Artist David Blackburn
About
It’s common knowledge that genius often rears its head in youth. Sometimes it looks more like neurons run amuck than organized thought. Or simply the product of intense parental training, discipline enforced by structure, vis-a-vis the so-called Tiger Mother model. But when you’re talking about David Blackburn, you know you’ve met the real thing. So it comes as no surprise to learn that this Ventura-based, award-winning artist has been obsessed with wood for as long as he can remember.
A military brat, Blackburn’s family did the serviceman’s shuffle, moving frequently and living on military bases around the world. From New Orleans to Alaska to Japan, Blackburn spent afternoons and weekends scouting out bits of wood to forge into his latest project, from simple forts to intricate playhouses. Wood, any kind of wood, he tells me, earned a second look: gnarled logs from swamps, forked sticks from the forest, and an occasional piece of lumber scavenged from a public works shed. “Even in Alaska, on a desolate island with no trees, I was a scrounger. I made a two-story fort in third grade,” he chuckles. “Every six months or so the navy would come tear it all down.” To Blackburn, this was another opportunity. A new project to explore.
Statement
Creativity is a gift and reflection of the Master Designer. It’s that incredible beauty of design in nature which inspires me as an artist. I’m particularly fascinated by the possibilities of complexity and fluidity in burl wood as well as the infinite combinations in geometric patterns and vivid contrasts afforded especially by the exotic varieties.
Wood art is the tree that never dies. I use burl, woodgrain, shape, texture and color much as a musician uses harmony and dissonance. Irregularities and “flaws” often become focal points in my pieces. Ideas and inspiration are everywhere - a leaf, the pattern of a necktie, a piece of machinery, bits of driftwood or architectural design to name a few. My art is interactive - it draws hands to experience it’s warmth through touch.
I “read” wood in order to cut and present it in the most dramatic way for the intended impression. Arranging combinations and contrasts so as to appear natural or complimentary, creating the appearance of veining or marbelizing of separate pieces together as if they were found that way, is often my goal. The use of natural edges and other elements such as antler, metal, stone, gems, fossils and shell are melded with wood for creative expressions and vivid experience. Carving, sculpting and the use of concealed or subtle hiding places offer a novel touch and interest to some of my pieces. Sometimes whimsical features enters into the mix; sometimes unlikely pairings become the opposites that attract.
Bio
My father was a Navy Sea Bee and we moved from deployment to deployment - Pacific Grove, California, Japan, back to Pacific Grove, back to Japan, then to Adak, Alaska, Gretna, Louisiana, Monterey, California and finally Oxnard, California in 1961. After graduating from Oxnard High, I attended Ventura College for a two years until Uncle Sam sent me to Viet Nam 1969 to 1970. Fortunate to return, I went back to Ventura College for a year before transferring to Fresno State College where I received a B.A. in Psychology.
My goal was to be involved in youth ministry, working with an organization I had enjoyed as a young man and worked with part time before graduating from Fresno State. I married during my last year at Fresno and we moved to Ventura in 1973 after my graduation. There I began working as a high school club director for Campus Life and also studied for and received a ministerial license in order to have access to and help kids who had been incarcerated in Juvenile Hall or jail. Every year Campus Life would put on huge Halloween events which were called Scream in the Dark. I loved the extensive design and prop building process. The most elaborate prop I built was in 1975 - a coffin that was used to exit Scream. The kids would come into the upstairs “parlor”, complete with mourners and low lighting, and the only way to exit was to lie down in the coffin, have the lid closed and then with a slight tilt slide out the “toe” which opened onto a slide down to the first floor exit. Later, I spent a short time living in Grants Pass, Oregon, working with junior high and high school kids until it became necessary to move back to Ventura in 1979. The economy was bad, but I was able to get a job building patio covers and home remodeling. I moved into supervising construction and during a brief lay-off period, I thought that I could create some income by building beautiful cigar humidors to supplement my free-lance building jobs. It was then that I began to explore the art of box building and became involved in art associations and venues. Design concepts and new avenues of creativity suddenly opened to me. Now, I’m overwhelmed with ideas and have drawers stuffed with sketches. I sometimes wake-up in the middle of the night designing a piece.
