Eisteddfod Powys 2019

The 2019 Powys Eisteddfod was held in Dyffryn Banw; this was especially meaningful for me as it was taking place in the primary school I attended.

The chair is made primarily from oak and uses walnut as accent plugs, a signature feature in my designs (see pictures below for details). I used steam bending to bring a interesting and innovative quality to the chair. Unique to this piece, the steam bent pieces have been twisted. This was a much more advanced technique than previous Bardic Chairs I have designed and was a "challenging" process to say the least!

The back is made of a very special piece of oak - when the tree was still alive, it was shot with a lead bullet from an old musket gun! As the tree continued to grow on my grandparents farm it pulled the minerals out of the bullet, turning the wood black. This can be seen in the dark colour of the oak used in the back panel. I then "book matched" the back. This is a process where a thick board is sliced in two, then opened like a book to give a symmetrical piece. Especially important, in my opinion, with such a unique and vividly marked piece of wood.

Watch the video below for the full process.