The Saskatchewan Arts Board has loaned Michael Hosaluk's Stonehouse Bench to the City of Saskatoon for display and use in the new Saskatoon Police Headquarters. Construction of the new Saskatoon Police Service headquarters was completed in June of 2014 and a grand opening ceremony was held on July 16, 2014. The bench is on loan to the City of Saskatoon until 2020.
"This bench idea started in Prince George, British Columbia, as I witnessed the tearing down of the Prince George Hotel, one of the oldest in the province. The large fir wood was salvaged and shipped to Saskatchewan. The wheels came from a friend's farm near the Stone House on the Old Man River, where we had an artist retreat; it had an old barn with beautiful old beams, which was shipped from Wales and reassembled. Upon returning home, the three elements came together and the wedge form was incorporated for support."
Michael Hosaluk – craftsman, artist, designer and educator – lives outside Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, with his wife Marilyn and four children. Hosaluk is internationally recognized as one of the world's most creative "turners." His work covers a wide range of objects and materials ranging from functional vessels and furniture through to entirely sculptural pieces. He has lectured and demonstrated extensively throughout Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, and France. His works have been exhibited in Canada, Australia, Taiwan, France, Germany, China, Japan and the United States. His work is humorous and elegant, possesses character and gesture, full of references to architecture, nature and culture. Michael remains active in his community, freely sharing with others what he has learned, and is committed to creating a greater awareness of crafts in Canada and throughout the world.
{youtube}LQ3N03nZMrU{/youtube}