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Tasmanian Oak, Unlimited Lauren Dean
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Why Wood? Peter Costello
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Tasmanian Oak Gregory Nolan
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Exhibtion Works
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TASMANIAN OAK, UNLIMITED Eucalyptus delegatensis, obliqua & regnans
With timber resources fewer, now is an opportune time to consider the role that design can play in shaping ideas and culture. Tasmanian Oak, Unlimited challenges us to re-evaluate the potential of this timber and to consider the relationship between sustainability and popular aesthetics. In conjunction with the exhibition, Associate Professor Gregory Nolan from the Centre for Sustainable Architecture with Wood, University of Tasmania has written an essay looking at how and why we should consider Tasmanian Oak as the new exclusive Tasmanian wood ‘species’. Participating designers were invited to explore the unlimited potential of this material and were challenged to create products that showcase the qualities and flexibility of Tasmanian Oak. The result is a diverse collection of furniture and objects that uncover a plethora of capacity for Tasmanian Oak. The timber lends itself well to a wide range of scale, has excellent staining qualities, is variable in colour and feature and is strong, flexible and easy to work. The items in this exhibition utilise all of these characteristics. Patrick Senior’s Angel Lamp and Trapezium Table exploit Tasmanian Oak’s ability to bend as seen in the tapered, sectioned legs. Brad Moss’ sculptural objects and Simon Ancher’s coffee tables both demonstrate how treatment and finish combined with the timber’s own natural features can create distinct results across one design concept, with vastly different outcomes.
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In pairing together steel and untreated Tasmanian Oak in the MCB bench Laura McCusker does not fight against the natural tendencies of the materials. As the steel begins to oxidise, it changes the timber, by activating it’s tannins and causing the blue-black bleed along the grain. This synergy works to create an object that actually improves with age. Perhaps the most curbing limitations upon Tasmanian Oak are not inherent in the timber itself but imposed upon it by grading. An obstacle for many of the designers in this project was the limitation around supply; where higher quality timber was necessary there was a fairly homogenised selection available. We all know that supply meets demand - and this is where designers have the opportunity to offer consumers new choices in Tasmanian Oak - and create markets for a more diverse, and more sustainable product. Three timber species, ten designers and twenty-five unique objects: this exhibition is a small example of the unlimited scope of Tasmanian Oak. We are all guilty, at one time or another, of doing things a certain way because that is the way that we have always done them. But collectively it’s time to stop and reconsider the un-tapped potential of Tasmanian Oak.
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WHY WOOD?
Perhaps Eucalypus regnans, obliqua and delegatensis came to be called ‘oak’ because no one could think of another name for these species. Its qualities may have been reminiscent of the real oak that the early settlers would have known and perhaps they needed to be reminded of the familiar materials of home. In the early days of settlement they seemed able to hold fast, in their minds at least, to much of what they had left behind. Some houses were built facing the south, kangaroos were depicted as giant European rodents and this distinct species they cut for building the new colony in Tasmania might well have been called ‘oak’. But this misnaming was more likely a marketing ploy of more recent times, a way of giving some status to a material that I would argue never needed a status boost. In the very first years, buildings in the Colony were made predominantly of sandstone, a very labour intensive proposition, but there was plenty of convict labour to be had. It wasn’t until after transportation had ceased, that the less labour-intensive timber buildings were more often built. Masonry was reserved for grander structures. Timber then was available in large quantities so it made sense to use it, but why would we still use it today? Looking far beyond our subject, the eucalypt varieties that we call ‘oak’, we should be aware of the value of all species of wood. And while doing so, lets include other fibrous materials such as bamboo (a grass) and
