Artist’s Statement for John Shrader
I try to convey a feeling of grace and elegance with my work. I love the richness of wood grain and delight in displaying it so others can also appreciate its beauty. While I find perfection admirable, for me it is the siren song leading to being safe, so I strive most of all for excellence. I utilize my background in engineering to facilitate executing difficult projects, but the technology is always subservient to communicating a feeling or an idea. For me, working in my shop a joyful experience. I hope that this joy is communicated to those who acquire my work, and that they share in it.
Biographical Summary for John Shrader
I have made things with my hands as long as I can remember, such as model airplanes, jewelry, furniture, optical instruments, and most recently wood turnings. I retired from Boeing in 1998 where I was first an engineer and then a manager working with explosives, lasers, electric guns, advanced inspection techniques, etc. While I enjoyed my Boeing career immensely, I missed being “hands on” my last years as a manager. Shortly before I retired I started wood turning. About 6 years ago I ran out of friends and relatives to give my bowls to, so I started selling my work through the Northwest Fine Woodworking Gallery. Since then I have increased my outlets to The Real Mother Goose in Portland OR, Semanatics in Edmonds WA, The Bellevue Arts Museum Gift Store in Bellevue, WA and The Artful Home, an on-line gallery. In 2008, my turning won the NW Fine Woodworking 29th annual box competition in both the juried and people’s choice categories.
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