Artist Spotlight: Meet Lloyd Mandel

Lloyd Mandel is a retired surgeon who finally has time to indulge his life-long passion for  woodturning. Lloyd uses found wood from the Charleston "urban forest" to create both simple bowls for everyday use as well as more creative bowls which may be additionally carved and colored. His most challenging pieces are his "sweet gum baskets" which were inspired by Charleston's traditional Gullah sweet grass baskets.

Lloyd also enjoys the challenge of making larger (18-24+ inches in diameter) bowls.  A 20-24" diameter freshly cut (green) log weighs about 250 pounds when placed on the lathe. It is then "rough turned" to about 2" thickness, sealed (to slow the drying, warping and cracking which inevitably occurs) and allowed to sit and dry for 9-12 months. Once dry, the warped bowl is now returned to the lathe and turned to its final shape. At this point, a salad bowl is oiled, or an art piece may be carved, colored, lacquered and buffed.

Come meet Lloyd tonight at our group show "In My Mind" - 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. We've got  art, wine, and live music, plus three other artists in house.