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hemp. The reason why we should do that is that ligno-cellulosic wood, along with these fibrous crops are the only kinds of materials that can, with wise management, come close to being sustainable. For a start, they grow by themselves or as plantations and re-growth. Further, trees and plants soak up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, an irrefutable advantage in the times of climate warming. Other materials are mined and are therefore by definition, ultimately unsustainable. Also, they often are the subject of a high-energy draw in their collection and processing. Carbon dioxide is almost always an unwanted by-product along with other detrimental pollutants, which are still being pumped into the atmosphere or ocean, to our detriment. Well, such sweeping claims about the sustainability of wood and fibre needs a little bit of qualification because we know that not all forest practices are conducted sustainably. Where best practice is the norm, we can still expect a continuing process of research with a view to an even further improvement. But consider the alternative: materials such as steel, aluminium and other minerals, which are mined on a vast scale. They demand an infrastructure of transport and manufacturing to transform the raw materials from the ground to a useable product, and are overwhelmingly dependent upon fossil fuels. These materials often are becoming scarce, or at least available only at a greater distance from their end-use. A common example often occurs where concrete is used at large urban growth centres. It is harder to source aggregates close to the place of use. Also, re-cycling can be part of a moderating plan, but for most of our cast off goods, the final destination is landfill and that, in light of our current thinking, can only be seen as an admission of failure. Timber products are not made at zero cost to the environment but the energy required to convert wood into to a useable form is a fraction of mined materials. Products from it can be in ‘solid’ form, or engineered into laminated sheet material and structural building materials. Fibrous material can even be made into non petro-chemical plastics. In Spain high design value furniture is made from almond husks and natural resins. This is not new technology. There is an entertaining film clip of Henry Ford taking to a cellulose derived plastic panelled car with a large hammer. He failed to put a dent in it. The year was 1941. How different could the trajectory of the automotive industry been had these natural fibre-resin panels become the norm 70 years ago? At the end of the life of these cellulose and fibre objects, they can be recycled and then finally returned to the earth as a nutrient. That is real recycling. This remarkable and easy-on-the-earth life cycle is the benchmark for all our materials in the future. We can hope that as time progresses, science and technology and our own common sense may deliver this ‘holy grail’ to us. That is the ultimate goal of zero waste. Best that it happens sooner than later.
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So, if these materials can find an end as a positive nutrient charge for the next tree, they can also be reused, perhaps many times if the design is set up for this. There is a good example of this in the Botanical Gardens in Hobart where a pavilion called the ‘Wombat’ was built decades ago. It was designed and made by a group including the architects of the Design Tasmania building, David Travalia and Rick Leplastrier. The intention was to design and construct this eucalypt structure, using small section and standard offthe-shelf sizes, in a way that the materials can, if required be dismantled and used again. There is no design compromise to enable its recycling ability in any way. It is a beautiful and simple structure and well worth a visit. The worrying questions are these. At what point will increasing demand render unsustainable even well managed timber resources? Have we reached that moment now? Certainly there are instances where this has already happened and worse, there is criminal plundering at various places around the world. How can this be stopped? No doubt as demand grows, and it will (population growth has not yet moderated), we will have to make wiser choices so that sustainability can be maintained. It is also time for those producers, manufactures and petro-chemists to reduce their impact drastically. Fortunately, some are working hard to do so but in all likelihood it will prove to be very difficult to achieve the kind of sustainability that is available right now to those who use thoughtfully and intelligently the fibre provided by nature. In a real sense, every stick is precious.
Author: PETER COSTELLO, February 2014 Peter Costello is a furniture designer and currently operates Costello Design Studio. He has been a Board member of Design Tasmania since 1997.
