Garth Franklin

What kind of maker are you? 

I build furniture out of wood and steel mostly.

What inspired you to start making?

I've always been into craft - I'd make little habitats out of shoe boxes for my beanie babies as a kid. I strung lacrosse sticks most of my life and love having my hands engaged. This transitioned to furniture making when I took a month long course at Colby College in central Maine.

Where are you based out of?

The shop! 726 S 400 W baby

What do you do for work currently?

Self-employed furniture maker

What is the most engaging part of building for you? What do you enjoy most? What do you enjoy least?

Most engaging is the joinery and the final assembly. The structural parts pull my attention as they require the most precision of the build. Finally seeing the piece in its entirety and applying the first coat of finish is the most rewarding party.

I enjoy installations the least- home owners around when you have to hit something hard with a mallet isn't a fun spot to be in.

When do you feel most inspired? 

When the shop’s quiet and I'm grooving and in a long flow in that sweet spot riding the line between challenge and ability.

Where do you want to take your building and designing skills? What do you hope to learn and do with your career? 

Chairs are the most enticing to me. They're mini functional sculptures that I think show off all what a woodworker is about. Their preferences in joinery, style, texture. I've been spending more and more time on the design side of a project before jumping in on the build. Creating my own design identity and visual language is my main goal while maintaining a timeless value to my pieces. I think the most valuable way to ensure a piece of furniture will have a long life aside from its physical strength is to make it so beautiful that the owner won't ever consider replacing it. And that love is passed on through their family.

I hope I always continue to learn in my career. Challenge and curiosity are critical to my fulfillment. I want to be proficient in whatever medium inspires me.

What are some of the biggest challenges you face as a custom builder and designer?

Running a business is a fulltime job. Building and making beautiful objects with skill is a full career. The two of them together is my largest challenge.

Charging what my time is worth is another challenge. I need to perfect every detail of a build to be personally satisfied so I often run into unpaid hours.

What are some pieces that you’ve made that you are the most proud of?

The lounge chair I built for last year's design show. The cherry stools I recently finished. A few dining tables. My grandmother’s urn with hand cut dovetails.

What is your favorite tool/instrument/toy right now?

My spokeshave and my CNC.

Favorite design style: (This can include interior design, photography, painting, architecture, anything!)

My furniture is a bit of a shaker-danish hybrid. My favorite design style is tough to say just one thing. 

What skill do you most want to learn?

I took a month-long blacksmithing course in college. This winter I'm going to get a forge going and start swinging my hammer again.

Favorite thing to listen to while you work:

Mac Miller - Circles

Favorite outfit/footwear to wear to work:

Forsake makes a good boot/sneaker so it's supportive but not bulky. Carhartt overalls on a crisp fall day.

Favorite post-work activity to unwind: 

Kicking back in my lounge chair with a Fisher beer in hand while burning white oak and walnut scraps in my wood burning stove. And mountain biking

Favorite food:

Facil tacos

Favorite band: 

Sublime

Favorite place you’ve traveled: 

Nepal - mystical mountains and a culture so different from my own

Place you want to travel to most and why: 

One of my best friends runs a yoga studio in central Patagonia Chile. I'm planning on doing her yoga retreat then exploring the mountains, rivers, and coast of southern Chile because duh, that's dope.

If you could collaborate with one maker/artist (living or dead) who would it be?

Anna Leigh Moore

Where can people contact you and find out more about you? 

www.franklinwoodworking.com  instagram: @franklinwoodworking