Looking back, it seems creative building was always in my blood. I remember scavenging for wood to build a fort at the age of five while we were stationed in Japan and nearly drowned fishing wood out of a reservoir until our house boy saw me through the upstairs window of our apartment and ran to fish me out with my wood. At the age of eight on Adak, Alaska, an island without trees, I scavenged trash wood from large metal dumpsters to build my two-story fort with a secret entrance. I have great memories of foraging through the swamps near our home in Gretna, Louisiana and in high school, I loved customizing model cars for competitions. While I was in Viet Nam I began carving native wood and black thorn with my pocket knife. I loved designing and building for the annual Scream in the Dark. I built a tree house and Koi pond for my son and daughter. The idea of “artist” never occurred to me until much later. I just loved creating things.
Currently, I’m employed as a personal property manager for a large estate in Camarillo, California, which is close and enables me to spend more time creating that next competition piece. My wife often refers to herself as the Wood Widow. I still scavenge - bits and pieces of anything I might like to incorporate into a piece. Fortunately, my wife also shares my vision and is always on the look-out for any bit of something she thinks I might be able to use. We often discuss the function, design and engineering on a particular piece. My son is also an artist, although his medium is painting/graphic art, and my sister is an assemblage artist and gallery director in Eugene, Oregon. My home is one crazy collection of the stuff of art.
One of my greatest frustrations is not having adequate workshop space. I’ve made-do with my garage, spending much of my time moving equipment around as needed for the task at hand. I’m like a rabbit in my warren with bunny trails everywhere through stacks of wood. But I’ve been greatly blessed. I’ve had some amazing achievements in competitions and been honored with interviews and magazine articles. I never imagined this could be so when I first began this journey.
I’m inspired by everything from architecture to jewelry, but mostly by nature itself. I have an eclectic style and never know where the next piece will come from. My problem isn’t finding inspiration. My problem is having too much - it’s a kind of madness.
David Blackburn
RESUME
COMPETITIONS & SHOWS
2001
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, Contemporary Accessories; Honorable Mention
• Orange County Fair: Master Wood Division, Contemporary Accessories; Judge’s Special Award
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show; Wood Division; 1st Place, Best of Show
2002
• Orange County Fair: Master Wood Division, Contemporary Accessories; 1st Place, Best of Division,
Best of Show, Jurors’ Choice (two awards), 2nd Place, Austin Hardwood Industry Award - Best of Show
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division; 3rd Place
• Northwest Fine Woodworking: Juried participant in National Box and Container Show, Seattle, WA
• California State Fair: Spirit Of Wood (non competitive)
2003
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, Contemporary Accessories; 2nd Place
• Orange County Fair: Master Wood Division; Lee Valley Tools Industry Award - Best of Show
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division; 1st Place
• California State Fair: Competition among Best of Show at County Fairs from 2002; 5th Place
2004
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division; 1st
Place, 2nd Place and Best of Show
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, Contemporary Furniture; 3rd Place and a 2nd
Place Industry Award for finishing.
• Buenaventura Art Gallery: Group Show, March/April; Merit Award. Group Show May/June;
Merit Award. Group Show, July/August; Merit Award. Group Show, October/November; participant.
2005
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, Traditional Furniture; 4th Place
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division; 1st Place,
Honorable Mention and People’sChoice
• Orange County Fair: Master Wood Division; Contemporary Accessories; 3rd Place, Honorable Mention
in Contemporary Furniture
2006
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, Contemporary Accessories; 3rd Place
• Orange County Fair: Master’s Division; 1 Place, Best of Division, Best of Show, 2nd Place,
Honorable Mention and 3rd Best of Show Industry Awards
• Ojai Art In The Park: Juried show; 1st Place, Best of Show
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division;
1st Place, 2nd Place and Best of Show
