Matt Day

I’m passionate about trees; they highlight so many of the joyful moments of our life. Swinging from a branch, making a stick fort, forming the homes that shelter us – trees are such an integral part of our lives. In my work I reclaim local logs – fallen in storms or taken down for safety reasons – and give them a second life as functional art.

I work with mostly hand-powered, traditional tools. A carving axe, adze, drawknife, and gouges give things shape, guiding the transformation from log to bowl or spoon. These hand tools are best able to work with the wood and not against it. I look to highlight the grain and structure of the wood, bringing out its character and uniqueness.

The pieces are created to be both beautiful and useful. They are a way to bring a sense of specialness, joy, and ritual to our everyday moments. Eating breakfast from a hand-hewn bowl, with a carved spoon somehow makes the food taste better and nourishes our hunger for beauty in the everyday.