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TASMANIAN OAK
This essay presents three basic premises. First, Tasmanian oak is the new exclusive Tasmanian wood ‘species’. Then, Tasmania’s designers need to seriously re-evaluate it’s potential and character. Finally, if our designers have any sense of sustainable practice, they will find that high-feature timber is the new black, the material they should strive to use. While simple to state, these propositions are more complex to explain as they include intertwined strands of forest and resource policy, material science, and perceptions of culture and opinion. It is useful to discuss each in turn. Tasmanian oak as the new exclusive species Technically, Tasmanian oak is the marketing name used for the timber recovered from three native forest hardwood species: Alpine ash Eucalyptus delegatensis, Mountain ash E. regnans, and Messmate E. obliqua. All three are fire-regenerating species. In the right conditions, they can grow to heights of 70 metres or more and live for several hundred years. However, each species prefer different growing conditions: altitudes, soils and climates around the state. All three need to grow for between 60 and 100 years in a native forest to produce a millable sawlog. Currently, the target age of harvest is about 80 years. We can’t economically grow these species in plantations in Tasmania. Though some E. regnans plantations exist,
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the seedlings of the Tasmanian oak species don’t thrive sufficiently after transplanting in our conditions to be commercially viable. Most Tasmanian hardwood plantations are either Shining gum E. nitens or Tasmanian Blue gum E. globulus. The timber from the Tasmanian oak species is marketed together because it has similar processing and machining properties. However, other performance characteristics are less consistent. The wood of each species has its own distinguishing colour, tone, strength and other properties generated by the specie’s genetics make-up, the growing conditions of the individual trees and their age when harvested. Tasmanian oak used to be the vernacular term for timber recovered from a gladbag of Tasmanian eucalypt species including the three main ones. It was commonly available and used for everything from wharves and house frames, to flooring and furniture. However, those times are now gone. As the proportion of the state’s public native forests in reserves has increased, supply of eucalypt logs from the remaining multiple-use forests has decreased. With adoption of the 1997 Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement (RFA), 40% of the state’s native forests were reserved and sustainable supply of eucalypt sawlog was pegged at 350,000 m3 per annum. In 2005, the Tasmanian Community Forest Agreement (TCFA) increased reserve areas to 45% of native forests and eucalypt sawlog supply was set at 300,000 m3 until 2020, when it was scheduled to fall to about 180,000 m3 (FT 2007). Plantation grown hardwoods were to make up the rest of the 300,000 m3 of legislated supply. With the TCFA in place, about 20,000 m3 of rarer species, such as Myrtle Nothofagus cunninghamii and Sassafras Atherosperma moschatum, was also harvested and processed. These timbers were promoted strongly as Tasmania’s ‘iconic special species’ and niche markets for them with furniture makers and fine craftspeople were developed or reinforced. Under the recent Tasmanian Forests Intergovernmental Agreement (TFIGA), another 500,000 hectares of multiple-use forest has been reserved and eucalypt log supply from the remaining public native forests reduced to 137,000 m3 per annum. Projections indicate that this amount will decrease further over the next decade. As most special species trees are harvested from older, wetter and more photogenic forests and most of these older forests are now reserved, future special species log supply is likely to be very low: almost certainly too low to maintain commercially reliable supply of any of the ‘iconic’ species except possibly Blackwood Acacia melanoxylon. The result of this is all fairly clear. For better or worse, we have chosen not to harvest and regrow the forests that were available to be harvested and regrown in the past. Once existing stockpiles are run down, the supply of the state’s ‘iconic
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special species’ timber will be opportunistic and commercially negligible except possibly for minor amounts of Blackwood. The only Tasmanian native forest species that will be regularly available in commercial quantities into the future is Tasmania oak. It will be the State’s new exclusive species. Re-evaluating Tasmanian oak’s potential It is time for Tasmania’s design community to re-evaluate Tasmanian oak. This is not just because of its impending exclusivity. Tasmanian oak has established provenance but the material we know today is not the same as the Tasmanian oak of previous times, we use it in different ways, and there is potential in material that we don’t use well. Tasmanian oak has established provenance Unlike the high energy transformative processes employed to make materials like steel and aluminium, timber is simply cut from logs. As a result, the properties of the original tree are clearly evident in its output, the sawn board or veneer. The output has provenance. Its origins can be traced through visible genetic and life-experience markers on its surfaces back to the organism from which it was drawn. Aspects apparent in any piece include its species, its age, growth rate, and exposure to damage in drought and bushfire. For timber and its use in design, provenance presents opportunities and challenges. Provenancial thinking (Nolan et al 2013), in its variability, connects the material to wider environmental and sociocultural worlds allowing the material to thrive in the way it manifests and relates to design, production, manufacture and construction processes. Provenance also conveys association with a place or region: its climate, soil, water, and by extension, its culture and stories. These associations occur at various scales and levels and can be highly specific. Designers exploit them. Tasmanian oak has an established provenance, a firm cultural connection to place and history both in Tasmania and in states to which the material has been exported for decades. The timber itself bears the marks of the life-experience of Tasmania’s forest and physical environment. Not unlike the return of vinyl records, Tasmanian oak past ubiquity can be the source of current and future attraction.
