Wood rules on this Coast. By noon last Saturday over 700 people had already visited the Wood Expo at the Seaside Centre in Sechelt, and many more were arriving to see the annual show organized by the Sunshine Coast Community Forest. More woodworking displays than ever before were spilling out of the building – 24 exhibitors, including groups such as the Suncoast Woodcrafters Guild.
“Fifteen of the exhibitors are new to the show,” said organizer Linda Harris, adding that some of the woodworkers were also new to the Coast.
From the delicately engraved wooden spoons of Krystin Clark (The Grateful Goblin) to the massive, natural state, driftwood logs of Darcy Gertz, the show was full of highlights. Amid the functional live edge tables and rustic benches were whimsical items such as the cottonwood bark, hand-carved wood spirits from Jerry Frost or the minimalist, geometric blocks from Drew Garrick.
Patrick Skidd’s unique and colourful wood art drew much attention, especially his method of using up scraps of leftover wood in an intricate mosaic. It took him 14 years to complete, he told one impressed viewer.
One of the exhibitors, Mike Whalen, who was showing his father’s authentic paintings of loggers on the job, has long wanted to see a wood gallery or wood centre on the Coast that would reflect the community’s logging roots. After seeing the interest from the public in this natural fibre, perhaps that time has come.
