Born in Stuttgart Germany in 1966, and based out of a studio in Langenburg, artist Friedemann Bühler has been working in wood for nearly 20 years. Although his roots growing up on a farm filled his head with dreams of one day becoming a farmer, this self taught artist was bitten by the woodworking bug in 1996, and by 2002 his output had gotten so good it justified the founding of his own studio. Today, Bühler continues to turn out spectacularly beautiful work with the help of a chainsaw, lathe and a smattering of tools (both bought and modified to meet the exacting demands of his art).

The process of creation most often begins in Bühler’s preferred forest of Hohenlohe, where the artist hand picks the felled trees then personally axes and chainsaws out the blanks that will eventually become bowls, vessels or lampshades. The true transformation occurs back in the studio where the massive blanks are either soaked in large vats of water and turned while wet or set aside to dry for a dry turning process. Once turned, the more delicate process of finishing varies widely – often including some combination of fine sanding, texturizing, brushing, bleaching, staining, varnishing and/or oiling.

From start to finish, a single wood form can take years to complete. The end result invariably showing a stunning attention to line and texture, hearkening back to Bühler’s primary sources of inspiration, derived from foreign cultures, epochs and contemporary ceramics. We’re blown away!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photos courtesy of Friedemann Bühler.