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Tasmanian oak is not the same as it used to be The Tasmanian oak we know today is not the same as the Tasmanian oak of previous times. It comes from younger trees, the species mix is different, and, generally, it is processed more effectively. In previous times, when Tasmanian oak was used everywhere and eucalypt logs were sourced more widely in the forest estate, the majority of logs supplied to sawmills were from relatively large, mature trees, often well over 100 years old. However, after the RFA, log supply came increasingly from younger regrowth trees about 80 - 100 years old. Now, with the TFIGA, log harvest age will go even lower. At the same time, the species mix has shifted strongly towards Messmate E. obliqua, as it grows in lower altitude and less photogenic forests. This age factor is particularly important for designers as the timber from older trees can differ significantly from that in younger trees of the same species. Like most organisms, trees go through stages of life. In their adolescence, the Tasmanian oak species grow tall quickly to crowd out competitors. If they are successful and survive, they settle down to grow in girth as they mature. The wood laid down in these separate stages differs. During their adolescent growth, each successive growth ring of the tree’s wood is generally stronger and denser than its predecessor. Once the tree is mature, these variations in wood properties cease and the timber tend to be more consistent. So, we have moved from a position where Tasmanian oak was almost exclusively the relatively consistent timber of mature tree to one where a significant proportion of the timber is and will be young material with relatively increased variability. In part to make up for this increased variability, timber processing now is generally more consistent and effective than in the past. The biggest improvement has been in drying quality and board stability. We use it in different ways A large part in my home is relatively typical Tasmanian building from the post-war boom of the 1950’s. The structural frames, external cladding, window surrounds and flooring are all Tasmanian oak. When built, the timber in the frame (roof, walls and floors) was also certainly unseasoned material. The weatherboards were probably partially dried when installed and only the flooring and window surrounds were made from fully seasoned material. We don’t build like this any more. Firstly, almost all the timber used in building now is fully seasoned and kiln dried, including the structural frame. Then, most of the structural frames in Tasmania’s timber
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buildings are now structural pine. Some hardwood is still used structurally but almost all Tasmanian oak is now processed into high-value appearance material. This transition from construction workhorse to architectural speciality was in full swing when the RFA was established in 1997. For more than a decade, major producers and users have accepted that Tasmanian oak is now predominantly a high-value appearance material and should be treated as such. There is potential in material that we don’t use well The visual character of Tasmanian oak represents the life of the trees from which it was drawn. This provenance is a common feature of timber. Johnson (2007) calls timber in an application the second life of trees. Drawn from genetically varied organisms grown in varied conditions over varied length of time, the material that goes into Tasmanian oak is actually a blend from which separate possibilities can be drawn: singularities of potential in what the material can do or be. As the visual character of materials is the plaything of skilled designers, these singularities are something to celebrate and exploit. With Tasmanian oak, the most obvious exploitable variations are colour, figure and in the presence or absence of natural feature. Tasmanian oak can be sorted into quite distinct colour groups. Bowen (1999) identified six groups in the Tasmanian oak blend and quantified them, namely:
• Blonde: pale yellow straw timber, making up 19.5% of sampled material.
• Blue: pale yellow brown timber with a distinct grey / blue tinge, contributing 5.3% of boards.
• Light Pink: light yellow brown timber with a wash of pink in the wood, providing 29.66% of the sample.
• Light Brown: light yellow brown timber, 29.23%.
• Dark Pink: mid to dark brown material with a wash of pink and red in the wood, 8.88%.
• Dark Brown: mid to light chocolate brown material, making up 7.44% of the material.
The percentage of each colour in today’s Tasmanian oak will differ as the species blend has changed. Anecdotally, the darker browns were mainly from E. delegatensis and North West obliqua and less of this is now in the mix. There are also distinct differences in the regularity of colour across the face of pieces. In some material, colour is relatively even across the face, while distinct bands of lighter and darker tones are evident in other boards. In the darker material, this variation is relatively unimportant but in paler stuff, this tonal variation can be an important visual factor.
