ENCOUNTERS WITH CREATIVES – JERRY MAXEY, BASKET AND MIXED MEDIA ARTIST

(FREE) Jerry Maxey will be on hand to demonstrate his basket weaving techniques developed over decades of persistent and skillful mastery.

Jerry’s work is wicker-weave basketry of dyed rattan and seagrass cord, and lathe turned wood bases, rings and rims. Each piece is a one-of-a-kind handmade original, even when he makes a second piece with the same construction. The wood incorporated in his basketry is all found wood, generally trees that have fallen in storms, and the wooden elements have all the variety that nature provides. Once the wood has been turned, he leaves them indoors for at least three weeks to cure and stabilize. Then he does a final sanding and finishes each piece with pure tung oil. The rattan spokes are then attached to the wood to construct the basket, weaving in the colors and patterns as he goes. When completed, he finishes the entire piece with tung oil to bring out the colors and produce a slightly aged patina to the work.