A modern-day carpenter who works with the grain
Roosevelt resident creates furniture in small batches at his home studio
BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer

Clockwise from top left, a clock held between two large branches, a hand-carved mask and a piece of furniture are examples of the woodwork Roosevelt resident Gary Edelstein creates.

ROOSEVELT - The symbioses of simple form and function is apparent in Gary Edelstein's life and work.

The modern-day carpenter recently quit his job teaching at Middlesex County Vocational Technical High School in Woodbridge, where he taught wood shop to special-needs students in the eighth grade, to fully pursue a career in woodwork.

Edelstein works out of a small studio in the back of his property. It's there that his latest collection of furniture, titled the "Zen" line, has come to fruition.

The line replicates how the carpenter lives his life. Its simple angular form is reminiscent of the Bauhaus style, which is a boxy and minimalist architecture used to create his and many other Roosevelt homes.

Although he gets some of his wood from Willard Brothers in Trenton, most of the wood he is using to create the Zen line is wood he has accumulated over the years from friends and relatives. The recycling complements how he chooses to live his life as an ethical vegan and someone who treads lightly on this earth.

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One of his latest pieces of furniture is made from 150-year-old white oak that his grandfather from West Virginia gave to him.

"It's a special wood that is more difficult to work with," Edelstein said. "The patina is darker than you usually have with white oak."

Edelstein said many of his creations are made out of air-dried wood, the type of wood a "factory would throw out."

He uses air-dried wood instead of boiled wood because the boiling blends the patina of the wood, which blurs and changes its unique and decorative grains.

Although the wood he chooses to use sometimes causes him to "struggle a lot" during the creation process, Edelstein said the work just takes him to a higher level.

Edelstein sits on a bench from his Zen line of furniture.

"They're not perfect boards," he said, adding that he prefers not to work with veneers or endangered species.

His furniture is mostly constructed of fine domestic hardwoods such as cherry, maple, oak, ash and walnut.

The hardware of each piece seems to disappear into the overall design. He uses a traditional slip joint and makes the brass hinges himself.

Calling himself a purist in the world of wood, he said, "I don't like to use screws."

His work is influenced by James Krenov, who wrote many books on cabinet making, a job Edelstein did for 15 years. He said he is also inspired by William Morris and John Rushkin, two artisans who he said "rebelled against the Industrial Revolution."

Edelstein believes the Industrial Revolution disconnected humans from the creation of their goods.

Although he uses some modern technology in the creation of his works, Edelstein said he mostly relies on hand tools to create the small batches of furniture he makes.

Here he displays a rocking horse and a storage cabinet "face" that he crafted.

"Woodworking is pretty much the same as it always has been," he said. "Technology gets quicker and better and cheaper, but it does not replace the craftsman. Tools can only help a craftsman.

Taking between three to four weeks to make each piece of furniture, Edelstein said he remains connected with his work.

"My interest is putting out work as well as I can do it," Edelstein said.

He hand-scrapes and hand-sands during the final phase of creating each piece before applying an oil finish.

"Power sanders don't bring out the luster of the wood, they kill it off," he said.

Edelstein said unlike a factory, he pays attention to the grains of the wood and performs what is called "book matching" so that the wood's natural character has symmetry in each piece.

Because of the texture and grain of the unique woods he uses, Edelstein said, he doesn't have to do a lot with it.

"Simplicity," he said, "hence the name Zen."

For a little flair in the Zen line, Edelstein uses a Mortis machine, which cuts little square holes, to insert small pieces of ebony into the corners of some of his furniture.

When asked about the pricing of his pieces, Edelstein said, "They are considerably higher than the factory stuff, but the pieces are made in little batches. I'm not a machine spitting out pieces, and I'm not exploiting other people's labor."

Edelstein is known throughout the Roosevelt community for his contributions to various community projects. He created a weaving for the borough's production of "Our Town" and the woman in the woods for the production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." He also created a number of the panels for the Roosevelt Arts Project's "Art in the Factory" show.

Edelstein said he loves working with his hands and they have always been his strength. He has sold small turnings and dovetail boxes at a gallery in New York City and he taught woodwork for 14 years, but recently decide to give up his job to try to pursue woodwork as a career.

"It's a sort of conflict of philosophy," Edelstein said. "Because if it were up to me, I would make the stuff and push it out the door, and let the world take it away and leave food and other goods behind."

For more information visit www.edelsteinfurniture@com.