2023 Emerging Contemporaries Catalogue

Ross Wortham
Sturt School for Wood
Ross spent the past 20 years in the community
services sector and found the craft of woodwork
and fine furniture making later in life. Now, after a
year of intensive study at the Sturt School for Wood
in Mittagong NSW, Ross is proud to call himself a
designer and maker of wooden objects. His focus is
on traditional joinery and arts and crafts ideals. His
work stresses the inherent beauty of the material,
the importance of nature as inspiration, and the
value of simplicity, utility, and sustainability. Ross is
also influenced by the Japanese worldview of ‘Wabi-
Sabi’, which sees beauty in that which is “imperfect,
impermanent, and incomplete”, such as the wood
and natural materials he chooses to work with.
The ‘Gadi bench’ is made from a single bookmatched
piece of American Black Walnut, paying
homage to the iconic century-old telephone table,
and showing a deep respect for the ever-strong
dovetail joint with over 100 hours dedicated to the
dovetails throughout the piece. The legs are splayed
and tapered at two different angles and joined using
traditional mortis and tenons with wooden buttons
attaching the legs to the base allowing for movement
and to ensure it is stable and strong enough to last
for generations. The cushion was a collaboration with
Sydney-based fabric designer Julie Paterson and
is made with natural raw linen and screen printed
by hand. This bench provides a lovely entry table,
occasional chair or even a chaise lounge.
Image: Ross Wortham, Gadi Bench, 2022. Photo: Ashley Mackevicius.