1 or 3 -day workshop for practicing artists, woodworkers, contractors,craftspeople and anyone with good hand-eye skills and experience with basic tools. It is held at Dan's workshop in Warwick so you have access to the common and specialized tools and materials in his shop and barn. It is a brisk infusion of energy and ideas into your work.. In addition to the making of furniture, you will gather information, develop ideas and experiment with tools and materials for work n your own shop and... meet other people interested in the same work.

      

Daniel Mack guides you through the process of designing  and building with branches, saplings and other natural materials. He introduces ways of thinking about designs which honor both the materials and the artist.. He teaches a variety of techniques for joining natural materials together with simple tools. This is a workshop for both the Playful and the Practical. You build a 12" high "trophy" chair which has all the mortise and tenon joints and design challenges of larger scale furniture. And for those wanting to escape the tyranny of utility, there is a supply of bark and driftwood to shape into rattles, wands, talking sticks, walking sticks, utensils, jewelry and other forms of decoration and adornment.

Experienced Rustics with very specific interests can use this day to explore Dan's shop and  barnfull of materials and make what they want to.He can help troubleshoot design and construction problems.  Dan introduces the common and specialized tools and a few ways of thinking rustic as we build a small "trophy" chair--with all the joints of larger rustic work (allow 4 hours) and/or a slab top table with branch legs    (allow 6 hours)

This workshop can give you the basic skills to make your own rustic projects from common woods and driftwood and possibly start a small side business · Spring and Fall · Cost: $150/day

Recent Versions     

Dan's Warwick Studio

March 2013      1-day, Hudson Highlands Nature Museum          

October 2011    3-Day Workshop, Warwick     

Four people from around the country came forthese three days. On Monday, a few people joined just to build that model "trophy" chair -- a mini-introduction to the agony and ectasy of working rustic.   Fred Bucholtz  brought a box support and made this lovely peeled wood daybed in three long days of work.  He successfully resisted Dan's digressive teachingstyle that distracts students in a wondrous storm of interesting objects and sidetrips to thin places and tool stores.

March 2011        Rustic Bodgering 

June 2010          Shakerag Workshops, Sewanee, TN   

 

from the sublime

to the ridiculous