Student Design 2001

The contest was the Association's second nationwide woodworking contest. It was free and open for students in high schools or post secondary schools including colleges, universities, trade, art and union apprenticeship schools. Student Design 2001 was held in conjunction with the 2001 AWFS^®Fair^® in Anaheim, California.

The furniture categories for the contest were: Chairs (to include rocking, dining, office chairs); Tables (to include dining, decorative and occasional tables); Furniture-Casework/Cabinets (to include bedframes, bookcases, clocks, dressers and desks); Upholstered Furniture (entry must be covered at least 50% by upholstered materials); and Special Theme 2001: Ready to Assemble Furniture (RTA). In addition to categories, entries were listed under one of two category styles: traditional - with judging emphasis on craftsmanship; and creative ö with emphasis on uniqueness and functionality of the design.

The judges meticulously rated each entry received based on overall appearance, creativity, innovative use of materials, functionality/practicality, ease of production, difficulty, quality of construction, and the quality of the finish.

Seven individuals served as judges for the contest, including furniture designers, manufacturers, suppliers, retailers, and members of the trade press. The judges are: (in alphabetical order by company name)

First place award carried with it a cash prize of $1,000. The "Presidents Award - Best of Show" award had a cash prize of $2,000 to the student and $2,500 to the school. The recipient of the "People's Choice Award" is given a $500 cash award. Additionally, all finalists received award certificates, prominent exposure at the Woodworking Fair^® and inclusion in the resume distribution program.

The winners of the 2001 Student Design Contest are:

The "Presidents Award - Best of Show" and the "People's Choice Award" were both presented to Steve Lacey of Cerritos College with his instructor Anthony Fortner.

Traditional Casework/Cabinets Post Secondary

Steve Lacey
Cerritos College, CA

The 76 Dresser
The project gets its name for the 76 mortise and tenons that hold the dresser together. Elements of the design were drawn from two pieces in the Strickley Furniture book; the Chiffonier and the Figured African Mahogany panels. The stiles and rails are African Mahogany; the panels, door and drawer fronts are Figured African Mahogany; and the drawers slides and pulls are Ebony which accent the mass of figured panels. All construction is frame and panel.

Traditional Casework/Cabinets High School
(TIE)

1. Ashley Nicole Hilton
Orange High School, NC

Serpentine Corner Chest
Featuring a serpentine front with bird's eye maple veneered drawers. The sides are maple plywood, the back, solid maple. The drawer fronts have six layers of 1/8" Baltic Birch plywood between the face and back veneer. Edging all of the drawers are strips of walnut beading. The finger jointed drawers are made of ½" Baltic Birch ply. The drawer fronts are joined to the sides by a drawer lock joint. Underneath the drawers are solid poplar frames with floating dust panels. The top and bottom front rails are cherry molding, which were created by free-hand profile shaping. The chest is complete with German made pulls and mechanical slides. The finish is a Minwax natural finish topped with several coats of wax.

2. Janine Sprague
Orange High School, NC

Photo not available

Traditional Chairs/Post Secondary

David Mootchnik
Cerritos College

Side Chair
Sculpted contemporary side chair made of walnut with upholstered seat. The chair has a structure of four turned spindles for the stretchers. The back has a set of five shaped slats with center sections formed to follow the curve of the crest and back rails and contoured crosswise to fit the back. Upper and lower sections of slats are slightly tapered to add interest. The crest rail is sculpted to add character and provide flowing lines. It is finished with oil, varnish and beeswax.

Traditional Tables/High School

Katelyn Ander
Orange High School, NC

Star Coffee Table
An original innovation, planned to be used as a coffee table. The six legs are solid oak, with a small walnut bead detail near the bottom. The aprons were made as six separate bent laminations, using bending plywood and quarter sawn, paper-backed, and white oak veneer. All six aprons were then capped with a walnut bead and biscuit jointed into the legs. The interior of the top is MDF, flush trimmed into a circle and covered with a pie-sliced, paper-backed oak star, surrounded by a walnut circle. As a final touch, the tabletop was also edged with a raised walnut bead.

Creative Casework/Cabinets/Post Secondary

Tobias Sullivan
Miami University

Stand Up
A dictionary stand composed of molded plywood. The two sides are mirror images of one another. Each half is composed of twenty individual layers of maple veneer. The pieces used for the construction were "cut-offs" from a veneering company, used here to make something new. Veneers with particular figuring were selected for the outside layers and book-matched for symmetry. The two pieces are held together by custom milled aluminum fittings. The gentle upturn of the top edges was influenced by Yanagi's "butterfly stool." Its plywood construction also evokes some of the early experimental work of Charles and Ray Eames. This piece is meant to be as contemplative as it is functional.

Creative Casework/Cabinets/High School

Travis Johnson
San Marcos High School, CA

Ocean Bed
A unique mahogany bed that incorporates a feel of the ocean, complete with dolphins and whales. The four corner posts have a rope turn design. They are mortised to the cross members and bed rails. The cross members are hand carved in a wave pattern, accented with split rope turnings, thematically tying the cross members to the posts. The focal point of the bed are the hand carved, basswood dolphins and whales... a dolphin on the headboard and a series of whale-tails on the footboard. Both are suspended between the bed's cross members, bringing a sense of drama to the bed. Knockdown fittings allow the bed to be easily dismantled for shipping.

Creative Chairs/Post Secondary

Eric Su Shin
Art Center of Design

Smart Furniture (Dora Chair)
Flexible, commercial type seating for a conference room, classroom or auditorium. It was inspired by the dissection and play of a Korean word meaning "turning" or "rotating". The exterior is veneered with mahogany and the construction is made of preformed plywood. The hardware is composed of steel and aluminum. The swiveling tabletops are covered with plastic laminate for easy cleaning, durability as well as aesthetic contrast. The pivoting leaves found in between the seat swivel out at a comfortable arm's length to provide a convenient platform. The remaining voids resulting when the tables are exposed provide additional storage. Aesthetically pleasing, multi-purpose seating with great potential for large scale production.

Creative Tables/Post Secondary

Jeffrey Ludlow
Univ. of North Carolina

Mesilla
The repose of a rectangular plane countered with the gymnastics and brawn of a bent undercarriage. A plane of Bubinga, an African tropical wood, is split into 2 long, equal portions, allowing a yellow spine to penetrate the blood-red plane of the tabletop in 2 locations. This muscular spine is a bent, double-taper lamination made of ash; it joins two bridging pieces that horizontally connect the semicircular, laminated legs. These two legs touch the floor plane and tilt inward to meet each other.

Creative Upholstery/Post Secondary

Kelly Lee
Art Center of Design

Labile
This multipurpose sofa provides comfort, style and versatility at an affordable price. Its suitable space-saving design is evidenced by the sofa's ability to convert easily into a table with accompanying Japanese-style low seating chairs as well as into a bed. The customer has many options such as the type of wood selected for the frame and a wide selection of fabrics and patterns for the pillow and cushion covers.

Creative Ready to Assemble (RTA)

Brett Fischer
Pittsburg State