Andrew J. Wainwright
Andrew Wainwright was born in Kitchener-Waterloo, in the heart of Southwestern Ontario, on February the 27th, 1971. His earliest memories involve time spent as a young child working in the bush with his father, surrounded by nature, and this fostered the beginning of what has become a life-long relationship with wood. At this early age he was fascinated with tools and had a natural affinity for their use. As a young teenager he had the good fortune of meeting a teacher, Mr. Bob Hastings, who quickly recognized and encouraged his thirst for woodworking . He subsequently started acquiring his own tools, and gained further experience working for a retired Mennonite farmer, Harold Cressman, who had a small sawmill, which further increased the allure of working with wood.
Through his years at the University of Waterloo, where he studied Biology, he spent his free time working in the bush and on farms, strengthening his relationship with nature. He graduated with an Honours BSc.in1995 but was unsure of which path to take. After volunteering for a few terms in the wood shop at Centennial Public School, he decided to establish his own business, opening AJW Specialty Lumber in 1997. The main focus of this business has been the sale of specialty lumber and undertaking custom millwork, with the latter including a collaboration with Rod Johnstone, a custom stair builder. This allowed limited time for his central passion of creating unique pieces designed, built and finished by one person, i.e. studio furniture, and he has now decided to devote more time to these endeavours.
Although Andrew is largely self-taught, he owes a debt of gratitude to the various skilled woodworkers with whom he has been privileged to work over the past decade. He reads extensively on both the technical and design aspects of woodworking, and believes that the Shakers and James Krenov have been major influences in his approach to his work. This is because both are interested in clean yet subtle lines, and believe that the inherent beauty of the wood is central to their work.
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