Bentwood Box

Instructor: John Manthei

Dates of the class: Saturday, February 24 & Friday – Sunday, March 1 – 3, 2024

Times of the class: February 24 & March 2 & 3: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm; Friday, March 1: 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm

In this class students will build a bentwood box of a design inspired by the Yupik people of the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta, but also borrowing from Estonian and Scandinavian traditions. The Y-K Delta is basically treeless and the beautiful traditional boxes built by the Yupik people were constructed from driftwood supplied by the rivers and the sea. We will be taking a much simpler path using carefully selected white spruce from the interior.

These are sturdy, functional, and beautiful containers that will serve many purposes for years to come and will introduce students to a variety of traditional woodworking and carving skills and techniques.