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Sustainable practice: High feature as the new black Natural feature is another and critically important variation in the timber that can be exploited in design. Natural feature is the marks from the life-experience of the tree expressed in the wood and includes things like gum vein, gum pocket, pin-hole, fiddle back, and hobnail. If our designers have any sense of sustainable practice, they will find that high-feature timber is the new black, the material they should strive to use. Any working notion of sustainable development has to be based on using predominantly renewable resources to meet our needs. At the same time, we should strive to reduce our dependence on nonrenewable resources. With suitable management, materials that we can grow, harvest and regrow like timber are renewable resources. Sustainable design practice with renewable materials then requires that we make reasonable use of all fit-for-purpose material recovered from a resource. With the native forest resource from which Tasmanian oak is drawn, this means that we should actively look for ways to include in designs all boards that can be recovered. Currently, we are not doing that. In Australia, designers (and the market that they serve) generally actively discriminate against timber that contains natural feature in favour of timber without it. Our grading
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processes reinforce this bias. AS 2796 Timber - Hardwood - Sawn and milled products contains an aesthetic assumption that grades material without major natural features as more desirable than timber with natural features. It calls the material with the least natural feature Select, while timber with some natural feature is called Standard. AS 2796’s current High Feature grade is actually a mix of material with varying amounts of different feature, rather than a useful visual grouping. This catchall grade is considerable improvement on the old Utility grade but the inherent prejudice against wood with feature remains. The entirely unsustainable practice generates significant waste and loss. Logs that should be milled into high value products are not and boards that should be used in quality application are ignored. Uses have to be found for this material. As timber millers understandably are not going to mill timber that they can’t envisage being sold, designers need to work with them to generate demand, much the same as demand for special species timber was developed over recent decades. It is possible to grade natural feature boards into coherent visual sets (Nolan 1998) and use them in designs. Precedence in Australia and internationally shows that carefully selected high feature material is an exciting medium for design. With the sharp decline in all native log supply, natural feature material should be championed. It should be the new black, the material of choice for the designer who understands, respects and celebrates the provenance of the resource.
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Conclusion Those who design with timber now have to embrace the fact that Tasmanian oak is not what it used to be. With increased forest reservation, it is clear that special species supply will be so low as to be useless for commercial purposes. In practice, design with these rarer species will become the province of the lucky or the elite. The only Tasmanian native forest species that will be available in regular commercial quantities into the future is Tasmania oak. It is the new exclusive Tasmanian wood species. If re-evaluated, Tasmanian oak has the potential to fulfil this role. It has established provenance, a firm cultural connection to place and history both in Tasmania and in other states. Designers can exploit this. The material we know today is not the same as the Tasmanian oak of previous times. It is from younger tree and a different mix of species, and it is now used predominantly as a high-value appearance material in architectural design. It is no longer a construction workhorse. There is potential in material that we don’t use well. Tasmanian oak is actually a blend from which separate possibilities can be drawn. There are singularities of potential in its exploitable variations of colour, figure and feature. For design based on sustainable practice, the most important of these singularities is natural feature. It leads to the greatest loss of utility and presents the clearest opportunity for excitement in design. For the designer who understands and celebrates the provenance of the resource for Tasmanian oak, high-feature timber should be the new black, the material they should strive to use.  
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Author: Gregory Nolan, February 2014
Associate Professor Gregory Nolan is Director of the Centre for Sustainable Architecture with Wood, University of Tasmania. References Bowen, A 1999, Colour Sorting of Tasmanian Hardwoods for Timber Floors, Industry Research Report, University of Tasmania Johnson, AJ 2007, Forest and Philosophy: Toward an Aesthetics of Wood, Environmental Philosophy 4 (1&2), the International Association for Environmental Philosophy Nolan, G 1998, ‘Specifying natural feature timber’, 1st International Furniture Technology Conference Proceedings, Sydney Nolan, G., Shanks, J. and Loo, S. 2013, The antifragility of vegetal life and the provenance of timber in design. Berlin, Germany: International Symposium Transmaterial Aesthetics. Forestry Tasmania (FT) 2007, Sustainable high quality eucalypt sawlog supply from Tasmanian State forest – Review No . 3, Forestry Tasmania, Planning branch, August.
