Thanksgiving Weekend
November 24 – 26, 2023
Studio Open House at Bradford Woodworking
For 30 years, Brad Smith and Royce Yoder have brought together a variety of artists and craftspeople for a fun-filled weekend of art and craft. Held each year over Thanksgiving weekend, the Studio Open House has become a tradition among families and friends alike. This year Brad and Royce have invited Mandy Martin and Scott Staats to join them at the Studio Open House.
Brad Smith
Furniture
Furniture makers frequently ride the coattails of easily recognized styles such as Shaker, Country or Arts and Crafts. In my work, I intentionally try not to be pigeonholed into an existing furniture design category. What I try to do is make furniture that has not been seen before, but still retains some familiarity. That familiarity is gained through the use of good proportions, honest construction, and old-fashioned usefulness. My basic concept is to use “off the shelf” parts in ways that were never intended—as elements in the furniture. Because the shop is located on a farm, I decided to develop that as a “theme,” which is why the parts are farm-related. The idea is to make something special out of something ordinary. Ax handles seemed to be the perfect chair leg with their gentle S-curve and knobby foot. Pitchforks make ideal supports for chair backs and they even have some spring when you lean back. Disc blades, used on farm equipment, are equally good as bases for my coatrees, lamps, and music stands. These “parts” have become significant elements in my design vocabulary and give the furniture its distinctive Bradford “look.”
– Brad Smith
Royce Yoder
Stoneware Pottery
I enjoy making pots! I have a BA/Art from Goshen College, Goshen, IN, 1976. Started making pots for a living in 1978 and have been in my current studio since 1982. I love the rhythm, flow, and pace of working by myself. Each day has new problems to solve and work is never dull.
There is a certain satisfaction of seeing completed pieces at the end of a day, week, month, and year. The challenge is staying fresh and not allowing the work to become routine. I am always looking to “smarten up” my work by tweaking the details of form, color and purpose. It has been a rich and rewarding career.
– Royce Yoder
Mandy Martin
Vibrant Paintings
My acrylic paintings are about feeling it all! I paint botanical subjects with splashing paint, bold lines and vibrant colors. When I look at flowers or a landscape, I see a miraculous display of color and movement unfolding before my eyes. Nature seems to accomplish the task of survival and procreation with such beauty and ease. To capture that feeling of wonder, I exaggerate color, contrast and shape. Every brushstroke reflects the freedom to express what is moving me.
Poppies are featured in many of my paintings, symbolizing resilience and rebirth. I practice intuitive painting, and my work explores layers of texture, rhythm and movement as I interpret it in the natural world. When I see poppies sprouting each year, I am amazed by how something so beautiful and fragile can be so resilient. It is this combination of fragility and strength that inspires me to paint them again and again.
– Mandy Martin
Scott Staats
Blown Glass
Drawing upon the shapes and colors of the natural world I use hot glass to design works of art that reflects its beauty, elegance and sophisticated chaos. The fluidity of molten glass has a beautiful way of capturing motion and freezing it in place. Incorporating traditional techniques, vibrant color applications and a variety of surface finishing techniques my work blends realism with the abstract to create an alluring collection.
– Scott Staats
Thanksgiving Weekend
November 24 – 26, 2023
Hours
November 24, 10am – 5pm
November 25, 10am – 5pm
November 26, Noon – 5pm
Location
Bradford Woodworking
3120 Fisher Road
Lansdale PA 19490