Allen Davis

Largely self-taught, Allen works from his studio/shop in Waynesville, NC.   Allen is surrounded by great stacks of logs, stumps, branches, roots, castoff cuts, rejected knotty burls, and other natural resources awaiting transformation. Bartered treasures from other craftsman – potter & glass – often add artistic function to his turned bowls and trays.

Now well-known for his focus on polychromatic segmented woodturning, his bowls, lidded urns, platters and ikebana involve the use of native hardwoods, (often cut from his own 10-acre NC hardwood rain forest) layered alternately with imported exotic hardwoods, (often recycled from cabinet makers’ waste bins).  His pieces originate from precision-cut shapes, glued together, then formed into a “blank”.  Large urns usually contain 450+ cut shapes.  This “blank” is chucked into his lathe, turned, and then finished with food-safe natural oils and waxes.  No dyes or stains are employed.  Each unique vessel reflects his evolving style with new color, pattern and textural variety.