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TASMANIAN OAK, UNLIMITED Exhibition Works
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Loz Abberton, Who Did That? REGGIE lights 400dia x 600h mm Dyed Eucalptus, Eucalyptus
REGGIE (in praise of Eucalyptus Regnans) Creativity is a deep unconscious force. An opinion. Which doesn’t make it fact. However, a dry detail twinkling in my subconscious thoughts about design is this; on our doorstep is one of the most expensive strips of water in the world. Freight-wise. This latent trivia serves my products well - whether shipping around the corner or around the globe - because they flat-pack. Other points informing the ambition, construction and material choice of my lights before you is found in the exhibition title, Tasmanian Oak, Unlimited. Although using this lusty, local hardwood as a lightweight veneer did accrue limiting moments...I put it down to my unpreparedness and not the material (super annoying splintery stuff often skillfully crafted into beautiful furniture – by others). But process prevailed and I created Reggie a pendant light that is the sum of its repeated parts; a constant feature in my designs that makes them simple to assemble tool-free and economical to ship. And reveals the unseen see-able...the aforementioned ‘unconscious force’. Loz Abberton
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  Simon Ancher, Simon Ancher Studio (SAS) Coffee Tables (3) 1200dia x 450h mm Steel base, lime wash Tasmanian Oak Steel base, torched Tasmanian Oak Laminated timber base, sunburst Tasmanian Oak
As a furniture designer I am naturally conscious of the objects that people acquire over time, the objects they select, the objects they need and the objects they desire. Within the average home a table is one of those objects that attracts and facilitates both communal and individual moments. They are central to pivotal memories we have about our childhood and family life, they are functional, practical objects that we are comfortable with and gravitate towards. For Tasmanian Oak, Unlimited I have designed and made a range of generously proportioned coffee tables utilising Tasmanian Oak. There are three variations; one is solid Tasmanian Oak torched by flames, carbonised under extreme heat. Charred by the flames, the timber is still sound and has been rubbed back to reveal a warm timber tone that can be restored, reinvented, reinvigorated. Second is a lime washed solid Tasmanian Oak version, white and bright in contrast to the first. Third is a labour intensive investigation into lamination techniques and traditional veneering methods using a Tasmanian Oak that is normally utilised in flooring systems.
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Rye Dunsmuir XO Chair designed by Rye Dunsmuir, Fabricated by Alfred Buchinger 770h x 600d x 560w mm Tasmanian Oak, Leather & Foam, 2-Pak polyurethane Racked Table designed by Rye Dunsmuir, Fabricated by Alfred Buchinger 3200w x 900d x 730h mm Tasmanian Oak, 2-Pak polyurethane
XO Chair The xo chair gains its name from the timber frame that extends vertically beyond the seating plane, creating an ‘exoskeleton’. Materials were selected for their availability and suitability. The frame and structure make use of standard Tasmanian-Oak timber sections, maximising the material recovery, while forming a strong, lightweight and elegant structure. With the upholstery in full aniline leather, the materials will age with a graceful patina, to create an object with history and inherent beauty. Racked Table The Racked Table is inspired by the air-drying process of timber - rough sawn boards are laid in racks with drying sticks between them to allow for airflow to slowly dry the green timber. The long, narrow dimension of the table encourages communal eating while retaining ease of communication and highlighting the dimensions of the solid timber top. Often large tables are broad which increases the noise level as diners compete to be heard.
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  Jye Edwards Wall panel 1400h x 1000w mm (approx.) Tasmanian Oak plywood, galvanised tin
Through an interest of how things work and a keen eye for detail and design, my goal is to create furniture and objects that push design thinking beyond the everyday; testing and stretching materials to their limits to achieve the desired result. A solid background in traditional joinery principles and techniques is the foundation on which my designs grow, mixing in modern materials and technology where applicable. Living in and working with the Tasmanian design community reignites this deep interest. Sharing ideas and drawing from their vast wealth of knowledge and experience, these likeminded creatives inspire me to explore new ideas and find different solutions to design challenges. I have used Tasmanian Oak for my latest work due to its versatility and hardwearing properties, a timber most commonly used for flooring and construction. Whether left natural or stained the end result is beautiful pieces using a locally grown sustainable timber.
