Winter Canoe Build 09: Community Framing the End Walls

October 31, 2020 - Belfast, ME

Our next community volunteer day came to life on Halloween, wherein Nina, Eileen, Gary, and Amanda came to the shed rescue and offered their mornings to frame the end walls of the shed. This would not only provide added rigidity to the structure, but allow for complete enclosure, in order to work in a (hopefully warm) winter workshop. The 2019 Exhibition didn’t have end walls; we were an open-air wind tunnel that happened to have 10 artists work fluttering whenever a breeze along the harbor would kick up. There wasn’t mental or physical energy (nor time) last year to figure out the end wall construction, but this year, there was plenty of time to scheme the framing, door plans, etc. While the price of kiln-dried lumber was high (and I forget that we have great folks like Viking Lumber, who locally mill rough lumber at more affordable costs, and generously donated the material for this very bow shed last year!), having enough on -hand to get the job done was essential.

As far as personnel, Amanda got her hands on the skilsaw for the first time and is always a champion for getting on ladders. Eileen not only helped with the construction of the bow form and first set of bows last year, she helped in the raising of the exhibition structure at Heritage Park IN THE RAIN when walking by, days before the art show. Gary is now a regular volunteer and has lots of stories, from Denver to Antarctica and more. Nina, who daylights at the Apprenticeshop as the Director of Student Affairs and Outreach, brought her own damn (fine) tools and made quick work of some shimming, framing, and is the quickest way to a good laugh.

Photos: Chris Battaglia