• Buenaventura Art Assoc.: Harbor Village Gallery, Ventura: 4 Group Shows, 4 Merit Awards
2007
• Buenaventura Art Gallery: 2007 Open Competition, Tri-Counties: 2nd Place in 3D,
Merit Awards in Group Competition
• Ventura County Fair Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division; 1st
and 2nd Place and People’s Choice
• Orange County Fair Master Division; 1st Place, Best of Division and 3rd Place,
Contemporary Accessories
2008
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, 2nd Place, Contemporary Furniture
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, 1st & 2nd Place, Wood Division;
Peoples’ Choice; Directors’ Award
• Buenaventura Art Assoc.: Harbor Village Gallery Juried Show, 1st Place, 3D
• Ojai Art In The Park: Juried Show, 3rd Place
2009
• Buenaventura Art Assoc.: Annual Open Competition: 1st Place in 3D for Buckeye & Antler
Triangle Box; Honorable Mention for Haiku Bench
• Orange County Fair: Master Division: 3rd Place Contemporary Furniture for Deer-Footed Table;
Honorable Mention for It’s a Jewel
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division: 1st Place. People’s Choice
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, 1st Place, Contemporary Furniture
• San Luis Obispo Center for the Arts: Dimensions show: Invited Artist representing Ventura County
2010
• Buenaventura Art Assoc.: Annual Open Competition: 1st Place in 3D for Haiku Box
• Thousand Oaks Art Assoc.: Annual Open Competition: Best of Show for Haiku Bench
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood, 1st & 3rd Place, Contemporary Accessories
• Orange County Fair: Master’s Division: 1st Place, Contemporary Furniture; 1st Place & Best of Show,
Contemporary Accessories (Dragonfly Chest)
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division: 1st Place
(Wood Lily Pedestal), 3rd Place (River Runs Through Table), People’s Choice, River Runs Through Table
2011
• Thousand Oaks Art. Assoc.: Annual Open Competition: 1 Place, Sculpture
• Westlake Village Art Guild: Annual Open Competition: 3rd Place, 3-D
• San Diego Del Mar Fair: Design In Wood: Master Woodworker’s Trophy, A River Runs Through;
3rd Place, Contemporary Accessories, True Love
• Orange County Fair: 2nd Place People’s Choice, Professional Woodworking
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show, Wood Division: 1st Place,
2nd Place, Director’s Award
2012
• Westlake Village Art Guild: Open Competition - 1st Place, Sculpture/3D, True Love Heart st Jewelry Chest
• Orange Co. Fair: Fine Woodworking, One of a Kind Wood Art: 1st Place, Best of Division, Juror’s Award &
People’s Choice for True Love
• Ventura Co. Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show; Wood Division, 1st Place, Ancestry I
2013
• Design In Wood / Del Mar San Diego - Rhapsody: 1st Place Traditional Accessories, Oak Tree Chest, 2nd Place Art Furniture
• Ventura Fair / Professional Arts - Rhapsody: 1st Place in Wood, Best Of Show, People's Choice, Oak Tree Chest: Honorable Mention
2014
• Westlake Village Art Guild / Open Competition - Oak Tree Chest: 1st Place
• Fine Woodworking: Furniture 1st Place, Division Winner (Oak Tree Chest); Accessories: 1st Place Division Winner (Rhapsody)
• Ventura County Fair: Ada Callahan Juried Professional Arts Show: Wood 1st Place & 3rd Place
PUBLICATIONS & ASSOCIATIONS
• FINE WOODWORKING MAGAZINE, October 2004 Issue
• WOODWORKER’S JOURNAL, December 2005 Issue
• WOODWORKER WEST, 2002, 2006, 2008. 2010, July-Aug., 2011
• VENTURA COUNTY STAR, Artist Profile February 23, 2010
• VENTANA MAGAZINE, Featured Artist Profile December, 2011
GALLERIES & ASSOCIATIONS
• Aquarius Gallery; Cambria, CA
• Northwest Fine Woodworking; Seattle, WA
• Pacific Dreams; Ventura, CA
• North Wind Studios; Ventura, CA
• Accolades; Ventura, CA
• Art Attack; Incline Village, Lake Tahoe
• Silver State Gallery; Reno, NV
• Ojai Center For The Arts, The Little Gallery; Ojai, CA
• United Wood Craftsmen Gallery; Big Bear, CA - Current
• Red Brick Gallery; Ventura, CA
• Woodcraft Store; Ventura, CA (Exhibiting & Teaching) - Current
• Once A Tree Gallery; Anaheim, CA
• San Luis Obispo Museum of Art - The 2009 Exhibiting Artist for Dimensions show
(representing Ventura County)
• City of Ventura Art Walk
• Ojai Art In The Park
• Conejo Valley Woodworkers Assoc.
• Buenaventura Art Assoc. - Current
• Cypress College: Against the Grain 2/4/10 through 3/11/10
• Sylvia White Gallery, Ventura, CA
• Gallery 28, Oxnard, CA
• Cottage Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA
• OVA arts, Ojai, CA, CA
Master Wood Artist - David Blackburn / Article Written by Andrea Kitay - Photos by Michael Robinson Chavez and Aaron Roe