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Linda Fredheim 9 Drawer Cabinet 778w x 360d x 800h mm Tasmanian Oak Rocky Bay 170w x 145d x 90h mm Eucalyptus, plastic laminate
Living in Tasmania, it’s easy to take our eucalypts for granted. The trees are everywhere and for me the timber has always been both readily available and widely used. Framing, weather boards, fence palings and joinery. I think its ubiquity has led to it not being valued as a timber for furniture. I like the strength, density and hardness of our eucalypts, as they allow me to keep the structural elements slim and yet know that screws and fastenings will hold securely, and I like using it for surfaces that might have to endure knocks and bumps. Movement with moisture changes can be an issue, but as long as one considers it and makes allowances for it in the design, it shouldn’t be a problem. My pieces often feature components with contrasting colour and grain. With careful selection of the timber, I can combine different colours as well as figured and plain grains, to achieve the contrast the design requires. Sometimes when looking through the timber in the yard, I often come across one or two boards with such an interesting appearance, I just have to buy them, and then design a piece that will be able to use it. I quite like challenges of multiples, in terms of developing and refining the design and production process. This is the third 9 drawer cabinet I have made over the last decade or so, each slightly different in terms of size, proportion, materials and detailing. Rocky Bay box has been made from an offcut of some eucalypt studs that were destined for house framing. The detailing inside remembers the 1792 voyage of Bruni D’Entrecasteaux and his remarks about the magnificent trees he encountered whilst anchored in Recherche Bay. “With every step, one encounters the beauties of unspoiled nature....trees reaching a great height....are devoid of branches along the trunk, but crowned with an everlasting green foliage, Some of these trees seem as ancient as the world” Linda Fredheim
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Ian Hewitt, Axiom Lighting Hover floor lamps 240dia x 765h mm Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus burl Lidded Pots 145dia x 50h mm Raindrop Eucalyptus
WHAT DOES THE FAMILY EUCALYPTUS MEAN TO ME? Living in a dry sclerophyll forest for the last 30 years it has been a major influence. As a fine WOODWORKER it is a favourite timber for its strength and beauty. Its many variations of colour and grain. Its properties of cutting cleanly with hand tools or machines. Its ability to be sanded easily and quickly and polish well. As a BUILDER, in my own mud brick home, I used eucalyptus as a medium for post and beam construction, salvaging wharf and bridge timbers from the days when it was cut in large sections as an engineering material. As an APIARIST I have harvested many tons of eucalyptus honey from the peppermints on our own land in the Tamar Valley to the mighty E. regans of the Florentine Valley in South West Tasmania. (Eucalyptus regnans – the tallest flowering plants on the planet) Ian Hewitt
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  Laura McCusker MCB bench 1800w x 420d x 450h mm Steel, untreated Eucalyptus
Laura McCusker has been designing and making furniture professionally for 15 years. During that time she has received recognition both locally and internationally and now works with her husband, Peter Howard, from their workshop in Moonah. Since moving to Tasmania in 2003, Laura has championed the use of Tasmanian Oak as her primary material choice in the pieces she designs and makes. The MCB bench was originally commissioned by MONA for their Cellar Bar as part of a suite of outdoor dining pieces designed to sit comfortably within the existing design aesthetic; be structurally robust and yet easy to move, nest, stack and store; be low or no maintenance; easily repairable and rather than age gracefully actually improve over the years. She took this opportunity to show a side of the timber that might not ordinarily be seen, that being its changing nature over time when left completely untreated and exposed to the elements and the daily use for which it was designed. Initially the timber will yellow with exposure to natural light before bleaching to grey or even white, something that traditional finishes will inhibit or disguise before they degrade and need to be renewed. As the steel begins to oxidise, the tannins within the timber are activated resulting in the beautiful blue-black, almost indigo, bleed along the grain of the bench. Over time, steel changes too. The bright finished welds become muted and the raw black steel of the legs starts to rust. Made by Hobart blacksmith Ben Beames the legs are shaped with a small kink and splayed footprint to maximise stability and allow for uneven surfaces. The finished effect is intended to allow the piece to age gracefully and blend with its surrounds, ultimately giving it the warmth and comfort of a treasured pair of leather boots, or that favourite pair of jeans you wear on Sunday, the ones that get better with age and use. 
