Steve De St Croix, Yeoman of the Turners’ Company
I am very grateful to the Turners Company for the Bursary support which they offered me last year and for making me a Yeoman of the Company at such an early stage of my turning journey.
I turned my first bowl last September in a class led by Flo Hamer at the Bowl Gathering 2022 in Herefordshire. I am mainly inspired by the humble ‘everyday’ bowls of past centuries so well illustrated in Robin Wood’s books.
I work as a self-employed gardener and have all the usual commitments that family life brings. So developing a career as a bowl-turner in my spare time is a challenge. My immediate goals are to improve my skills and to develop new links with other Turners and the Company. Time permitting I plan to visit museums, galleries and archives to more closely study domestic treen, for example at the Mary-Rose exhibition and the Museum of London. I also collaborate with my wife Judith who has been experimenting with painting, staining, decorating and finishing my bowls to achieve different effects and surfaces.
I want to produce work for sale and I enjoy making bowls that are useful as well as beautiful. I am currently a facilitator at the BPCG Greenwood Group and I have taught beginners’ classes in spoon-carving and stool-making. I am very aware of the enjoyment and therapeutic value of introducing people to their traditional crafts. When I have improved my own skill levels I also intend to also offer bowl-turning classes.
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