Jon Brooks

Contact Jon:
603-487-2780

RESUMÉ

Livejournal

Workshops with Jon:
Learn from Jon at the
Anderson Ranch Arts Center
in Colorado this summer!

Collaborations
with Nature & Art
Jun 28, 2010 - Jul 02, 2010
Create functional and sculptural objects from naturally formed and low-impact harvested wood. The opening question is: Who are we in relation to the trees that surround us? How can we thoughtfully and creatively collaborate with nature? We use milled lumber with traditional and inventive woodworking techniques, creating furniture and objects with artistic expression.

Links:
Jon @ Furnituremasters.org
Jon @ Snyderman-Works
Jon @ Sharada Gallery
Site Credits

Born in Manchester, NH, Jon Brooks earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts at the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York. Since then he has taught and lectured widely at institutions as varied as the Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina, The University of Tasmania, The Haystack School of Crafts in Maine, and The Center of Furniture Craftsmanship in Maine. A leading figure in The American Studio Furniture Movement, Brooks is highly regarded for his ability to combine craftsmanship, inventiveness, and poetic whimsy. Examples of his work may be found in the collections of the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC, The Museum of Arts and Design in NYC, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Queen Victoria Museum in Launceston, Tasmania, The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American Art, and the Currier Museum of Art.

Brooks has received awards from the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen and, in 1996, was honored with a New Hampshire State Council on the Arts Fellowship, and he is a Lifetime Fellow of the NH State Council on The Arts.

Artist's Statement:
A lot of what I do is to collaborate with nature by cooperating with chaos. This usually happens when I am walking in the forest foraging or trail making. I come upon them: the bent or wiggly tree forms that are loaded with suggestion. My findings are often the conception of a new piece. Chaos can be regarded as extremely good news.

In the studio the empty spaces of arms, legs, heads, or seats slowly and carefully become filled in with my interpretation and process. I love the carving, shaping, and constructing processes each piece requires as it develops and unfolds. History, allegory, metaphor, function and color are my allies on this creative journey.

I enjoy making furniture and sculpture that you can dance with, that is participatory, playful, and suggestive. Function is often a chosen limitation. For me working with wood is a subtractive process, removing all that is unnecessary. It's like eating an artichoke, peeling the outer leaves to get to the heart.

Born in Manchester, NH, Jon Brooks earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts at the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York. Since then he has taught and lectured widely at institutions as varied as the Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina, The University of Tasmania, The Haystack School of Crafts in Maine, and The Center of Furniture Craftsmanship in Maine. A leading figure in The American Studio Furniture Movement, Brooks is highly regarded for his ability to combine craftsmanship, inventiveness, and poetic whimsy. Examples of his work may be found in the collections of the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC, The Museum of Arts and Design in NYC, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Queen Victoria Museum in Launceston, Tasmania, The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American Art, and the Currier Museum of Art.

Brooks has received awards from the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen and, in 1996, was honored with a New Hampshire State Council on the Arts Fellowship, and he is a Lifetime Fellow of the NH State Council on The Arts.

Artist's Statement:
A lot of what I do is to collaborate with nature by cooperating with chaos. This usually happens when I am walking in the forest foraging or trail making. I come upon them: the bent or wiggly tree forms that are loaded with suggestion. My findings are often the conception of a new piece. Chaos can be regarded as extremely good news.

In the studio the empty spaces of arms, legs, heads, or seats slowly and carefully become filled in with my interpretation and process. I love the carving, shaping, and constructing processes each piece requires as it develops and unfolds. History, allegory, metaphor, function and color are my allies on this creative journey.

I enjoy making furniture and sculpture that you can dance with, that is participatory, playful, and suggestive. Function is often a chosen limitation. For me working with wood is a subtractive process, removing all that is unnecessary. It's like eating an artichoke, peeling the outer leaves to get to the heart.