| DIY People: Cement Furniture |
|
|
|
advertisement
|
"I get bored very easily," David Crook says, explaining why he uses so many different materials to create his art. "I move back and forth between different mediums; steel, wood, clay, even mud. It helps to keep my ideas fresh." And it only takes a quick tour of David's home studio to understand what he means. His workspace is filled with an impressive array of objects, all of which he's created. When a hurricane blew down an 80-foot cedar tree on his father's property, David collected the tree, cut it into three sections and carved a family -- mother, father and child. Using mud and straw, gathered from different parts of the country, he sculpted life-sized figures that represent the diversity of mankind. He's made models of cityscapes from cast iron. And his workspace is filled with a variety of globes (figure A). "I've always had desire but I've never felt very talented," David says. "And as a result, I've had to work hard to expose myself to different materials and different ways of thinking." His current material of choice certainly represents a different way of thinking. David has created elegantly simple wall hangings and furniture designs using cement. "I've always loved cement," he explains. "It's inexpensive and it's the first manufactured material in history. The Coliseum was cast cement. When I first started making sculptures, I didn't know how to cast in metal and I couldn't have afforded it if I had known. But I was able to make simple plaster molds, mix cement, pour it and let it set. Cement is a very uncomplicated material that I've been attracted to from the beginning." David admits that the idea of creating furniture from cement is one that took a little time to develop. "When I decided that I wanted to try and make furniture from cement I knew that the subject of weight would be an issue that I would have to solve," he says. "It would be very easy to cast the shapes and pour the cement but a two-ton table (figure B) would not be very practical. Constructing it became a new challenge for me." David overcame the challenge in an ingenious way. Instead of casting with cement, he turned to an already existing construction material -- pre-cast cement boards. "I built a hollow frame from materials that are impervious to water and glued the pre-cast cement boards to the frame," he explains. "Then, using other additives and stains, I created a surface to cover the cement boards." The result, after many years of experimentation, was relatively lightweight, very durable, attractive tables. Having solved the engineering problems of working with cement, David then addressed the challenge of making his tables artistically pleasing. He did so by incorporating what he calls "a small element of life" into each table. "The idea actually came from living in an apartment with limited space where everything had to have a dual purpose," he explains. Using the surface of his table, he incorporated water fountains (figure C), fishponds, planters for bonsai trees and illuminated globes. As for people who question his use of cement for furniture design, David says, "I tell them that they have to drop their preconceived notions of what cement is. It's not just a cold, industrial material. You can make beautiful shapes with cement. It's very limitless and extremely versatile. In fact, many people who see my tables don't even know they are made from cement. Some people think the surface is made from leather. Most never recognize the real material and how it's being used."
| 
)
)
)
)
)
