Artist Statement What we perceive and do with our hands will echo in time. As one studies design and craft and turns their own ideas into finished products they start to reach back through history to commune with craftspeople that have gone before. I had the great experience of working for and learning from a master, shipwright Fred Nimiphuis, who helped me to understand the value of passing on information to the next generation, those willing to do the work and learn to become part of the craft tradition. Not only are we expressing ourselves through craft, the artifacts we create and leave for others to study and understand become our legacy and our connection to the past. After leaving college and apprenticing for Fred Nimiphuis as a wooden shipwright, I gained my first knowledge of wood. I taught myself to design and construct furniture over the years and I continue to learn as I teach others. There are a number of special characteristics that are trademarks of my work. One is the importance of selecting individual pieces of wood to enhance the overall design. Another integral feature is the flow of an unbroken line that continues throughout the majority of my designs creating a cohesive and unified quality to the overall outline. This one-dimensional aspect, as seen in profile, may be perceived almost as one looks at a pencil sketch. The line is very crisp and distinct. - Michael Doerr