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Staircase Carpentry: Climbing Volute5 Days: Monday - Friday, July 15th - 19th, 2024, 8AM - 5 PM
Tuition: $1000.00
Ages: 16 & Up
Instructor: Josh Fleming
Instructional Delivery Method(s): In person
Prerequisites: None
Program Level: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Program Description:
Designing and building custom curved staircases offers a unique set of challenges in drafting, woodworking, and the application of trigonometry. In this class, students will focus on one of the most beautiful parts of a curved staircase, the climbing volute and pedestal. The methods learned by this class are among the rarest known in the building trades today.
A climbing volute and matching pedestal are two components of a decorative stairway where the end of the rail descends in a 270 degree spiral at the bottom of the stairs. The word volute is derived from the latin voluta, which describes a spiral or scroll shaped form. Students will draft full scale plan and elevation drawings, carve and shape a solid block of wood into a section of voluted handrail in accordance with a set of design parameters, and carve a spiral shaped pedestal that will accompany the section of rail which follows the radius and pitch change of the volute. These complex forms can be better understood visually by reducing the three dimensions into separate two dimensional planes, and by a theoretical “unraveling” of the ascending spiral shape by considering it as a curved line that wraps around a conical form, starting off level at the base, gradually curving upward until it matches a pitch of around 35 degrees. Students will learn both the theoretical principles and the practical applications of this field of precise mechanical carving.
Josh Fleming is a third generation woodworker and a second generation stair builder. Growing up, he was always helping his dad with house projects and learning what he could about building furniture and carving. It wasn’t until his early 20s that he decided to follow in his fathers footsteps and build custom staircases as a career. 8 years later and now 30 years old, he enjoys a life of self-employment and still has decades of study ahead of him.
Learning Objectives:
Draft a full scale plan and elevation drawing of the curved handrail
Carve and shape a solid block of wood into a section of the voluted handrail
Carve a spiral shaped pedestal
Learn proper joining techniques
Attendance Requirements: Students must attend all days
Location: Sam Beauford Woodshop, 1375 N. Main St, Building 41, Adrian, Michigan 49221
Class Size: Maximum 6 students
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
1375 N. Main St #41, Adrian, MI, United States, Michigan 49221
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