Shaping the Vessel: Mascoll + Samuel

This exhibition of twenty exquisite works in wood celebrates two artists at the pinnacle of their careers – John Mascoll and Avelino Samuel — whose first tool, a wood lathe given to the world by the ancient Egyptians, has served as a springboard to imagination, flights of fancy and ingenuity.

Just as Michelangelo visualized David in a block of marble, Mascoll and Samuel ponder nature’s beauty, seeking what lies within each gift of wood. The artists use a lathe to shape the vessel, yet much of the design, execution and signature work of the two is accomplished after the turned vessel is removed. The elements of line and form are critical to their work but their artistry is unleashed through the tools, embellishments, and genius that only they possess.

Curated by Charles Farrar, Shaping the Vessel: Mascoll + Samuel highlights the mastery — and remarkable achievement — of two artists who have elevated the development of the art form. It is their work, which occurs after the lathe, that has propelled them to acclaim among the best working in the medium today.