Raymond Overman
04-09-2006, 10:54 AM
I had the chance to attend a demo with Al Stirt this past Monday night and all day Tuesday. I was very impressed. He's a great teacher and has a very relaxed feel to his presetation and lecture. He's open to answering all kinds of questions from technique, design, working with galleries, and we even had a nice conversation about inspiration and giving credit to influences.
Al is very laid back and humble about his work. He doesn't try to sell any tools, no DVD's, and gives you a list of all the vendors he uses for his materials and specialized tools he uses. He shares a couple of jigs that he uses (more to come on that) and even a slide show of where he lives and a discussion of his work and inspiration.
Overall, I learned an amazing amount of information and had a good time doing it. Of course my alternative would have been to go to work last Tuesday.
I did come away with a signed piece by Al. I brought a piece of Spanish Cedar with me and he used it in his demo. After he finished I asked if he would mind autographing it. Here's a shot of the piece.
Edit: By the way, if this was a finished piece it would rate a $500 - $550 price tag based on similar pieces in the Small Treasures exhibit at Del Mano. I wouldn't sell it for $1000. $1500 maybe, but not a $1000. :-)
Al is very laid back and humble about his work. He doesn't try to sell any tools, no DVD's, and gives you a list of all the vendors he uses for his materials and specialized tools he uses. He shares a couple of jigs that he uses (more to come on that) and even a slide show of where he lives and a discussion of his work and inspiration.
Overall, I learned an amazing amount of information and had a good time doing it. Of course my alternative would have been to go to work last Tuesday.
I did come away with a signed piece by Al. I brought a piece of Spanish Cedar with me and he used it in his demo. After he finished I asked if he would mind autographing it. Here's a shot of the piece.
Edit: By the way, if this was a finished piece it would rate a $500 - $550 price tag based on similar pieces in the Small Treasures exhibit at Del Mano. I wouldn't sell it for $1000. $1500 maybe, but not a $1000. :-)