From september 2017 to june 2018, I enrolled in a full time basis in the "Fine Furniture/Joinery" Program at Camosun College in Victoria, British Columbia.
During that time I was exposed to a highly demanding environment of furniture design, cabinetmaking and fine woodworking, by engaging in multiple projects apart from a permanent academic work. During ten months, we built tables, stools, chairs, boxes, drawers, cabinets, lamps, mirrors and bookends, using multiple techniques from wood ID, selection and break out, to joinery, finish and exhibition.
One of the starting projects was a "document box" in which we applied multiple joinery techniques (splines, finger joints, rabbets, mitres, wooden hinges, frame and panel) and our own veneered-designed interior. As a tribute to the "five minute dovetails" exercise, I thought it would be fun to make a 3D marquetry effect, matching veneer sheets in three different colours (mahogany, maple and ebony).
One of the most fun projects of the first term was the challenge to build two bookends using "form" and "function" with a historical referent. For the "pure function" one, I decided to use the discarded pieces of plywood from the Reading Honeycombs CNC manufacturing process, and built a bookend with multiple functions: to hold and display books in different ways, with a pivoting leg to act as a clamp to the shelf (as well as two indexing fingers to be aligned into the grooves of the Reading Honeycombs).
The second one was a "form" followig the previous function but using an historical referent. I chose Alvar Aalto's Paimio Chair, and adapted it as a "book seat", using bent lamination with thin maple veneers, and basic lap joints for the joinery. To achieve the small radius of the three bent shapes, I built multiple forms and jigs (both in manual and CNC Routers), and with the help of my mates and instructors it was happily glued with clamps and vacuum bag.
Other fun projects were the reproduction of the Tage Frid Stool in Ash, and the "Design and Build Assignments" in which we had two weeks each to make an original lamp and mirror using historical referents from styles we didn't feel confortable with. So, I went for Queen Ann's for the mirror (CNC with MDF, Birch and Poplar lacquered in white), and Arts and Crafts for the lamp (Birch). In this last one recreated one of Harvey Ellis inlays works into a bent and brick lamination lamp.
The semi final project (before the chair), was a wall hung cabinet for any function we decided. I designed a two compartment small jewelry cabinet in white and blue peacock (stained and dyed), using through dovetails for the general joinery.