- Fine Woodworking Live

JOIN US August 8 - 11, 2013 NEW HAVEN, CT

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Michael C. Fortune
Steve Latta
Michael Pekovich
Matt Kenney
Christian Becksvoort
Jonathan Binzen
Peter Gedrys
John Tetreault
Philip Lowe

Michael C. Fortune

Steve Latta

Michael Pekovich

Matt Kenney

Christian Becksvoort

Jonathan Binzen

Peter Gedrys

John Tetreault

Philip Lowe

Michael C. Fortune

FWW Contributing Editor Michael Fortune has designed and built furniture for clients across the continent for more than 30 years. A resident of Lakefield, Ontario, he is one of Canada's most acclaimed contemporary furniture masters. A key to Michael's success as a designer/builder is his sketchbook, where he brainstorms and refines ideas before committing to a more detailed illustration of a final design. His old, dog-eared sketchbooks are also a reservoir of new ideas. In 1993, Michael became the first furniture maker to receive Canada's prestigious Bronfman Award for excellence in fine craft. He was inducted into the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 2000. His articles in FWW cover a broad range of topics, from design to technique.

Steve Latta

FWW Contributing Editor Steve Latta teaches furniture making at Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and has a master's degree in furniture history from Penn State. A regular contributor to Fine Woodworking, he has made multiple appearances on PBS's "The Woodwright's Shop" and has lectured on the topic of inlay at Colonial Williamsburg, the Milwaukee Art Museum, Winterthur Museum and Gardens, and other schools and guilds. He and his wife, Elizabeth, live in rural Pennsylvania with their three children.

Michael Pekovich

Michael Pekovich is Fine Woodworking’s art director, and the most prolific furniture maker on staff. Mike caught the hand tool bug when he came to the magazine 15 years ago. On weekends he’s apt to be rummaging for old tools to fill out his collection, and he has written many articles on the topic. His taste in furniture is typical of the magazine’s readers. Growing up in California, he was inspired by the writings and work of James Krenov, and a visit to the Gamble house in Pasadena cemented his love for Arts and Crafts furniture. Upon relocating to Connecticut, Mike developed a passion for the simplicity and subtle proportions of Shaker furniture and for working with hardwoods native to New England.

Matt Kenney

Matt Kenney taught philosophy before he started working as an associate editor at Fine Woodworking. His first big project was a crib for his daughter, which Matt built on a 2 ft. by 10 ft. apartment balcony. Then a professional furniture maker in Camden, S.C., let Matt hang out in his shop and taught him almost everything he knows about the craft. Matt arrived at Fine Woodworking in 2008, and his furniture making, tool making, and general expertise went on overdrive. Along with Mike Pekovich and John Tetreault, Matt is among the most productive woodworkers on staff, and already has a number of articles and videos under his belt.

Christian Becksvoort

Christian Becksvoort is Fine Woodworking’s longest serving contributing editor, at 20 years, and has been making world-class Shaker-style furniture for twice as long as that. He has clients around the world, and does occasional restoration work for the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village. In addition to authoring dozens of articles for Fine Woodworking over the years, Chris is the author of The Shaker Legacy (The Taunton Press, 2000). He lives and works in New Gloucester, Maine.

Jonathan Binzen

Jon first joined Fine Woodworking in 1993 but left for a freelance career. During that time he continued to contribute to the magazine as an author, identifying and interviewing most of the woodworkers whose work appears on the back cover. In February 2012 he rejoined the FWW staff as a senior editor. In the 1980s he taught woodworking at a school for refugees in Philadelphia and later spent several years in Malaysia writing, working in a refugee camp, and making furniture in a Malay shop. These days he lives in New Milford, Connecticut. Between loads of laundry and trips to the elementary school with his daughters, he writes about furniture and interiors.

Peter Gedrys

Peter Gedrys is a professional finisher and the owner of Architectural Finishes LLC, specializing in high-end restoration work. His professional resume includes work on 18th- and 19th-century American and Continental furniture, as well as large-scale commercial finishing projects, including numerous libraries, raised-panel rooms, and mantels. Gedrys also teaches classes on finishing throughout the U.S, and is a frequent contributor to FWW.

John Tetreault

For a woodworker who's had the parts for up to three disassembled barns stacked on his property at any one time, it's no surprise that John enjoys building with reclaimed lumber, wide boards, and oversize timbers. He’s also an avid collector and user of antique hand tools. When not laying out the pages of Fine Woodworking as the magazine's associate art director, John makes art in many forms, furniture, painting, and bronze sculpture, and the big chicken coop in his backyard.

Philip Lowe

Legendary period furniture maker and teacher Philip C. Lowe, a professional woodworker since 1968, has contributed more articles to FWW than almost any other author, except maybe Christian Becksvoort. During his tenure at Boston's North Bennet Street School from 1975 to 1985, Lowe helped to develop the school’s modern-day furniture-making curriculum. Along the way, he opened his own shop in Beverly, Massachusetts, and now runs a school there, the Furniture Institute of Massachusetts.