Business & Tech

Barnstable Artist Featured in Handcrafted Furniture Show

A West Barnstable resident is part of the "Made in Massachusetts: Studio Furniture of the Bay State" show.

The work of Stephan Whittlesey, a West Barnstable artist, is being featured in a handcrafted furniture show called "Made in Massachusetts: Studio Furniture of the Bay State."

The show, which is open until February 9, 2014 takes place at the Fuller Craft Museum, 455 Oak Street, Brockton. Hours are: Tuesday - Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday 5 to 9 p.m.

Below is Stephan Whittlesey's artist biography:

While there is a vast array of artists who relish in the practice of
using "found objects," too often the significance of each individual
element gets lost, as the focus becomes the collective sum of the parts
in the finished work.  However, the furniture of Stephen Whittlesey
demands viewers to have an even deeper respect for each piece of
salvaged material, as every element of the construction has critical
value for the object as a whole.  Here, the vertical components are
fashioned of tall, irregular sticks of blueberry, while the tabletop is
formed of painted pine shutters, salvaged from an old house, surrounded
by strips of cherry.   Whittlesley challenges us in this and in many of
his other works to assess how we value and depend upon the objects that
constantly surround us in our daily living.

Beginning in 1992, Whittlesey served as a professor at the Program in
Artisanry at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth; he retired in
2010. His work has been shown in numerous galleries and museums across
the country, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Gallery NAGA,
and the Center for Art in Wood in Philadelphia. Whittlesey has also been
profiled in publications such as The Boston Globe, American Craft, and
Fine Woodworking. He continues to produce studio furniture and sculpture
out of his home and studio in West Barnstable, Massachusetts.


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