Don McIvor

I have been working with wood, sometimes professionally and sometimes out of passionate interest, for more than 40 years. I have built houses, furniture, cabinets, and turned objects. Woodturning appeals to me because with careful crafting a shaped object catches the eye with the warmth and complexity inherent in the wood itself. The perfect curve of a vessel wall can evoke the first touch of our mother's body that brought each of us into this realm.

My involvement with wood began when I worked with Charles McRaven restoring and building custom log and post and beam homes in Virginia. We dismantled old houses, some constructed in the 1700s, and rebuilt them at new locations. I could touch the tool marks left in the wood centuries ago by a forgotten craftsman and note the care he took with his work. And I got to work with heart pine and chestnut--species long vanished from commercial availability. 

Crafting wood into an everyday object can imbue that piece with artistic design that enhances its function and enriches our lives. I also enjoy the exploration of more abstract concepts that lathe work allows. With whatever I make, I like to imagine that the object I create will be used for generations to come.

I am honored that my work resides in private collections around the globe. It has also appeared in the pages of American Woodturner and Woodturning Design. I am currently the editor of Woodturning FUNdamentals.

Follow me on Instagram @demcivor

Visit my website www.mcivorwoodworks.com