More Information
Ben has a novel, creative and intuitive approach to wood, and the working of wood. He tends to work by hand, using both traditional hand tools, and those inspired by other cultures; the use of the African derived handadze for example is prevalent in his work. He applies himself to timber framing projects, interiors, fittings, and sculptural work. Over the last five years he has specialised in the timber framing of reciprocal roofed roundhouses, using Welsh oak in the round (un-milled). A reciprocal roof is a roof in which the rafters are sat upon eachother in such a way that there is not a top or bottom rafter, and they are splayed out radially from the centre and under compression, creating a central hole and a fairly shallow pitch suited to turfing or other green roof finishes. He works from a coppiced sessile oak woodland in Carmarthenshire, west Wales, where timber for roundhouse building projects and sculptural work is sourced in a sustainable manner, and some of the tools used forged on site. Prior to this, he worked in France, dep. Correze, reframing an existing timber framed building, and creating interiors in French oak, including kitchens, staircases and a mezzanine. Construction work is interspersed with sculptural projects, although all are attempts to harness an idea of the inherent beauty and companionship of wood in the built environment. This is a good marriage of a simple rustic aesthetic with excellent attention to detail and quality workmanship.
