Coffee Table
Chair
Kate Callahan has lived in Tidewater since preschool age. As part of the relocation of General Electric’s television division to Suffolk, the Callahan family moved from Syracuse, NY, to Chesapeake in 1970. Kate adopted her new home and its accent beautifully.
Kate is the pastoral administrator at the Church of the Resurrection, Portsmouth. She holds associates degrees in business and social sciences from Tidewater Community College. Kate’s Caning employs Kate’s business acumen as well as her creativity and ingenuity, two traits well-represented in a family that includes two mechanical engineers, an economist, an artist, a builder, and a carpenter.
With the high-energy household of two dogs, two cats, three children (now young adults), and husband John Moore III (the builder), Kate frequently works in her father’s nearby workshop.
Artist Statement
"With my usual can-do attitude, I decided to recane a chair of
my parents. Not that my father—engineer, builder, mechanic, and
woodworker—could
not have tackled this. I just beat him to it. So armed with instructional
video and book and my father’s advice, I adopted a trade. Kate’s
Caning was born. Within three years I’d tackled cane, rush, Danish
cord, and innumerable caning patterns as well as the accompanying furniture
repair and refinishing."
"As my confidence and skills blossomed, so did the creative urge to design
a comfortable, truly comfortable, caned chair. I dove into woodworking
and discovered woods, tools, techniques, and more tools, and tapped
my father’s knowledge. The resulting chair, displayed here, is
airy but well-grounded with a strong line inspired by my retriever’s
hind leg. It’s at home in den or living room, traditional or
contemporary home. And it’s comfortable."
"Never
content to sit still, I’ve added an entry table and a sofa
table to my hand-caned, hand-crafted furniture line."
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