Woodworkers' Monthly Presentation: Adventures in Woodworking

McCormack, who is scheduled to begin teaching woodworking classes at BARN this fall, started out thinking he’d have a career as a scientist. After receiving a bachelor’s degree in biology, he heard about the  Design and Industry Department at San Francisco State University and became immersed in woodworking. Among his teachers was John Kassay, a historian and author of books on Shaker furniture and American Windsor furniture.

Kassay’s influence led McCormack to spend two years in the Cabinet and Furniture Making Program at The North Bennet Street School in Boston. After graduating from that program in 1988, he rented studio space in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts, at a prominent art furniture workshop. Working alongside graduates of Boston University’s Program in Artisanry and the Rhode Island School of Design, he was introduced to new furniture styles. That eventually led him to enroll at RISD, where he received a Master of Fine Arts in Furniture Design in 1996.

Since then, McCormack has been making furniture, teaching youth and adults, kayaking (the complete  Canadian portion of the Inside Passage) and developing an amateur  interest in small boatbuilding.  

The monthly woodworkers' presentations always offer an informative program on some aspect of woodworking. They also provide an opportunity to meet other woodworkers of all skill levels, learn what's new in the shop, and share your thoughts on class offerings and studio operations.

As usual, we’ll have coffee and nibbles. Free and open to all — no need to register.