About me…

I have wandered through the design, woodworking, and timber framing world for the past 30 years. Throughout my education and career I have had many roles – sculptor, studio assistant, furniture maker, timber framer, designer, marketer, and I have often been the mover of very heavy objects. 

My formal training is as a sculptor and designer from the Cleveland Institute of Art. The five year undergraduate program was based on a Renaissance style studio system. The two year foundation coursework focused heavily on drawing, design and painting and was followed by three years of electives and major focus. I lived in two worlds – working with my hands in metal, glass and sculpture studios while also enjoying graphic design and working as a teaching assistant in the graphics design lab. During my final year I had the honor of participating in the New York Studio Program – a studio and academic exchange program in New York City. During my exchange semester I worked for artists as an assistant and explored the city – I fell in love with the energy, architecture and art of the Big Apple and upon completion of my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Cleveland I returned to New York to study architecture at the Graduate School of Architecture Planning and Preservation at Columbia University. During my studies and my continued role as a studio assistant I learned that I missed working with my hands – the furniture building and woodworking jobs I held to help pay for school left a mark on me. Seeking to return to the making and crafting of art and design, and through a bit of luck I was given the opportunity to teach foundation level design and manage a small fabrication shop at the Cleveland Institute of Art.

I took advantage of continuing education credits for instructors and I discovered a magical place called The Heartwood School and fell in love with timber framing – the hands on work, the scale, the connection to craft, history and tradition all appealed to me. From those summer classes at Heartwood I began my journey learning the craft of timber framing. My work experience began by hand cutting frames in a small shop and then moved on to dismantling and repairing barns in eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland and Ohio.

The first timber frame I designed, crafted and installed by myself was a small porch for the renovation of my parent’s house. That small project led to other local clients and I started to take on larger timber projects, in addition to furniture and carpentry work. One fateful day I stopped in at Pioneer Millworks to load my truck up with materials I ordered for a farmhouse renovation and somehow I found myself in the interview room for a timber framer position at New Energy Works. After quite a bit of discussion I accepted their offer and took the leap to move to a production timber frame shop where I gained production experience in the shop and field, eventually moving into the design and engineering department. I adapted quickly to HSB CAD and Hundegger software as a project manager and then was asked to manage the small engineering and design team for timber frame production, eventually working with a small team to re-envision how timber frames were priced, sold and project managed.

The intense production schedule of a rapidly growing business and some personal life challenges collided and to recover from burn out I moved to a small town in Vermont to begin my consulting work with individual timber framers, timber frame companies, engineers, architects and home owners.

On this journey I have enjoyed working in marketing, graphics, carpentry, woodworking, and as a studio assistant to artists. My passion is problem solving – this could be blending the sculptural elements of design with woodworking and heavy timber construction to create a unique structure, or perhaps it is helping clients refine and tell their story with their website, or it might be helping a small shop take take their relationships and design to the next level.

I was born in the Cleveland, Ohio area but I have studied, lived, and worked throughout the US. I fell in love with Vermont after my first visit and made it a goal to live there – along the way I met my wife and we started a family, settling in Burlington. In 2018 as we were planning a timber frame addition to our lovely tiny home in Burlington my wife had the opportunity to accept a career changing position in Switzerland. We relocated outside of Zürich in 2019 and are working to make Switzerland our forever home. We continue to learn German and play in the mountains whenever we can – hiking, skiing, paragliding, and soaking up the magnificent world at our doorstep.

I maintain my relationships with my US friends and clients pushing pixels as an independent designer and consultant. My clients range from homeowners, small timber frame craftsmen, large timber frame shops, architects, engineers, and small businesses.

I work hard to build and maintain relationships through my work. What often starts as a ‘project’ can turn into a lifetime relationship as a client, colleague and friend. If you value relationships, attention to detail, and how all the pieces fit together – please read more about me, have a look at my services to see if I may be of help to you, your team, or your project, read about what clients and colleagues have to say about working with me, and feel free to reach out to contact me.