This week I made a Linden Dining Table for Rachel and … wait for it … Lyndon! I may need to change the spelling to the ‘Lyndon Dining Table’ after this :)
I made this special dinette sized, 60” x 36” version from Eastern walnut and sent it down to their home in San Francisco. The Linden Dining table is always a treat for me to make because it is one of the first pieces of furniture I designed that really felt like me; a table that I’d want myself, that was made with my own artistic eye, and could be made with my own unique processes I’ve build my practice around. Sure, I’d designed other things before, but they were often more derivative and based on things I’d seen before.
(Side note - to be fair derivative is not a bad word and I’m in the camp that basically all art is derivative in some way even if we feel it’s our own. ‘Everything’s a remix!’ That said…)
It marked a transition I made to being more of a studio furniture maker - a description I’ve recently taken on to describe how I work and what I make. The best way to think of studio furniture is to think of studio art. Studio artists like myself (I’m one of those too!) often make work in their studio, then share what they made with the world. It’s in contrast to say, a woodworker for hire, or someone who paints in someone else’s style. For me I don’t work from other designers’ blueprints, or replicate others’ designs anymore. Instead I design furniture and add it to an ever growing catalogue where folx like yourself can then have me remake them for you. I make semi-custom alterations to these, be it size, like in the case of L+R’s dinette sized table, wood species, or other small details to fit a home or patrons’ tastes, but I stop short of a wholesale blueprint redesign. In short, I’m looking for folx who like my work and trust my artistic eye. My version of custom work then, is when is looking to commission something I’ve never made, but I’m able to work my own taste and style into it. I want you to have a piece of me when I’m done with your furniture, not just my skillset!
In the coming weeks I’ll be making a larger version of The Linden Dining Table in cherry, so keep an eye out for it in the next updates!
You can also check out my Instagram for a lager gallery of the build via the link below.
Until next time, be well!
Kyle