Cup for Cothren

[Scott Hackler]

Here is my latest piece. I made this specifically for a turning trade with Mark Cothren. He and I were paired up over on WoddturnersAmerica for a bowl swap. My "bowl" resembles more of a goblet...but technically the top portion IS a bowl form!

Myrtlewood, pierced, hand carved twist and legs, dyed and sanded back. It has a light coat of BLO for final finish.

1/16" walls on the cup portion, 3 1/4" x 6 1/2

Comments and critiques are always encouraged, thanks

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and one without the "dramatic lighting"!
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[Alan Trout]

Scott,

That is a very cool piece. I really like the legs.

Alan

[John Keeton]

Scott, beautiful form on the bowl and the piercing seems just right. I love the design on the legs/stand, and the coloring is excellent. Looks like one of the legs isn't quite even on the bottom, but it is difficult to tell from the pics. That is such a risk with four legs, but could be easily corrected here I would think.

I would say Mark is getting a really good swap! I am betting you get a beautiful natural edge bowl.;)

[Bill Hensley]

I'm impressed with your imagination and the ability to make it real. Well done!

[Eric Holmquist]

Outstanding piece! The form and piercing is great as is the dramatic lighting. It has never occured to me to use that sor of lighting on a pierced piece, great idea.

[Michelle Rich]

The lighting in the picture truly helps us see the piercing..those octopus legs are very outside the box.!!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Very impressive work Scott! Really nice piercing work, great coloring and I love the carved legs! Mark is going to be thrilled with this!! Thanks for sharing!

[Tim Rinehart]

Very nicely executed Scott. Mark is a lucky guy.

[Jason Ritchie]

That's a very beautiful and interesting piece! I wish I could look at a piece of wood and see something like that then make it happen! Maybe one day! Great job!

[Roger Chandler]

Well, one thing is for certain..........that one won't hold soup.............so it must be art! Very artistic, Scott. That layoff of turning must have fired up the creative juices a bit...........this is really nice. Great photography on this one as well, with the light source coming from above and through the piercings.............good stuff!

I think Mark will no doubt cherish this one, and I look forward to seeing the one he send to you. I did not get in on that bowl swap............just been too busy with other things besides turning! :(

[Scott Hackler]

Thanks folks. I will post a couple pictures of the AWESOME natural edged bowl I received in trade, very soon.

John, until I read you post, I didn't realize that one of the legs isn't touching the background! I assure everyone that the piece DOES touch and sit level, but appearantly the photographer didn't bother to check if the piece was sitting level in the photo tent! lol

[Doug W Swanson]

I noticed the leg, too. I thought it was done on purpose!
Very beautiful, Scott! The lighting really adds a nice touch and shows off the piercing......

[jwjerry w kowalski]

Scott, that is so different and creative, the piercing looks very nice and the legs make the piece, very artistic and well done.

[Jeff Moffett]

Scott, I love this piece. Really beautiful in every way with so many advanced techniques that illustrate your skill.

[Scott Hackler]

Thanks fellas. Here is a few photos of the AWESOME bowl I received from Mark Cothren, in exchange for this piece. Least to say, it is fantastic and a classic Cothren NE bowl that I am ecstatic about adding to my small but distinguished collection of woodturnings. It is about 13" at the widest and 4" or so tall. Walnut I believe.

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[John Keeton]

Yep! That is a classic Mark Cothren walnut NE bowl! That is definitely a signature piece for Mark and well it should be. He does a great job on them.

[charlie knighton]

Scott, very nice, definitely artistic

[Ken Glass]

Scott,
That is way cool. Great concept and execution. The NE bowl is also great. A lot of bark to keep on during turning. A wonderful exchange indeed.

[David DeCristoforo]

This is, overall, a very nice piece. I like the contrast between the hewn look of the base with the more refined bowl it supports. And, although most people seem to think it should only have three feet, I like the geometry of the four footed base. There is little to take issue with as far as the form goes. It is very well balanced and the proportions are excellent. Many might have been tempted to use a narrower footprint which, I think, would have made it look top heavy.

If I had a critique, it would be about the piercing. I have never done any so I have little room to talk but I will anyway. The piercing is very well done and looks to be very "even". So from a technical standpoint, it's fine. My "issue" would be the same as my "issue" with a lot of the pierced work I see which is that the piercing itself has a kind of randomness to it that, in my mind, conflicts with the inherent "planned geometry" of the piece itself. That probably makes no sense to anyone but me but since it's only my opinion, that should not be a big problem!

To end on a positive note, the dark coloring gives this piece an air of mystery that would probably have been missing had the coloring been lighter. All in all, an excellent piece of work.

[Rick Markham]

That's a fantastic piece Scott. (Great photos too) Your piercing and carving are really progressing. Excellent creativity/execution as well.