Robert Fehlau

Woodturning Artisan,
Designer/Craftsman
Salt Lake City, Utah

Woodturning is a very tactile process. These objects are made to be picked up, touched and used. The balance and feel of the piece in your hands is very important to me. I enjoy incorporating natural surfaces of the tree, elements of the process of creating the form, textures, color, carving, or the posture the forms take on as the wood moves. Some of my hollow forms are turned, start to finish, from wet wood to allow the drying process to transform the shape and to create surface texture.

After living in Southwestern Utah, many of my forms have been influenced by Native American pottery. For me, simple flowing lines and shapes produce elegant forms.

These turnings are the results of a long, involved process of working with wood. Some can take over a year from start to finish. I use "green", freshly cut local trees from the Salt Lake Valley that might otherwise go to waste. After being professionally involved in woodworking for over 28 years now, it's reassuring to know where the wood is from. It's very fulfilling to work directly from the log, working with the grain patterns within, to best utilize the beauty of this warm medium. This also gives me control of the grain orientation, balance and presentation. Most of my pieces are hand turned on a lathe at least two times. I can turn forms up to 24 inches in diameter on my Australian, Vicmark bowl lathe. The first, or rough turning, brings the shape to a thickened form and allows the wood to fully dry and stabilize. With bowl forms, I use a technique that allows me to carve out smaller bowls from within larger ones to make matching sets from one piece of wood. After a slowed, air-drying period of 6-12+ months they are re-turned, or finish turned, to the final shape 6-12+ and thickness and meticulously sanded. They are protected with a food safe, penetrating oil finish, which retains the look and feel of wood.

To care for your bowl, do not soak it in water. Clean it out with a damp sponge or cloth. Periodically, wipe it down with some mineral oil to replace the oils, which protect the wood and enhance the grain. With care, these should be able to gain a warm patina through many years of use. I hope that you enjoy them as much as I enjoy creating them.

Thank you, Robert Fehlau

yarn unravels at my feet
I’m not sure whether to look up or down
click, click
before it’s gone
a moment captured
watching my feet as I walk
the cracks in the sidewalk

A bit about the artist…
Dogs, two wheeled transportation, and adorable cameras delight me. Indigenous to the Wasatch Front, I dream of the ocean, but know I would miss the mountains. These photographs are also some of my most favorite memories.
Enjoy,
Camille Schubert