The Woodturners Gallery
Bill Luce

Bill Luce

http://www.billluce.com/gallery.html 

I was born in Germany of American parents, and spent much of my formative years living on the island of Okinawa,  now part of Japan.  Many years later, well after I had begun turning bowls, I realized that I had long forgotten yet vivid memories of certain aspects of that culture that continue to influence me today.  I remember as a young boy examining in detail ceremonial lacquered wooden bowls, admiring their simple excellence and the wonderful way they felt so natural in the hand.  These many years later I have found welling up in me the passion to create objects that have a similar quiet power both when viewed and held.  The shapes I am drawn to are not the same as those first bowls in my memory, but my overriding zeal for excellence at all costs may be due in part to those Ryukyuuan craftsmen who dedicated their lives to making the absolute best vessels possible.

My personal mission statement:  "The exploration of the quiet power of understated form."

That passion is a major focus of my life, and I devote myself full-time to the various aspects of woodturning as an art form and a business.  I am dedicated to the ongoing goal of expressing myself in shapes that are a balance of harmony and tension. The harmony in the form gives a sense of comfort or pleasure while some tension is needed to add interest and surprise. The study of the how small nuances in simple forms relate to the emotional impact of the piece is now my life's work. More...