News

With effect from the date of the AGM (14th April 2019) there are the following changes to AWGB officers :-

Russell Gibbs has resigned as vice-chairman and trustee.

Derek Puplett has been elected as vice-chairman. He will continue as secretary and will fulfill both roles.

Sheila Hughes has resigned as a trustee but will continue as newsletter editor.

Peter Bradwick has resigned as development officer and trustee.

Mark Hogan has resigned as seminar coordinator and trustee.

We would like to thank all those who are stepping down for their contribution to the AWGB and wish them well for the future. Not all of them will disappear completely (we don’t like to let people off the hook that easily!) so we look forward to their contributions as volunteers in the future.

The WCT bursary awards will take place in 2019.  Applications must be received by the Turners’ Company by close of business on Friday 17 May 2019.

The awards are open to UK resident turners whose work is well regarded by their peers and who could put forward a clear plan of how the award will advance their work, expand the boundaries of the craft of turning and raise the profile of the craft.

More details about the bursary awards are on the WCT website

After Ray Key passed away, his wife, Liz, with some help from Reg Hawthorne and Paul Hannaby, found quite a number of part turned items in his workshop. After discussion with the AWGB Executive it was agreed, following the example of the Pablo Nemzoff and Tony Boase collaborations, that these pieces would be sent to a number of internationally renowned turners to finish in their own style. The resulting pieces will be exhibited and later sold. The proceeds from the sale will be divided between Liz Key and the AWGB. As well as the exhibition we also intend to produce an illustrated book of the finished pieces.

Such was the sphere of influence of Ray, the project has resulted in 111 turners from five continents agreeing to take part in the collaboration and pieces being posted out to them (which was a mammoth task in itself and certainly kept Paul’s local post master busy!). Already some very impressive pieces have started to be returned.

All the pieces will be photographed and displayed on the AWGB website in advance of the three week exhibition at Nature in Art, Gloucester from the 2^nd to the 21^st of July.

The turners collaborating with the project are:

UK

Australia

Canada

France

Germany

Hans Weissflog

Greece

Nikos Siragas

Ireland

Israel

Eli Avisera

Netherlands

Marcel Van Berkel

New Zealand

South Africa

John Wessells

Spain

Pepe Lopez-Rubio

USA

We are pleased to announce that Phil Irons has been elected as the new AWGB president. The president is elected by the trustees for a three year term. Phil will be co-opted as a trustee until the post can be ratified at the AGM on April 14th.

The trustees would like to congratulate Phil on his new role and look forward to putting Phil’s extensive experience of the woodturning world to good use

The home office have drafted a number of amendments to the offensive weapons bill in an attempt to reduce knife crime. However, the amendment they are proposing will make it illegal to deliver any bladed product to a residential address. This also applies to purchases outside the UK.

The AWGB is opposed to this bill because it would severely impact on woodturners trying to pursue their hobby.

We suggest you contact your local MP and explain the shortcomings of the proposed changes. You can also sign the petition to have article 15 removed from the bill by following this link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/222776

We are trying to do what we can to get the bill amended.

We are pleased to announce the following new members of the team –

Webmaster & data manager: Carl Burn

Workshops coordinator: Alan Buckle

Alan will be dealing with bookings and place allocations on our training workshops.

AWGB ambassador: Phil Irons

Phil’s role will be partly helping out with the day to day running of the organisation, partly representing the AWGB and partly bringing his extensive experience to bear by acting as an advisor.

Every two years the Turners’ Company offers one or more bursaries, worth up to a combined value of £10,000, to help talented woodturners develop their skills and move to a higher level of achievement. the awards are open to UK resident turners whose work is well regarded by their peers and who can put forward a clear plan for how the award will advance their work, expand the boundaries of turning and raise the profile of the craft.

For more information visit the Turners’ Company online here.

To download more information about the bursary scheme click on the link:

Bursary Rules 2019

You can also download the application form using the link below:

Bursary Application Form 2019