Description
Balance Bench utilizes ash trees that damage was a result of a windstorm on the campus of University of Brockport, Suny NY. The University sent out calls for bench designs. Balance Bench was one of the winning designs.
https://www.brockport.edu/news/stories/campus_art_walk.html
Our blog post features this and that can be viewed here https://www.cosmobarbaro.com/commissioned-furniture/?previewid=2301&preview_nonce=9d26ec3ae2&post_format=standard&_thumbnail_id=2304&preview=true
The design is a combination of minimal and art deco. The dentil edge uses influences from art deco and combines them with both minimal and modern. Resulting in a very clean geometric shapes and modern because it incorporates solid aluminum. A unique texture creates a jewelry type feal to all the parts that have this texture on them. Balance Bench lower aluminum frame texture with a ball mill and a die grinder.  Tedious work that pays off with huge dividends after the final product is complete.
I have utilized this texture technique on several other pieces like. https://www.cosmobarbaro.com/product/recycled-cherry-bench/ https://www.cosmobarbaro.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/charlotte-desk.jpegÂ
The process works like this i had the pleasure of picking this recycled ash up from the sawmill in Churchville, Ny. Each bench design had a specific number of board feet of the ash from the campus of Brockport University. In my case I used the supplied material in a large lamination that ended up becoming the sphere the supports the bench top.
After the lamination were complete the result was a large solid cube of ash. I rough shaped the sphere with a chain saw prior to placing it on the lathe. Once on the lathe I slowly made a 16-inch diameter sphere out of solid ash. The sphere had a very large round tenon at the top which attached to a large round mortise underneath the bench top. The Sphere also has to holes drilled into it
