La Flamme

I am a self-taught wood artisan and woodturner living in Whitby, Ontario, Canada. I create unique and interesting wood objects using a wood lathe and hand carving tools. As a young boy, I grew up in Alberta admiring my Irish grandfather’s wood carvings and, at a young age, began carving whimsical houses. These early inspirations sparked my interest, but many years later in 2011, I took an introductory woodturning course and I was inspired. I started to see the possibilities in every piece of wood. I found myself looking at wood, its features and then imagining the angles, flips, twists and turns in the figuring of its wood grain. I use my lathe to bring these features alive. Each piece of wood I turn evolves through the free-form manipulation of the tool in my own hands. It is fascinating and compelling to see my art emerge. I have won prestigious awards from the Woodturners Guild of Ontario and the Ontario Wood Carvers Association. I am an artisan at local arts and crafts shows, demonstrated techniques and taught local woodturning courses. I am an active member of Durham Woodworking Club, Craft Ontario, Woodturning Guild of Ontario, and Brooklin Woodcarvers. I am now displaying at Ravensong Gallery in Pickering, Ontario and the One-Of-A-Kind Online Shop. My passion is to produce all aspects of woodturning but my favourites are multi-axis turning and live-edge wing and crotch bowls. All my items are made from local and exotic hardwoods then finished with 100% food-safe, non-toxic, non-carcinogenic finishes. I am proud to say it is “Hand made by Me!”.

- Kade Bolger