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Brad Moss Giant Bowl 410dia x 270h mm Eucalyptus Burl Two-legged Bowl 305w x 225d x 1000h mm Eucalyptus, burnt edged legs and bowl Three-legged bowl (with blue pins) 350w x 315d x 1090h mm Eucalyptus burl, Eucalyptus, paint Four-legged bowl (Burnt and purple plaster bowl) 440w x 390d x 1090h mm Eucalyptus, burnt Eucalpytus, plaster
The inspiration for this series of work came from the War of the Worlds book, movie and Vinyl record cover. From my memory, the album cover depicted large ‘long legged’ space machines/invaders landing on earth. The machines were very stable even with their long legs and this was a design feature that I worked on while making my long-legged bowl series. One of the great qualities of Tasmanian Oak is its strength and this feature made it possible to make legs that look fragile but are in fact stable. Tasmanian Eucalyptus is a wonderful timber to use and its properties lend it to joinery, woodturning and carving. Brad Moss
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One/Third (Alexander Lotzersztain and Designs in Timber) Solid Stool 360w x 360d x 450h mm Standard grade Tasmanian Oak, 10% gloss acrylic urethane finish
One third is collaboration between Australian designer Alexander Lotzersztain and Designs in Timber, a Tasmanian family owned business. With Tasmanian materials and craftsmanship and through collaboration with some of Australia’s best designers the One/Third collection communicates quality, loyalty and commitment to sustainable and lasting products. Taking full advantage of One/Third’s superb craftsmanship, the Solid Collection explore the ‘wooden’ aesthetic with a modern twist and a focus in functionality, robustness and stack-ability for commercial and hospitality projects. The solid is available in three heights to suit a range of purposes: 450mm (on display), 650mm and 750mm.
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Matt Prince Hoop Table 775dia x 720h mm Tasmanian Oak, tubular steel Hoop Stool 350dia x 445h mm Tasmanian Oak, tubular steel
Hoop is a collection of table and seating products targeting both residential and commercial markets. The intension was to employ a ‘design for disassembly’ approach to address issues relating to transportation and distribution, whilst streamlining production. Each piece consists of timber legs and top, which are connected using a tubular steel bracket. The bracket is a structural element and facilitates assembly and disassembly of components. It is also a characteristic feature that provides contrast between components and visually lightens the design. Addressing issues of manufacturing efficiency, Hoop takes advantage of the most basic production processes as well as utilising standard wood products. The leg components are created using an off-theshelf timber dowel that is hollowed out at one end and shaped to marry up with the tubular bracket. Importantly, this system of construction eliminates the need for joinery, significantly shortening production time. The ‘design for disassembly’ approach also addresses issues relating to sustainability. It is a strategy that considers the material value of each component and the potential need to disassemble the product in future for repair, replacement or recycling. Being designed to come apart as easily as it goes together, the Hoop collection enables the longevity of the product to be maximised with minimal effort.
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Patrick Senior, Indeco Trapezium Table 440w x 440d x 600h mm Lime wash Tasmanian oak, stainless steel, Naoron, light cable Angel Lamp 550w x 550d x 1800h mm Lime wash Tasmanian Oak Pestle and Mortar 75dia x 125h mm Raw E.viminalis (White Gum) Patrick strives for an elegant simplicity, endeavoring to bring beauty to his designs through line and proportion. He favours timbers without strong grain characteristics. The almost homogenous nature of Huon pine makes it a favourite wood especially for smaller items whilst Tasmanian oak probably tops the list when it comes to furniture making. Its great qualities of strength, stability and consistent straight grain make it a pleasure to use. Angel Lamp This work was originally designed as part of a Flat Stack Fold project, an initiative of the Design Tasmania Centre. And as the title implies, the work packs down to a small size enabling it to be posted in a mailing tube 1050m long x 100mm diameter. The work was inspired by the garden plant, angel’s fishing rod, Dierama pulcherrimum. Patrick has also extrapolated from the ‘fishing rod’ element; the lighting cable passes through guides à la a fishing rod and those guides double as nuts thus securing each segment. Trapezium Table Patrick set himself a challenge to make a small table after the style of his Angel Lamp that will knock-down and fit a 100mm diameter postal tube. Pestle and Mortar The Pestle and Mortar is the result of a customer request many years ago; Patrick stored the idea in the back of his mind, not sure what to make it from. Then he had some green firewood delivered, which he believes to be white gum (E.viminalis), almost impossible to split. This was drilled out and rough turned from the green, sealing the more vulnerable tangental and end grain surfaces against a too rapid drying process. E. viminalis is notorious for honeycombing and other drying defects.
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  Design Tasmania has been assisted by these partners to develop Tasmanian Oak, Unlimited