Fall 2024
October 28 - November 1

Leave flat behind with a deep dive into the ancient art of coopering. In this five-day course, students will dust off the old graphing calculator, flex their design muscles, and explore the intersection of function and sculpture. Students will be guided through the process of designing curved forms and breaking them down into actionable steps including the fabrication of essential jigs and fixtures. Course instruction will cover compound curvature, mathematical functions, wood shaping, and methods of incorporating coopering into your furniture or sculptural practice. Coopering is an exciting process for both seasoned and beginner woodworkers, all levels welcome.

In this five-day course students will primarily use machine room tools to achieve the outcome of projects they desire. Instructor Chelsea Witt will demonstrate coopering techniques by making a functional pail/bucket-like form. Students can opt in to make this form if they find that to be a good use of their time. In addition, students may also explore other ways of utilizing the technique into their own designed project. Some students may want to spend their time exploring sculptural forms using coopered staves while others will want to incorporate these techniques into furniture foundations they already know.

Students will be provided in-depth instruction on how to use machines safely while milling and processing wood for their projects. We will explore and practice how to calculate the angles needed for their desired forms as well as how to do it if math is not their thing. Students will learn to make the jigs needed to achieve their desired angles on both the planer and the table saw. After cutting angles on machines Chelsea will teach the students how to tweak angles with hand tools if needed. There are many tips and tricks for gluing up coopered staves and Chelsea will cover several of the very accessible ways of doing that. Once we have a form glued up they will demonstrate how to smooth and finish the surface for those who desire that end result.

Please note: this class will not allow time for coopering steam bent or laminated bent pieces.

Tools 

Required:

• T-bevel Gauge

• Notebook

• Pencil

Recommended:

• Card scraper

• Bevel setter/angle finder

• Digital angle finder (ie- iwixey, tiltbox)

• Calculator (Phone is OK if it has trig capabilities)

• Spoke shave or benchplane (for smoothing purposes)

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to info@ptwoodschool.org.

Prerequisites

Open to all. Students who have used woodworking machines before will be able to take a deeper dive into this technique. It doesn’t mean that those who are uncomfortable will not learn from the process however. Someone stumped by how to accomplish coopered curves in their work will take a lot from this course. Someone hoping to do incredibly complex/extreme curves, better suited for steam bending or laminating, will not be able to accomplish that here.

Class Information and Registration

Classes run 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday in Building 304 at Fort Worden. Map
Please read our What to Expect page for general information about the School.
Please also read our Registration Policy.
Please sign up for the waitlist if the course is full.

Class size: 10
Cost: $895
Materials Charge: $75