About Stuart Stuart Mortimer is an award winning internationally known woodturner with a wide knowledge in many aspects of turning. His demonstrating and teaching skills are recognised both at home and abroad. Click here for details about Stuart's Gallery/Exhibition and distribution of works Click here for details about Stuart's publications Stuart Mortimer – Artist in Wood. Born/ Education 31st October 1942 and educated in Aberdeenshire Scotland. Professional Experience Stuart is a self taught turner from 1968, winner of many National awards for his woodwork, he has built up an International reputation and is highly regarded by his peers and collectors alike in many areas of turning, he is a writer, teacher, demonstrator, and consultant to turners and turning groups throughout the U.K., Europe, Scandinavia the U.S.A. and Australia. Work Definition Stuart is keen to push himself into fresh areas of turning and has a reputation for introducing new designs and ideas. RECENT ADDITION Stuart is now adding silver and gold to his work with considerable success. The twisted finials, beads and other forms of decoration is being hand cut from solid silver. He is on the register of the Worshipful Company of Turners and the Society of Ornamental Turners, London. More about Stuart Stuart Mortimer lives in Hampshire, England with his wife Linda who gives inspiration and is his strongest critic. He is a retired Police Inspector who became a proficient hobby turner before his retirement in 1989, he went on to win several National awards before starting to write both at home and abroad. He is well known and admired in International woodturning circles for his variety of work, fresh ideas and spiral work, travelling widely in the countries previously mentioned attending seminars and exhibitions as a sought after teacher and demonstrator. Stuart has an affinity with trees and their product and is continually on the look out for the unusual piece of material, in fact he admits to having scouts out there looking for him. Every piece of his work is hand crafted with meticulous care and finished to the highest degree for tactile and visual pleasure. He is the author of ‘Techniques of spiral work’ and has published a video titled ‘Wet Turning with a Difference’. Artist Statement I love wood and I am always on the look out for the unusual piece exotic or home grown, the hunt is part of the fun. I examine each piece very carefully before using it. Identifying or bringing out hidden features that will enhance the final piece is a joy. Destroying a hidden feature during preparation or turning can be disappointing and unforgivable. I am also constantly looking for very plain freshly cut wet wood that has no features or blemishes whatsoever. This type of material is very predictable and allows me to produce flawless and stable lightweight turnings. I like simple flowing artistic shapes, in spite of this I also enjoy the extra challenge of constructing works from several turnings. Retaining flow and design with constructed work is more technically challenging. This gives my work more versatility and myself a wider licence to explore new ideas and techniques. My wife is my strongest critic her feelings as well as my own to a particular piece is normally a good barometer as to how it will be received by others. The conception of new ideas, design and techniques quite often develop from disappointment. Attaining perfection in wood is illusive but I continually strive for this goal, I enjoy each attempt at the impossible? Stuart Mortimer Revised 2006. Click here for Stuart's resume in Adobe PDF format